Surrogate Amanda: The Perfect Ending To A Surrogacy Journey!

Deciding to become a surrogate is the first step in one of the most unique and rewarding life experiences. As Pathways To Parenthood’s surrogate Amanda highlights in her story, the surrogacy process has many steps, potential stops and starts, and unexpected turns. But the end of her surrogacy journey led to a beautiful life and a beautiful new start for a family that made it all worth it!

Amanda recently culminated her amazing surrogacy journey delivering a beautiful, healthy baby girl. She shared some of her thoughts about her surrogacy journey with us recently.

What was the best part of your surrogacy journey (aside from the birth of a beautiful baby)?

There were many high points in my surrogacy pregnancy.  I enjoyed the relationship that I formed with the intended parents and other surrogates I met along the way.  I appreciated the strong work of my surrogacy agency, as well as my legal and medical teams. The best part of this journey was having the opportunity to experience pregnancy again in such a new and exciting way.  My intended parents gave me the honor of creating and protecting their miracle baby, and I was fascinated by each change in my body as it morphed and made room for their child to grow and come into this world.

What was it like to see your intended parents hold their baby after you gave birth? 

I got to see the moment they put this little baby into her mother’s arms.  I can’t begin to quantify the bewildered joy on her face, but I knew in that moment that any struggle in this journey was worth it.  Seeing baby snuggled with her parents in the hospital almost brought me to tears.  I was reminded of why I did this, to unite these wonderful people with their precious miracle. 

How did you feel after the baby was born? 

Initially, I was elated, exhausted, and sore.  As the days went on after delivery, I got to ride the hormonal rollercoaster.  About the time the excess fluid left, so did my excess in moods. Never underestimate the power of hormones.  I got through it, and my body has been steadily on the mend.  I have been able to exercise regularly and have established a good schedule for pumping breast milk for surro-baby.

Do you think that you will be a surrogate again? 

I would become a surrogate again without hesitation.  Despite its challenges, this experience was so joyful and positively life-altering that it solidified my desire to complete another journey.

Do you have any advice for women that are considering becoming a surrogate? 

This experience will change you as a person, so please take your time deciding whether you want to take this journey. Even under the best circumstances, it requires a level of hard work and dedication found almost nowhere else in life.  Prepare yourself for the potentials for heartache and loss, because not everything goes according to plan.  Expect to adapt throughout the process like my IPs and I did during a global pandemic and major law changes.  This journey will also not be a fast one.  There are an incredible number of elements in a surrogacy journey, and they all necessitate their own time frames to ensure everyone’s health and safety.  With that being said, there is an immense amount of joy in the experience of being a surrogate.  You will meet amazing people, have outstanding teams working with you, get to be a part of a medically miraculous experience, and potentially (and likely) bring a precious child into this world to help start or complete a family.