Here at Love & Kindness, we receive tons of questions from potential Surrogates asking if surrogacy is right for their specific situation. We receive so many of these questions, that we’ve created a blog series called Can I Be A Surrogate If… to give answers to our most commonly asked questions. In this blog we will discuss how a tubal ligation might affect your ability to be a Surrogate.
What is a Tubal Ligation?
Tubal Ligation, or having your tubes tied, is a common method of birth control involving tying off the tubes in a woman’s body. Each month, a woman’s egg travels from the ovaries to the uterus through the fallopian tubes. A tubal ligation is a minor surgery in which the fallopian tubes are cut, blocked, or tied. This procedure prevents the sperm and the egg from connecting during ovulation. Though this procedure will inhibit a woman’s ability to become pregnant, it will not affect a woman’s hormones or overall reproductive health.
Although the procedure is a minor one and comes with little complications, reversing a tubal ligation is complicated and can come with a multitude of problems. For this reason, doctors ensure that women undergoing the procedure understand this information and are sure about their decision. If you have undergone a tubal ligation and came here for the answer to the question – Can I be a Surrogate if I’ve had my tubes tied? – then we feel it’s safe to assume that you are probably done growing your family.
Tubal Ligation & Surrogacy
Having a tubal ligation is beneficial in terms of a surrogacy journey for multiple reasons.
- This is an indication that you are done growing your family. Becoming a Surrogate comes with medical risks to your physical health and fertility health, as with pregnancy in general. If you have undergone a tubal ligation, then you’ve most likely decided that your personal fertility journey is over, and you are not concerned with changes to your fertility health that might come with surrogacy.
- A tubal ligation is a highly effective form of birth control. Since in most cases you will not be taking birth control while going through IVF treatments, having a tubal ligation is extra reassurance that you will not become pregnant with a baby of your own during your surrogacy journey.
During a surrogacy journey, it is not necessary for a surrogate to have fallopian tubes at all. Since a tubal ligation does not affect a woman’s menstrual cycle, she is still able to effectively carry and grow a baby in her uterus.
The IVF (In Vitro Fertilization) method does not involve a woman’s fallopian tubes, rather a healthy embryo is inserted into a surrogate’s uterus using a catheter. This is a minimally invasive 20-minute procedure that is done in a sterile environment in an IVF clinic.
“Can I be a Surrogate if I’ve had my tubes tied?” Yes! We would love to have you join the Love & Kindness family as a Surrogate!
If this is the situation you find yourself in, we would love to discuss the specifics of your potential surrogacy journey with you further. If you meet other physical and mental requirements of surrogacy, you can begin your journey to becoming a surrogate today!