The Origin of Surrogacy and How it Started

In California, surrogacy is becoming a boom. Let’s get into how to become a surrogate in California and how it really started. Surrogacy is an arrangement where a woman agrees to bear a child on behalf of an individual or a couple. Once the child is born, the couple or individual with whom the arrangement was made acquires parental rights over the child. There are countless reasons why people get into surrogacy arrangements. These include the following:

  •  Infertility
  •  Serious risks of giving birth
  •  For a male couple

For a long time, the topic of surrogacy has been surrounded by a lot of controversy. However, in recent years, people have become a lot more open to the idea of surrogacy as can be seen from the increase in the number of people resorting to these arrangements. The negativity that was once associated with it is now being shed. Here is how surrogacy the origin of surrogacy and how it started.

The Origin of Surrogacy

One would be forgiven to think that surrogacy only began in the last two centuries. In fact, it is a practice that has been in existence for centuries. Surrogacy can actually be dated as far back as the Biblical times. The story of Abraham and Sarah is the first recorded incidence of surrogacy.

As the story goes, Abraham and his wife Sarah could not have children, so they entered into an agreement with their servant, Hagar, to bear children for

Abraham. The children would then belong to Abraham and Sarah. When Hagar gave birth to Ishmael, the couple claimed ownership of the child. Over the course of time, women in other civilizations turned to surrogacy in an effort to salvage their marriages, which would ultimately end up in divorce due to childlessness.

But it wasn’t until the 1970’s that legal agreements were entered into regarding surrogacy. The hallmark case was the Baby M case, where an agreement was entered into between a couple and a surrogate mother. The surrogate was to be compensated for giving birth to the child, and the would- be father was to donate sperms for the baby. However, when the child was born, the surrogate was not willing to give her up, and this led to a messy legal battle that lasted for years. Eventually, the court ruled that the agreement between the couple and the surrogate mother was illegal and hence the surrogate retained parental rights over the child.

In more recent times, gestational surrogacy has become widely practiced. This is a bit different than traditional surrogacy in that conception here occurs outside the womb of the surrogate mother. Moreover, it is not uncommon for another’s egg to be used in place of that of the surrogate mother. Once fertilization has occurred, the embryo is implanted in the surrogate’s uterus where they grow until they are born.

Statistics show that surrogacy is gaining more and more popularity. The stigma and negativity that was once associated with the practice has diminished considerably. In fact, between 2004 and 2008, over 5000 children were born in the United States. With improvements in technology, surrogacy rates are expected to soar.

There is no denying that surrogacy will continue to be a highly controversial and emotive topic. Nevertheless, it is still a practice that offers thousands of people across the world a chance at parenthood. Without doubt, this is a practice that will continue to be embraced more and more with time.

If you are located in California and now more interested to become a surrogate in California, check this out for more in depth knowledge about becoming a surrogate

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