DNA testing Archives - Donor Conception and Beyond

Parenting a Donor-Conceived Child – 8 Things I’ve Learned

Posted on January 12, 2021March 28, 2022 by Gail

When my daughter was seven years old, she looked me straight in the eye, tilted her head just a little to the right so I knew something big was coming, and said, “I would never use a donor, Mum”. Now Lola* is a pretty sensitive kind of kid, so I knew she’d given this statement […]

An Open Letter to Anonymous Donors

Posted on May 25, 2020January 12, 2021 by Gail

Using anonymous donors in Australia is not allowed, but many people head overseas to countries where anonymous donors are the only option. Bre’s story (below) is a reminder that your children will grow up one day to be thinking, feeling adults who have the right to know the identity of their biological parents. That not […]

Please, Tell Your Children They Are Donor-Conceived

Posted on April 24, 2019September 22, 2020 by Gail

“Now that I think back,” says Cassandra, “my mother did have a sick look on her face when I spat into that tube.” Cassandra was always interested in genealogy and family history, but doing a DNA test was too expensive. One day she discovered that genealogy company, 23andMe, were offering a free test to people […]

Part One – Do Sperm and Egg Donors Lie?

Posted on December 17, 2018March 14, 2019 by Gail

Welcome to the first article in this 3-part blog series: ‘Truth and Lies, and How to Minimise the Risks’ In this three part blog series, you’ll hear from sperm and egg donors, donor recipients and donor-conceived people about their experiences of lies, and the subsequent impacts on donor-conceived children… * Note: all names have been changed […]

9 Things You Should Never Say to Donor-Conceived People, and Why

Posted on August 21, 2018June 6, 2019 by Gail

“Maybe instead of asking how our parents are feeling about us looking for our donors, I would probably prefer being asked, “How am I feeling about looking for my donor? Because, really, it’s not about my parents.” Chloe Allworthy is an Australian donor-conceived adult who has known about her genetic origins since she was 7 […]