The Fertility Cafe – Season 1 Episodes

When it comes to the legalities of parenthood using a surrogate, you do NOT want to cut any corners. This is a must listen for anyone new to surrogacy – don’t start your journey without understanding your rights and the legalities of the country or state you reside in.

You want to become a surrogate, but you’re wondering how to make sure your partner or spouse is on board with your decision? Eloise’s husband Anthony joins her to have an open, honest, and REAL discussion about a spouse’s reaction to his wife becoming a surrogate.

Why is your BMI is so important when becoming a surrogate? Can I be a surrogate if I take an anti-depressant? Will I be disqualified because I receive food stamps or medicaid? In this episode, we focus on the more complicated and emotionally charged surrogacy topics specifically relevant to your journey to become a surrogate.

You’ve been thinking about becoming a gestational surrogate for a while now. For months, maybe even years, you’ve thought about what it would be like to give someone the precious gift of motherhood or fatherhood. So what’s stopping you from pursing your calling? In this week’s episode, Eloise talks with 5-time surrogate Rebekah Hills about the highs and not-so-highs of surrogacy.

This episode will inspire you and inform you so that you can move through this journey with confidence and make your egg donation journey a fulfilling one. Listen in as Eloise addresses some of the more commonly asked questions potential egg donors have and some of the less obvious ones which are equally as important, such as: What is your ‘why’ for becoming an egg donor? Are you ready for the psychological and emotional impact of egg donation? What are the potential pitfalls of egg donation? Will my future fertility be affected? How do you feel about the concept of limited anonymity in the age of rapid DNA testing?

Eloise talks fertility benefits and how to secure insurance coverage for your family building efforts with infertility advocate Davina Fankhauser of Fertility Within Reach.

Black women experience infertility at almost 2x the rate of our counterparts and yet we are least likely to seek treatment. In addition, many conditions that directly impact fertility, such as fibroids, endometriosis, PCOS, and others disproportionately affect black women as well. The harmful stereotypical belief that black women are somehow more fertile, or that we don’t participate in foster care, adoption, or fertility treatments is yet another factor. Newsflash: We aren’t, and we do.

Together, Regina Townsend – founder of The Broken Brown Egg – and Eloise Drane are partnering to encourage other Black women to begin this very important dialogue of reproductive health and fertility.

Black women experience infertility at almost 2x the rate of our counterparts and yet we are least likely to seek treatment. In addition, many conditions that directly impact fertility, such as fibroids, endometriosis, PCOS, and others disproportionately affect black women as well. The harmful stereotypical belief that black women are somehow more fertile, or that we don’t participate in foster care, adoption, or fertility treatments is yet another factor. Newsflash: We aren’t, and we do.

Together, Regina Townsend – founder of The Broken Brown Egg – and Eloise Drane are partnering to encourage other Black women to begin this very important dialogue of reproductive health and fertility.

After being in the industry for now 20 years, I’ve become increasingly troubled by the realization that a huge percentage of people can’t fulfill their dreams of parenthood because of the staggering costs. IVF is expensive. Surrogacy is expensive. And these costs keep too many people from pursuing their dreams of becoming parents. So yes, I am an agency owner, but I know that agency costs can be prohibitive. Because of this, I’m on a mission to make it known that you CAN do surrogacy without an agency. It IS possible to have a successful surrogacy journey without paying thousands upon thousands of dollars in agency fees. And I’m here today to tell you how it’s done.

A common misconception is that adoption and surrogacy are the same thing. They are not.

In this episode, Eloise Drane shares her thoughts on these distinct family-building options and she presents the primary considerations to keep in mind if you find yourself deciding between these two distinguishable paths to parenthood.