Building your family

We may not think about it often, but as more people pursue donor conception and surrogacy, the greater the need for qualified lawyers with experience with these complicated contracts.   My guest today, Richard Vaughn, Esq., has been practicing for decades and has seen all of the changes in law that relate to reproductive medicine.   Richard has tremendous insight into the social and emotional issu...

Today, I am pleased to introduce you to a lovely young Danish woman named Emma Groenbaek.  She's on our show to share her experience of being donor conceived.    I know a lot of you are curious about how children feel growing up being donor conceived, how they go through life’s ups and downs, and if being donor conceived affects their normal developmental milestones.  If you are like most of the p...

This week my guest provided a beautiful example of how to tolerate homophobia and racism, and instead of getting derailed, educate others and keep pursuing your dream. It's remarkable.   Listen to the way they use solidarity as a key to this success.  That make sense. We know that isolation can lead to depression and increase the risks of medical issues like diabetes and heart disease.   We also k...

If you are considering donor conception, have donor conceived children, or you care for a donor conceived person, this episode is for you!  My guest this week is Rosanna Hertz, the co-author of the book, Random Families: Genetic Strangers, Sperm Donor Siblings and the Creation of New Kin.   In this episode, we discuss her research with donor conceived people and their genetic and legal relatives. ...

Dana, and her partner Helen, started their family building journey three decades ago, when building a family as a lesbian couple was even more difficult than it is now.     You will be amazed to hear about their journey and the lengths they had to go through to have a child.  Fortunately, they were focused on their goals and values and Helen supported Dana in her part time hobby which is now large...

What happens when two experienced fertility medical professionals are nearing retirement but are constantly distressed by the cost of fertility treatment?  The answer: open your own clinic and find a way to make fertility treatment cost effective for everyone.  In this episode, you will learn about this and how Dr. Karen Hammond and Dr. Nicholas Cataldo have similar success rates to conventional I...

Today you are in for a treat that you won’t find anywhere else. In this week’s episode, Dr. Kathryn Go will give us a little show-and-tell. So, if you are able to also watch it on YouTube, I would recommend it.  She will show you the instruments she uses and things that people who don’t work in a clinic, don’t typically see.  Even if you are familiar with IVF, there is nothing like someone taking...

There are some things we share on the podcast that are objective.  As a researcher, I have tremendous regard for focusing on what is proven and making well educated choices. As a therapist, I also understand that choosing a donor is a very personal, and often emotionally charged experience.  Even the most academically oriented people I see often make decisions based on emotion.  There is no right...

Advances in medicine have improved success rates and the opportunity to have the healthiest child possible.  Yet, the alphabet soup of terms for genetic testing can be confusing to decipher.  Then add donor conception to the mix, and most people are left feeling bewildered and nervous, wondering if they are making the right choices.   In this episode, Dr. Eric Forman will break down genetic testin...

Christina Bailey (babybaileymamadrama on Instagram) joins us with her partner, Heather for this great episode on almost every family building subject you can imagine. Christina takes us through family decision making as a lesbian woman, getting married, having children, getting divorced, struggles over remaining embryos, pursuing single motherhood, finding love again and more babies!   It is an am...

This episode will cover the legal and the practical.  You'll learn about Vicki’s road to parenthood with her wife Michelle, and how she has a closer relationship to her child who is not genetically connected to her, than to her child who is genetically connected.  She'll tell you why it's so important to follow legal guidelines, even when they don’t seem to make sense. She'll also discuss how you...

Dr. Mark Leondires is the Founder, Medical Director and Partner in reproductive endocrinology at Illume Fertility and Gay Parents To Be. He has won awards, recognition from professional organizations and has been a leader for change in the LGBTQIA+ community for decades.  He is also my co-author for the soon to be released book, Building Your Family: The Complete Guide to Donor Conception. In this...

Today’s guest is Stacey Stevenson (she/they) joined Family Equality as the first Black Chief Executive Officer in 2021. With a background in the corporate sector, they decided to turn their business acumen, lived experience, and passion to work for LGBTQIA+ families and those who wish to form them.    In this episode you will learn about the bills that are threatening to erode at the freedom of th...

