Low sperm count?
Printed From: OHbaby!
Category: Support
Forum Name: Coping with infertility
Forum Description: Have you been trying to conceive unsuccessfully? Dealing with primary or secondary infertility? Get support, advice, and help coping here.
URL: https://www.ohbaby.co.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=38180
Printed Date: 28 April 2024 at 9:52am
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Topic: Low sperm count?
Posted By: princesssparkly
Subject: Low sperm count?
Date Posted: 27 February 2011 at 4:22pm
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my DH has just got his results from his sperm count. We have been ttc for 20 months after mc. He said that it is not too bad but from what i have read it is not fantastic either......4 million per ml
"normal is 20 million per ml" the dr did say that the sample was healthy so that is good. I have an apt with my GP tomorrow and will ask to be referred to Fertility Associates :-( We did get pregnant this time two years ago so hopefully it will happen again soon. I am getting very impatient! Dr has recommended Menovit. I have tried not to make too many suggestions to DH as i think he has taken the news hard. Has anyone eles partners had a similar result? |
Replies:
Posted By: trouble06
Date Posted: 27 February 2011 at 5:56pm
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Hi we have MFI - so we need to do IVF ISCI - my DH has aso been taken menevit for last 2 months - will be interesting to see if it makes a difference.
Good luck ------------- Me 35 DH 40 IVF ISCI Nov BFN FET Jan 2011 Chem FET April 2011 M/C 7 weeks |
Posted By: princesssparkly
Date Posted: 27 February 2011 at 6:43pm
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Hi Trouble06 sorry for my naivety what is MFI?
I hope that the Menevit has worked for your DF :-) |
Posted By: _H_
Date Posted: 27 February 2011 at 7:17pm
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I believe its Male Factor Infertility (or something along those lines!) ------------- http://lilypie.com" rel="nofollow"> 
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Posted By: princesssparkly
Date Posted: 27 February 2011 at 8:19pm
| Oh that makes sense. Thanks _Waiting_ :-) |
Posted By: louloubell
Date Posted: 27 February 2011 at 10:00pm
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Hi Princessparkly
Has your DH has a virus or flu lately? Sometimes that can affect the sperm count? My DH had swine flu and his count basically halved by 50%!! Apparently, it can return up to normal within 4-5 mths. We are just about to try ICIS after years of trying - my DH went through the sperm analysis once again but this was done at the Fertility associates Lab and his sperm was tested for MAR - mixed antiglobulin reaction. I wish we got tested for this early on  It confirmed a positive result for my DH - the other sperm tests DO NOT pick this up. Basically, my husband tested 41% MAR - this means 41% of his sperm are not effective because it carries an antisperm antibody. The sperm clump together therefore making conception unlikely except through IVF/ICSI.
My DH started taking Menovit a month ago - it will be interesting to see how his count is on the day we do egg collection 
All the best princesssparkly, I hope you get have a good appt with FA - they are great and will guide you in the right direction.  ------------- Me; 32 DH: 31 Me: Gr 4 endo DH: MAR 41% 1st ICIS apr 11 - chem no frosties 6mths off IVF to try with help of Naturopath! |
Posted By: SunshineWife
Date Posted: 28 February 2011 at 8:47am
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Hi princesssparkly and the rest!
My DH also has very low count, around 1 ml!! We are now with Repromed and will be doing IVF with ICSI in March/April. In terms of Menevit, it is not supposed to increase count unfortunately. My DH has been taking it for almost three months and had done sperm tests before and during taking the Menevit and there was no improvement. He was a bit surprised as we both thought it might at least make a small difference...but when we talked to our fertility specialist at Repromed he advised that Menevit will make the sperm healthier, but not increase count. He highly recommends taking it as it means that if you are doing IVF or any other protocols (or lucky enough to still get pregnant naturally!) you have better chances of having a healthy embrio and less chances of miscariage as the sperm would've been the healthiest it can be. If you think ...you need a healthy egg and a healthy sperm to make a healthy baby. So us girls take all sorts of vitamins and supplements, drugs and injections and the rest...and might still have to go through ART to get that baby! Well the guy needs to do the same... do everything possible to increase the health of his sperm. |
Posted By: louloubell
Date Posted: 28 February 2011 at 1:25pm
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Wow, I thought Menevit increased sperm count! That is what I was lead to believe anyway! Thanks SunshineWife learnt something new today! All the best for your ICIS in March/April ------------- Me; 32 DH: 31 Me: Gr 4 endo DH: MAR 41% 1st ICIS apr 11 - chem no frosties 6mths off IVF to try with help of Naturopath! |
Posted By: snooze
Date Posted: 28 February 2011 at 7:16pm
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DH count is 4mil and we needed to do ICSI for DS and the one on the way. We were never told that it might work naturally unfortunately (maybe because of our ages). Menevit increases sperm quality not quantity... ------------- http://lilypie.com">  http://lilypie.com">
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Posted By: princesssparkly
Date Posted: 28 February 2011 at 8:19pm
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Thankyou for all your replies ladies.
