The Screening

There are a lot of things one must go through on the road to becoming a surrogate. Extensive interviews, psychological evaluations, and medical screenings are among the hurdles one must pass.
Back in 2004, I agreed to do an egg donation with the same agency we are with now but the results were unsuccessful. Because of that, I was already pre-screened to begin the surrogacy.
We began with many phone interviews to the company dealing mainly with "S". Talking about medical history, family, and answering questions. Giving us plenty of time to think it through and decide whether we wanted to go on. Then came time for us to pull my past medical histories and reviewing all 3 previous pregnancies and labors. My labors and pregnancies have been favorable so we continue. Then came the psychological screening. I endured about 4 hours of testing and interviews. Apparently, I'm not crazy because we passed that screening as well. Now it's time to find a couple.
This is no easy task, the stories are heartbreaking. Every couple trying to have a child has a story behind them that is very sad. "S's" company does not help couples who are wanting a surrogate to avoid getting fat or for frivolous reasons. Each of these couples have a medical problem or cancer or they have been battling infertility for many years and generally surrogacy seems to be their last hope. How do you choose one over another?
We initially met with 2 other couples but neither set ended up working out. During this time I had a medical screening and met with Dr. Richard Marrs, author of the "Dr. Marrs Infertility Book". This man is a nationally acclaimed guru in the world of reproduction. His office was beautiful! In the lobby, inlaid into the front desk, was a long row of tattered papers. To me it looked like a huge row of old medical files which unnerved me at first until I realized it was an architectural detail!
Remaining firm in our values slowed down the process for a short time after the meeting with Dr. Marrs. We were beginning to think maybe this wasn't the right thing for us to do.
But then in April we got a call that the perfect couple had arrived.