On this episode, we talk to Bret Shuford and Stephen Hanna. Together they are dad’s to a beautiful boy, Maverick.  So, although they are famous on social media as the Broadway Husbands, they are now, the Broadway Dads!  They had a long road to parenthood but feel it turned out the way it was supposed to be.  We hear the story of how they chose their donor, found a surrogacy agency, handle tough qu...

In this episode, you will meet Dr. Frederick Licciardi. He is a Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at NYU School of Medicine and practicing reproductive endocrinologist at NYU Langone Fertility Center, where he is the Director of the Fellowship Program in Reproductive Endocrinology. Dr. Licciardi has published numerous clinical articles and has seen thousands of donors and re...

I met Alexis Cirel, Esq. some years ago when she decided to expand her matrimonial practice to include third-party reproduction.  At one time Alexis was herself a patient and needed many of the services she now helps her clients navigate. This experience gives her a unique perspective on the struggles her clients face and inspires her to help.   In this podcast, you can easily see how much Alexis...

Melissa Lindsey discovered that she was donor-conceived when she was an adult. After putting together the pieces of her identity, she wanted to help others facing similar experiences and founded the Donor Conceived Community (DCC). They provide emotional and social support to donor conceived people (DCP) facing identity discoveries.   Through her personal experience and her conversations with dono...

Our latest episode is for the mother (or parent), or mother (or parent) to be.   Mother’s Day can be difficult for many people on their journey to have a child. For people who have already become parents, it can be a great day.  Either way, this episode is for you.   In this episode, I answer the most frequently asked question that we hear at the Center for Family Building every day: “How do I tal...

Wow!  If you want an episode jam-packed with donor conception information, this is it!   Allison Rodgers, MD, is the Director of Education at Fertility Centers of Illinois and board certified in both Obstetrics and Gynecology, and Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility.  She has been published in several medical journals, and has won several awards for her amazing work. On our show, Dr. Rodger...

After many years of working at egg donor agencies and helping people find matches outside of the agency she was working for, Gail Sexton Anderson decided to formalize the process and become a donor concierge full time.  That is when Donor Concierge was born.   After receiving her master’s degree in counseling from Harvard Graduate School of Education, Gail worked in research and developmental test...

As we enter National Infertility Awareness week, we are grateful to share the wisdom of two wonderful guests, Elizabeth Grill, PsyD, the incoming Chair of RESOLVE, the National Infertility Organization, and Barbara Collura, RESOLVE’s President and CEO. In this episode (2 of 2), we meet with Barbara Collura. Barbara is a nationally recognized expert on infertility and the family building journey wi...

NIAW-Double Episode Week!   As we enter National Infertility Awareness week, we are grateful to share the wisdom of two wonderful guests, Elizabeth Grill, PsyD who is incoming Chair of RESOLVE, the national infertility organization, and Barb Collura, RESOLVE’s President and CEO.   In this episode (1 of 2), we meet with Elizabeth Grill, PsyD.  She is the Director of Psychological Services at the Ro...

In this episode, we meet Kiara Schuh.  She is a Donor Conceived Person who was raised by a Single Mom by Choice. She recently published her memoir, Chosen Family, and is trying to redefine society's notion of the traditional family.    She is an accountant by trade but felt that she had to tell her story to the world and enlighten people about the many ways people feel about being donor conceived....

In this episode, I welcome three guests, Gina Davis, Jennifer Vesbit and Maya Grobel. These three amazing women joined forces in 2019 to create a company called Empower with Moxi! Their mission was, and is, to transform the landscape of embryo donation. They have different stories and took different career paths, but were all touched by embryo donation, either as a donor or a recipient. All three...

Today’s episode is so important.  All of our guests are important, but if you are considering donor conception to build your family this episode is a must.    Few people understand what should go into donor screening or why.  Several elements are important, including psychological testing.  It is essential to ensure your donor has not only had a psychological interview, but an objective personalit...