No DH has not been ill lately louloubell. But in saying that we have both put on an extra weight in the last year so we are going to work on our weight. Infact i have decided that i want to loose 15gs. My BMI is 29 and i would love for it to be 25 or under. I went to see my Awesome GP today he has made the referal to FA I just have to do a few bloods and he suggested that DH has another sample done. I will ring FA tomorrow. My GP advised that we should pay for the inital consultation and see how many points we have and what the waits are from there. I rang my hubby (who is working away this week) and told him what my GP had said. He mentioned that he had an undecented testical when he was younger so he thinks that he only has one functioning testical! he didnt mention this previously. So perhaps this has something to do with the sperm count? Thanks SunshineWife and snooze for mentioning that menevi will not increase the quantity just the quality. DH will be visiting the chemist on payday. I wish you the best of luck with your ICIS louloubell and Sunshinewife. I look forward to hearing how you both get on. Snooze that is great ICIS has worked for you twice. I have only just turned 30 and DH is 36 so i guess time is on our side. |
Posted By: rachb
Date Posted: 02 March 2011 at 12:29pm
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hi everyone, we are also in the same boat with MFI - I too thought that menevit increased count bout then found out it only improves quality.
We are starting our IVF with ICSI in Nov this year, hopefully we will have a good sample on the day and not have to use our frozen sample. We have done 2 samples so far (one they froze and the other wasn't) and the 2nd one was worse than the first one  even after taking the menevit.
Good luck to everyone - Is anyone else having IVF round Nov? ------------- http://lilypie.com"> 
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Posted By: fozziebear
Date Posted: 02 March 2011 at 12:41pm
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Hi Guys,
DH and I are in the same situation with MFI. DH has less then 1M. The first appointment we had at F+ was with a great doctor that gave us a lot of advise to help with the low count (no Miracle cure he did remind us). Basically we got told the it takes the swimmers about 3 months to develop therefore we needed to make sure that a minimum of 3 months before we had IVF/ICIS we make sure that we start really looking after both of our bodies. Ie eat healthy, exercise, no excessive heat for DH in that region etc. Unfortunately for us we have now been through one cycle of IVF/ICIS with 1 BFN and 1 BFP that resulted in a MC at 6 weeks. The hope however that we did see a small increase in DH's samples since starting on this "we must be healthy kick". Good luck to everyone and baby dust to all. |
Posted By: princesssparkly
Date Posted: 02 March 2011 at 4:48pm
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Im so sorry to hear about your heartbreaking MC fozziebear I hope that you get a sticky one very soon.
I have made my apt at FA for the end of the month but got the news that we are not eligable for funding. I burst into tears at work as we have just got married and spend all our $ on the wedding. She did mention that if we tried for 4 years (its been 2 years so far) that we "might" be eligable. Im not entirley convinced that there will even be funding in 2 years time with the state of the country and the economy. I wish you all the luck in the world Rachb for your Nov round. Perhaps If i win lotto before then i will join you |
Posted By: fozziebear
Date Posted: 02 March 2011 at 4:53pm
| princesssparkly - thank you for your kind words. I am surprised on the 4 year wait. I thought that was for unexplained Infertility? Not give up hope yet. After you first consulation you will have a better idea where you stand. With our low sperm count we had to be trying for 1 year and it took a year on the the waiting list. Our public cycle starts this April. I will have by fingers crossed for you that the nurse just had her facts wrong. |
Posted By: kiwikt
Date Posted: 02 March 2011 at 4:58pm
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princess...we have MFI with under 4million sperm count and poor motility.
