Lotus Blossom Consulting » surrogacy http://www.lotusblossomconsulting.com Your pathway to parenthood Fri, 08 Jan 2010 14:58:19 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 PRIDE Month: Family Building for Alternative Families http://www.lotusblossomconsulting.com/2009/06/pride-month-family-building-for-alternative-families/ http://www.lotusblossomconsulting.com/2009/06/pride-month-family-building-for-alternative-families/#comments Thu, 04 Jun 2009 14:47:13 +0000 Mindy Berkson http://www.lotusblossomconsulting.com/?p=393 Earlier this week, President Obama officially declared the month of June to be Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Pride Month!

As the nation celebrates this occasion, it is a good time to bring an important issue to the forefront – alternative family building. As noted in a past USA Today article, there is an estimated six to 12 million children in the U.S. who have a lesbian or gay parent. And an increasing number of same-sex couples are looking to expand their families.

Unfortunately, there are even more obstacles for gay couples when trying to start their own families due to the political and legal issues involved. It is important to financially, physically and emotionally prepare for a challenging road ahead. Gay couples also must enlist an attorney to draw up contracts that protect not only themselves, but also their biological offspring. Often adoption or co-parenting agreements need to be accomplished.

Cost is another factor to consider. Insurance benefits for surrogacy and/or IVF treatments are often restricted since same sex couples do not meet the insurance’s companies definition of “infertility.”

And sadly, discrimination is widespread. Same sex families are denied the benefits and protections of a marriage in most states.

For Citywide PRIDE month in Chicago, I have teamed with UBS and PricewaterhouseCoopers to help gay and lesbian couples plan and prepare for parenthood. I will be leading a FREE session titled, “Conceivable Options: Alternative Family Building ” Details are as follows:

Date: Thursday June 18, 2009
Time: 11:30am – 1:30pm. Lunch will be served.
Location: UBS Tower, 38th Floor, 1 North Wacker Drive, Chicago

RSVP: By June 15, 2009 at http://citywidepride.info/events.html

Topics will include understanding insurance benefits (if available), how to enlist your human resources department to determine what benefits they may be able to provide and how to identify egg donors and surrogates from “surrogate friendly” states. The discussion will conclude with tips for how to financially plan and prepare for treatment, and a Q&A session.

Please try to join me! If you’re not in the Chicago area, e-mail me. I am happy to share my presentation notes with you, or discuss options over the telephone.

]]> http://www.lotusblossomconsulting.com/2009/06/pride-month-family-building-for-alternative-families/feed/ 0 When the Path to Parenthood is Not Linear http://www.lotusblossomconsulting.com/2009/03/when-the-path-to-parenthood-is-not-linear/ http://www.lotusblossomconsulting.com/2009/03/when-the-path-to-parenthood-is-not-linear/#comments Thu, 26 Mar 2009 15:36:30 +0000 Mindy Berkson http://www.lotusblossomconsulting.com/2009/03/when-the-path-to-parenthood-is-not-linear/ We understand that sometimes the pathway to parenthood is not linear. As frustrating as this is, reality requires us to make difficult choices and explore paths that we never imagined. Coming to terms with using a third party candidate can be a complicated and overwhelming process. In my experience, when clients can reach a comfort zone in selecting a candidate who meets close to their ideal criteria, the process becomes much more palatable.
So where does one begin the search? Some clinics provide in house egg donor recruiting programs. These programs tend to be small and often consist of only local donors. Due to their size, supply does not often meet demand and wait lists to select a candidate tend to be long. The agency route is another avenue. Agencies often have larger pools of available candidates, but weeding through profiles to identify ideal candidates can be time consuming and overwhelming.
Explore your resources. As an Infertility Consultant my focus is to advocate for the intended parents. Through carefully established strategic alliances with agencies nationwide, the consultants at Lotus Blossom Consulting have access to vast pools of qualified and available surrogate and egg donor candidates. Our match time is typically less than two weeks. We deliver to your email box targeted profiles to specifically meet your ideal criteria. There is no limit to the number of profiles you will have to choose from. The goal is to identify a candidate that appropriately suits your needs. But in addition, Lotus Blossom Consulting closely screens the agencies. We drive business only to agencies that are willing to include special clauses in their contracts for our client, which ensures that your financial risk factors will be mitigated in the event that a candidate does not pass your physician’s medical screening. This is one of our commitments to you in working as your advocate.
With our help, the complicated process becomes less overwhelming. Our very personalized touch and direct guidance in what to seek in an ideal candidate enables clients to focus their energies and emotions on other aspects of the cycle. Having the confidence to move through third party reproduction comes with knowing that you selected the right candidate, within a timeframe that is consistent with your course of treatment, and a budget that suits your financial reserves.
The journey through infertility need not be a fearful or overwhelming adventure. Identifying support, resources and guidance can save valuable time, preserve emotional well being and help to optimize the resources for your treatment cycle while minimizing the overall financial expenditure for the end family building goal. Being proactive in building the foundation for multiple cycles is simply acting prudent.

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