I am from Ontario, Canada. I am currently employed as a fertility doula and surrogacy coach. I previously worked as a family therapist for seven years. I am also a two-time gestational surrogate. I gave birth to a healthy baby boy in August 2021. He now lives with his two dads in Toronto, Ontario. I am currently newly pregnant with my second surrogate pregnancy, for a couple who live in Chilliwack, British Columbia. I am giving evidence to the committee to provide insight on being a gestational surrogate in Canada.

I always believed I was going to be a surrogate for someone. Being a surrogate was a desire I have had my whole life but no one asked me to be a surrogate. As the years went on, I had this desire but did not know what to do with it. In 2020, I came across an advertisement from a fertility agency and realised that I qualified to become a surrogate for someone I did not know. I did not know that was a thing. I spoke to my husband and we signed up the very next day.

Following the application process, I was given a selection of intended parents that I was able to match with. Matching with intended parents is an individualised process in which one is sent profiles. The number of profiles one is sent depends on one's preferences. A person can ask for one profile. I particularly wanted to have a set of profiles because I did not want to say "No" to each couple; I wanted to be able to say "Yes" to the people I chose. Intended parents are matched on high-level matching viewpoints such as termination, desired relationship, fertility clinics, place of birth or any non-negotiable items one may have. One selects a profile with which one wants to connect, and then moves on to the next phase, to which we typically refer as the "dating phase". It is when one has matched with a couple. One gets to know them, sees whether one enjoys them and whether they fit with one and one's preferences. My husband and I picked a couple and decided to meet them. I was able to meet them in a park with my kids. It was during Covid so we were not able to meet inside. We decided they were great for us. In the following weeks, we spent a lot of time getting to know them through emails, text messages and video calls. We decided to move on with them as our choice. Our agency was great at helping me with any questions I had. It helped me in the getting-to-know-them process. One does not know what the heck one is supposed to ask when meeting somebody for the first time about having his or her baby.

For my second surrogacy journey, I originally matched with a single intended mother. I met her once and realised she was not a good fit for me. I was able to quickly say this did not work for me. I was matched with another set of intended parents. I met them and immediately knew they were the perfect match for us. They are really awesome.

Following officially matching, all parties are required to do medical and psychological screenings. I was required to go through sexually transmitted infections testing as well as a comprehensive medical screening regarding my suitability for pregnancy. That was completed by the fertility clinic. A surrogate is usually required to complete blood tests locally and will usually need to travel to the fertility clinic to get medical testing in respect of one's body's suitability for being a surrogate.

At the same time as the screening, all parties are required to meet with a counsellor to ensure the match is appropriate and all parties understand the surrogacy process and requirements, and have suitable mental health profiles for surrogacy, as well as assessing any other motivations for surrogacy and ensuring the surrogate and the partner understand the risks associated with a surrogacy. They must also understand that the intended parents are to be recognised legal parents under law.

Following medical clearance, the intended parents and surrogate seek independent legal advice and create a mutually beneficial surrogacy contract. What that looks like can be very different, depending on who one is. It is comprehensive. Each lawyer ensures that there are clear guidelines for extraordinary circumstances such as death, divorce, loss of organs, termination, selective reduction, sharing of medical information, termination of the agreement, the process of conception, post transfer, prenatal and genetic screening, birth plans, custodial rights, birth registration, the relationship following birth and clear financial reimbursements. There is a lot in it.

Following the completion of contracts, the surrogate is cleared to transfer at the fertility clinic. Transfers of embryos are completed using IVF. Depending on the individual, the clinic and the protocols, the surrogate is required to take a list of prescribed medications prior to embryo transfer. A surrogate must complete a lining check to determine whether her lining is suitable. If it is, she goes on to transfer. If it is not suitable, medications are adjusted. That is what happened in my case. My lining was not suitable and I had to keep going back to get medications adjusted to get the approval for transfer. Once transfer is approved, the embryo is transferred. If all goes well and the transfer is successful, the surrogate gets a blood test a few weeks later to determine whether she is pregnant. If she is not, the surrogate and intended parents decide when the next transfer will be. It is individually tailored. It could be months or it could be the next cycle; it depends. We were very lucky; we got pregnant at the first try. The first try worked for me the second time, too, so I did not have to repeatedly go through the process of it being implanted.

The process for matching with my first set of intended parents to birth took approximately 14 months. It sounds like a quick process but it took that long to get from start to end.

I was supported in many ways during my surrogacy journey. For the purpose of clarity, I will only refer to my first surrogacy journey because I have not yet finished my second one. My agency, Canadian Fertility Consulting, supported me through the entire process of journey and post-partum. I was assigned my own surrogacy co-ordinator who walked me through all the facets of my journey. I had free access to counselling services for me and my family, from application to six months post-partum. There were no limits on the number of sessions I could book or attend. I had complete autonomy to choose which care providers I would include, such as lawyers, clinics, birth providers and medical staff. At no time did I feel forced into a timeline or schedule that did not work for me or my family. I was free to make autonomous choices in respect of the tests, requirements, contract obligations to which I was willing to submit. I was completely able to take the time to make informed choices about my care and at no time did I feel as though I was being taken advantage of. It was made clear to me throughout my surrogacy journey that I had complete bodily autonomy and that my personal welfare and well-being were the utmost priority for all the professionals involved in my surrogacy process.

My desire to pursue surrogacy came from a deep desire to help others create a family of their own. There is something so special about being part of the birth of a child. From the beginning of the surrogacy process, surrogates are well prepared and understand that this child is in no way their own, from a genetic and an attachment perspective. The surrogate knows and understands from the conception that the child who is created is not hers. This understanding brings a different connection to the pregnancy. While the surrogate is still nurturing an unborn child, she always know that the child she is carrying is someone else’s.

There is often a concern in the surrogacy community based on a false belief that surrogates become too attached to the child they are carrying and have distress giving the child up. The issue with this concern is the understanding that this child only exists because the intended parents were involved in the creation. This baby would not exist if those two parents or single parent decided to have that baby. At no time did I ever feel distress regarding handing the child over to the intended parents. I did not, and do not, feel as though I should have any legal rights to the child to whom I gave birth. He has always been the child of my intended parents. I was simply his long-term babysitter.

We all in the surrogacy community talk about "extreme babysitting". The greatest experience for me is seeing those parents raise their son. That to me is the coolest thing. If I had wanted a child, I would have had my own child. I do not need to go through a surrogacy process in order to have a baby. It is definitely 100% their child and watching them help him grow is the most awesome thing. I have never experienced a greater accomplishment and sense of purpose in any other endeavour in my life than I have with being a surrogate. I have my master's, done all sorts of stuff and travelled the world. I have two beautiful children of my own. Being part of a surrogacy will always be one of my most favourite things that I have ever done. I have never felt more empowered as a woman, a wife and a mother as I did with being a surrogate. Nothing compares to that coolest experience of helping others to become parents. It is so hard to put into words. It is the greatest experience of my life. I would not be here right now if I did not do that. I would probably be too terrified to come here. Surrogacy has given me an ability to be confident in myself, to be able to advocate for myself in ways I have never been able to do before. I cannot tell the committee exactly how that happened but it happened. I really appreciate the committee letting me be here today. I welcome any questions they may have.