We had only been trying a year when we did our first round of IVF - we did go private. However, if we didnt - due to the severity of the MFI we would have gone straight on the public waiting list if I meet the BMI requirements. Wait until after you meeting with the doctor. You will have more info then and you may qualify straight away - that being said you could spend up to 2 years on the public list depending on demand. ------------- Due 14/10/11 http://lilypie.com"> 
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Posted By: JaneW
Date Posted: 02 March 2011 at 5:44pm
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Hi Princess- we are dealing with MFI too, I'm suprised to hear you may not qualify for funding.... My DH originally had a count of 2 million(gone down to less than 1 mill on his last SA :( ) and we were put on the waiting list after having tried naturally for a year. Hopefully you will find out more at your appointment and as the others said-maybe they just got it wrong.Best of luck! ------------- Me 28, DH 30 ttc #1 Feb 2009 MFI ICSI December 2010 FET April...BFP!! Baby girl due 3rd Jan 2012 |
Posted By: rosiefarmer
Date Posted: 02 March 2011 at 6:02pm
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Goodness, I have a very similar story, my DH has less that 2 million count - due to arthritis meds he has been taking over the years. He had to go off all his meds for 3 months before we could start our IVF process publicly. The 3 months he was off his meds was a awful 3 months to watch, but we did manage to get 12 straws of sperm frozen and now he is on a new wonderful medication. 6 months later we did our 1st public round with ICIS which followed by a chemical pregnancy.
I also have endometitis (can never spell it correctly) and mild PCOS to add to our difficulities. Good luck to everyone ------------- IVF - ICIS 1 - June 2010 BFN TER - Oct 2010 BFN IVF - ICIS 2 - April 2011 BFP 
31st May no heartbeat D & C  ,
[url=http://lilypie.com]  [
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Posted By: louloubell
Date Posted: 02 March 2011 at 6:04pm
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Hi princess - I think it is odd how you don't get public funding with low sperm count? Don't give up hope till you go to FA clinic! The others are right! Tell them how long you have been trying and how often etc any family history or gyno probs...tell them everything you poss can... ask about the MAR test (extra male sperm test) if that is positive you may be put on the list straight away.... I know this all sux and is frustrating... take a nice long bath tonight with a glass of vino and solider back on tomorrow. This journey is definitely challenging to say the least... but hopefully with the support of this forum and your DH, it makes things a wee bit easier ------------- Me; 32 DH: 31 Me: Gr 4 endo DH: MAR 41% 1st ICIS apr 11 - chem no frosties 6mths off IVF to try with help of Naturopath! |
Posted By: princesssparkly
Date Posted: 03 March 2011 at 9:16pm
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Hi ladies.
Sorry i should have mentioned that it is secondary infertility. I have a beaufiul 8 year old princess from a pervious relationship. Because she is under 12 and living it home that knocks me out of funding even if we score maximum medical points. Even though my husband is not her father (just an amazing step-dad). I do realise that i am very lucky to have a daughter but i would love the opportunity for my husband to have at least one child and a brother or sister for my daughter. Thank you for all the advice, I did have as hot bath and an early night last night. I have started back at the gym and have sorted out my diet :-) I will definitely get DHs tested for MAR thanks for the tip louloubelle. I think i just just shocked that we went from full of hope TTC to getting shocked by the low sperm count and realising that we need serious help all within a few days. I guess it takes a while to accept. I played vet nurse and helped DH operate on my sisters dog tonight (DH is a vet) we neutering him. I must say i had to laugh at the irony
P.S louloubelle your dog is beautiful |
Posted By: rachb
Date Posted: 11 March 2011 at 10:20pm
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Just out of curiosity - How many samples do other people have frozen at the moment?
We currently have 1 sample up at FA Hamilton and they have thawed one straw to make sure it was ok. Does anyone know how many samples you are allowed to have frozen up there under public funding? Princess Sparkly - i know what you mean about being shocked about needing help to concieve i burst into tears at our first appointment when they told us. Also does anyone know how far in adavance you need to start preparing for ur IVF and the things you need to do to prepare yourself? ------------- http://lilypie.com">
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Posted By: JaneW
Date Posted: 12 March 2011 at 7:58am
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Hey rachb, we have one lot of sperm frozen too-not sure about doing more with the public funding....maybe we would have to pay for it? We haven't needed to use it yet anyway but it's nice to know there is a back up!
I terms of getting yourself ready-the general guide that I got from other people was around 3 months before...certainly in terms of vitamins and folic acid etc. I think I completely cut out alcohol one month before, and had already cut out caffeine since we had started ttc. I also started walking a few times a week-especially when we were actually doing IVF as I was told to stop the gym for that time...the walking was great thought and helped clear my head! I was doing acupuncture for quite a few months before we started too. Just do what you can though-I found if i was too regimented with everything it put more stress on myself anyway! So you're starting in November?The way this year is flying by it will be here before you know it! ------------- Me 28, DH 30 ttc #1 Feb 2009 MFI ICSI December 2010 FET April...BFP!! Baby girl due 3rd Jan 2012 |
Posted By: lsttcdiver
Date Posted: 12 March 2011 at 9:28am
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Hi ladies,
We're in the same boat as most of you, though I have to say your counts look fantastic compared to my hubbie!!! In his last sample they foud 5, yes 5 sperm! He has since had a TESA and we had 3 starws of sperm frozen, 1 we have just used this cycle and they had enough to ICSI 4 eggs, so we were lucky there! I would say the biggest thing for me in getting ready for this cycle was my attitude, I was not ready for it last time but this time was very much more positive and that has helped me throughout. I recommendation I had was to take royal jelly to help with egg quality and you need to start taking these 3 months before egg collection as it takes that long for them to get ready for ovulation! Wishing you all all the best xx |
Posted By: spanky77
Date Posted: 12 March 2011 at 4:44pm
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Not here this often but just seen your thread, yeah, we're in a similar boat.
