Embryo Adoption Awareness Day

November is National Adoption Month. We are pro-adoption, in whatever form, but since we personally have grown our family through Embryo Adoption, I wanted to take today to raise a little bit of awareness.

I am a part of an Embryo Adoption group on Facebook, and a few years ago they declared November 25th as Embryo Adoption Awareness Day. It's not an option that many people know about; we certainly had never heard of it until we started exploring fertility treatments and adoption. So the Facebook group decided to dedicate a day in November to help share information about it.

Obviously, we LOVE this option. It's how we were able to grow our family, how we have Eli and Maddie. So we want others to know more about it! So here are some a lot of facts about embryo adoption/donation (EDA).

The Process:

• When your family building is done, your remaining embryos do not need to be destroyed or donated to science. They can thrive and develop into healthy kids in loving families!
• Donor embryos are often lovingly referred to as "snowflakes" due to their uniqueness, size, and preciousness {not to mention they were frozen!}
• There are over 600,000 embryos in cryo-storage in the United States alone. Many of those are stored indefinitely as families do not know alternatives other than destruction or donation to science exist. EDA gives these embryos a chance at life.
• In the eyes of the law, EDA is a transfer of property and requires much fewer hurdles than traditional adoptions. As an example, while home studies may be required by certain agencies {we did one}, it is not a mandatory requirement to adopt an embryo.
• You can work with an EDA agency, a fertility clinic, or look for recipients/donors yourself. You can choose the option that feels right for you.
• Once the embryo(s) are donated, they are legally yours. You are the child's mother and your spouse is the child's legal parent regardless of genetics.
• Like traditional adoption, there are many types of embryo adoption: anonymous, semi-open with periodic updates, and open where both families stay in touch as the child grows.
• In many cases, EDA is much less expensive and less medically invasive than an IVF cycle.
• There is currently no limitation on length of being frozen. In fact, there have been children born from embryos frozen for 19+ years!
• In many instances, EDA allows background and medical history on the embryos you have received.
• You can adopt embryos of any race or mix of races, for example, to add to an already transracial adoptive family.
• You don't need to match the embryo blood type to adopt an embryo.

Pregnancy/Children:

• EDA allows women to experience pregnancy and birth when they otherwise may have been unable.
• EDA is an effective option compatible with most types of male and female infertility diagnoses.
• EDA allows parents to bond with the baby while the mother is pregnant.
• During pregnancy, your body may influence an embryo's gene expression due to a process called epigenetics. Although not guaranteed, your child might have your cute button nose after all.
• EDA allows you the opportunity to breastfeed your adopted child.
• Children born from donated/adopted embryos are just as healthy as their typically conceived peers.
• There are EDA specific support groups so you don't have to walk the journey alone. Your future children can exist in a community with similarly conceived children.

We love sharing the story the Lord has written for us. You can read more about our story here on this blog. Or please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions! :)