Can I be a surrogate if I have never given birth before? The idea of becoming a surrogate is quite powerful and it’s inspiring that you want to help someone build their family, but the answer is no. One of the requirements for being a surrogate is you must have given birth before. This ensures both yours and the baby’s safety and the best outcome for the intended parents.

  • To become a surrogate, you must have given birth to a healthy child.
  • Prior pregnancy experiences show if you can safely carry a baby.
  • Having carried a child of your own shows that you understand the process and the value of family.
  • Often intended parents feel more comfortable working with experienced surrogates.
  • Women who haven’t given birth before may qualify to become egg donors.

Intended Parents Want the Safest Option

Intended Parents choosing the surrogacy route need to feel confident and know that their surrogate can carry a pregnancy successfully to term and give birth to a healthy child. Many surrogacy laws in the U.S enforces this policy, as does the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. This is one of the one of the most important requirements to become a surrogate.

While you may be perfectly healthy and have no physical or medical reasons for not being able to carry a pregnancy, this is still not a guarantee you’ll be able to deliver a baby successfully. Having no history as a mother is like getting on a plane with a pilot who has never flown before!

You Know the Emotions Involved

When you have a child of your own, you’ve been through pregnancy experience, and you know what to expect. The fact that you’re willing to go through it again for someone else will assure them that you’re a kind, selfless person.

It’s also a sign that you understand the value of family. You know how incredible this gift will be for someone who can’t have children of their own. And, as strange as it may sound, a surrogate who already has her own child is less likely to feel the need to keep the surrobaby she is carrying.

You Understand the Physical Aspects of Pregnancy

Pregnancy isn’t easy. On top of the physical changes, your body will be swamped with hormones. These hormones can make you feel exhausted, weepy, forgetful, and irritable. Pregnancy changes your body and will affect your fitness, sleep, social life, and how you interact with your family.

If you’ve been through pregnancy before, you’ll expect these things, but a first-time pregnancy can be quite overwhelming, especially when you won’t be keeping the baby. If you are stressed, the baby will be stressed. Stress can increase your chances of having a premature baby or a baby of low weight. Both of these factors can increase the baby’s risk for future health issues.

Intended Parents Want the Best Outcome for Their Baby

Intended Parents like any other parents want a healthy baby. They’ve invested a huge amount of their time, money, and hope into this journey. More than anything in the world, they want a successful pregnancy.

If you’ve already had a healthy pregnancy of your own, there’s a better chance your surrogate pregnancy will be a healthy one, too. But if you’ve never had children, there’s just no way of knowing. Carrying a baby can come with many complications that you may not even know about until you’re pregnant – or even later.

Being a Surrogate Requires More Than Having a Big Heart

Yes, being a surrogate is a wonderful choice, but as you can see, having a baby for someone else takes a lot more than just goodwill. There are many requirements to become a surrogate, and having given birth before is a non-negotiable one.

Keep in mind that even if you can’t be a surrogate, you may still qualify to be an egg donor. Having a child isn’t a prerequisite for donating eggs, and it’s a beautiful way to help someone else start a family. The qualifications are a little different, so it’s a good idea to check out the requirements for becoming an egg donor first.

If you’d like to know more about what surrogacy and egg donation involves, get in touch! Our friendly team at FSC would love to share their own experiences with you.

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Staci Swiderski, CEO and owner of Family Source Consultants, has been a prominent leader in reproductive medicine for over two decades. Through her strategic vision and dedication, she has developed Family Source Consultants into a globally recognized agency specializing in comprehensive egg donation and gestational surrogacy services. Under Staci’s leadership, the agency has become a trusted partner for intended parents, surrogates, and egg donors worldwide, known for its rigorous standards, compassionate support, and commitment to excellence in third-party reproduction.

Her professional insight is uniquely informed by her own family-building experiences. As an intended parent, Staci welcomed her son via gestational surrogacy in 2005, and as a known egg donor, she assisted an infertile couple in expanding their family. These experiences lend a rare depth to her leadership and have fueled her ongoing dedication to ethical, empathetic, and professional support within the field of reproductive medicine.