saw FAW last week and found out DP has count of 4 million. He had a sperm test last year and when he got the result (5 million) googled all the ranges for count, motility etc, and came back and told me it was all fine!! So I didn't even worry about that (even though I google everything for fertility, I let him take some part in this!) When we first got together he told me that he might be infertile, as one of the side-effects of his condition (AS) is low sperm count apparently, and he had been tested when ttc with previous girlfriend and count had come back low. Just before we moved here, I asked him to get this done again, as if we were going to have issues ttc, I wanted to know there and then, he did, and told me the result was good. Didn't question that. I think he's just made honest mistakes though, not tried to pull the wool (if my post is coming across like that!!) But the odd thing is we have got utd 3 times, twice not trying but not preventing! Oh and whoever posted about menevit, thanks! I was under the impression that increased count too, so its good that I'm not going to waste money on it! (DP has lots of vits etc, he's a bit of a freak with that stuff!!) ------------- 3x miscarriages, balanced translocation likely culprit. BFP from 2nd round IVF, The Bonk born in May 2013 |
Posted By: SunshineWife
Date Posted: 14 March 2011 at 12:41pm
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Hi girls,
My DH had three SA tests donw at the labtest (just via his GP referral) and they were all under 1 mil count. Well, we are now on the way to IVF and ICSI and had another SA done this time at Repromed, they have just called to say that his count is around 10k. Not mil, but 10 thousand!!! I don't even know what to think...... I had such hopes on this test as he has been taking Menevit and doing acupuncture and herbs...we really thought that there will be an improvement as this is a specialist test and all that.... They said motility was around 90% which is an improvement from the last times (it was 50%, then 0%, then 20%...so all over the place....)so maybe menevit and the rest has helped here.... But there were so few of them in the sample that they couldn't even perform all the quality tests they normally do.... :'( Not even sure what to think now. They say there's still enough for ICSI, but it worries me that the count is THAT low! Does anybody's DH have a similar count? Has anyone got any positive results/stories to share?? I'm really bummed out about this. Am currently waiting for my AF (due today) to start injections and all.... but with these SA results, maybe we need more time to get DH a bit healthier? Ahh....all these roadblocks... not fun at all :( ------------- Me 27, DH 25 (MFI) IVF + ICSI March '11 BFN and no frosties |
Posted By: kiwikt
Date Posted: 14 March 2011 at 1:52pm
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Sunshineswife...I dont think there is much more you can do regarding sperm counts. Research has shown that menevit/diet etc can improve quality of sperm, but not necessarily count.
Has DH stopped drinking? FYI - your counts could always have been that low. Labtests are not that reliable when it comes to SA. We have MFI too - but in the 1-5 million range (depending on which test you want to count). But our quality was quite low. It worked for us. All they need is one good sperm with ICSI. It has been successful when there were one or two sperm to choose from! ------------- Due 14/10/11 http://lilypie.com">
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Posted By: SunshineWife
Date Posted: 14 March 2011 at 2:04pm
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Thanks kiwikt! Yeah, I knew menevit wouldn't increase count....I donno, just for some reason felt that he'd get a better result as we've found out that we have MFI in December and since then he stopped drinking (he never drunk much anyway, but went down to 1-2 beers max and only once a week or so, and the last couple of months hasn't really drunk at all, even stopped drinking coffee!). I keep feeding him nuts and seeds, and lots of vegetables and colourful foods for antioxidants etc.....
I was a bit suprised that they couldn't perform some of the quality tests because of the low count....cos as you say they only require 1 sperm for icsi, so why couldn't they just pick one and test it for everything?! I guess there's more to it. Hoping that the doctor will give DH a ring and explain the results further, he had only talked to the lab guy this morning who said that it's still ok for ICSI..... I guess we'll go ahead and hope for the best this cycle. So good to hear that there've been positive outcomes for couples with similar results! thanks very much for your encouragement x ------------- Me 27, DH 25 (MFI) IVF + ICSI March '11 BFN and no frosties |
Posted By: trouble06
Date Posted: 14 March 2011 at 4:39pm
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Hugs sunshine wife. We are similar DH has low count and I think low quality. He has been on menevit for last 2 months - I know it is meant to increase quality not count or quantity .. DH doesnt take other vitamins so thought it was a good one for all.
We did ISCI in November last year and he had a pitiful result ... so pitiful that the embriologist rung him and said could he come and do another test - luckily in the second one they got enough to ISCI 10 eggs - 4 fertilised. Since then we have cut out caffiene - he has occasional decaf coffee and I drink green tea during the day and reduced alcohol intake - not that we used to drink much anyway .... We have also been easting better and healthier. If the count is real bad you know they can always do TESA - where they do the biopsy and get some out that way. I also know of poeple worse off than myself and others that have zilch like zilch and TESA for them is the only way to go. We havent yet gone down the natropath or acupuncture route. Best of luck. ------------- Me 35 DH 40 IVF ISCI Nov BFN FET Jan 2011 Chem FET April 2011 M/C 7 weeks |
Posted By: trouble06
Date Posted: 14 March 2011 at 4:40pm
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BTW I cant even recall what DH level was maybe 4-5m does that sound right??? The results we got in a nutsheel seemed to be low count, low motility and they werent really moving.
------------- Me 35 DH 40 IVF ISCI Nov BFN FET Jan 2011 Chem FET April 2011 M/C 7 weeks |
Posted By: wispy_willow
Date Posted: 22 March 2011 at 8:18pm
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Just remember, you only need 1 little sperm to fertilise an egg with ICSI, so whether you have 1, 100, 1000, 1 Million, or 10 Million there is still a good chance of fertilisation!
Also, apparently acupuncture can increase sperm numbers, as well as increase the number of healthy sperm and motility rates ... might be worth a try?! |
Posted By: SunshineWife
Date Posted: 22 March 2011 at 10:24pm
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My DH has done about 8 sessions of acupuncture since we found out about the MFI but the last SA he had wasn't looking great at all, so not sure how much it helped in that area.... I guess will see what his sperm is like on the day of EC....I really did bop that will see some improvement after the acupuncture. Now all I'm hoping for is that everyone here is right in saying that you only need one! Or 8 or whatever number of eggies we get and would like fertilized :) ------------- Me 27, DH 25 (MFI) IVF + ICSI March '11 BFN and no frosties |
Posted By: GuestGuest
Date Posted: 30 May 2011 at 4:27pm
| and another bump for Booboo... |
Posted By: stephanic221765
Date Posted: 12 April 2017 at 11:58pm
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Posted By: Wikq225913
Date Posted: 21 September 2017 at 5:25am
| Hi, I wanted to share my story and ask you for advice. The fact is that my husband can not have children. And we want to use donor's sperm. I know this is a pretty popular procedure. But that's what I'm worried about, right now my husband agrees to this procedure. By the way, I can say that he himself proposed to do so, I was ready to live without children. But I worry that then he can abandon the child. Suddenly, later, he will say that this is not his child and will leave me alone with the child. What will I do? Of course, now I can not say that my husband is irresponsible or does not like children. On the contrary, he always says that he wants a lot of children. But I do not want many children, because just imagine an IVF - it's a stress for the female body. And in general - pregnancy is also stress. I even think about the surrogate maternity. I have not told my husband about this yet, but I'll try to find out more information and then I'll tell him. I would like to hear your comments, what should I do? Do we agree to donate sperm? The second question I will have about the surrogate motherhood. We live in the Netherlands, here commercial surrogate motherhood is prohibited. Where is commercial surrogate motherhood allowed? Where is it regulated by law and in which country will it cost less? I just wanted to know all the information about this. What is needed in order to use the program of surrogate motherhood, what documents? How much is it? Maybe my husband will support me and we will decide. Perhaps then the procedure of IVF should be done already by the surrogate mother when using donor sperm. But honestly speaking, I would not want a surrogate mother to live in our apartment or even near her. I would like, that she would live in her country, and all the care for her medical support was taken over by the clinic. By the way, is it recommended to fly to Ukraine? I just read a lot of reviews that commercial surrogate motherhood is allowed in Ukraine. And not only allowed, but also very popular. They say that many foreigners go there and that it is cheaper there. But I'm interested in the process of selecting a surrogate mother. And also a very important point is the drawing up of an agreement with a surrogate mother. Please tell us about it. |
Posted By: sara225138
Date Posted: 21 September 2017 at 7:03am
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HI I don't have much knowledge about sperm but I want that you will get whatever you are looking for. Thank you, |