Depending on who makes up your family, now that Baby is here, you may not hear too many questions about where he came from unless you bring up the question of surrogacy yourselves. On the other hand, single parents and same-sex couples may find themselves answering questions about their little ones’ origins until long after their kids are adults.
However, even for genetically related mom-and-dad couples who are parents through surrogacy, every once in a while, the question of what your fertility journey looked like may come up. And while questions about fertility and reproductive health can feel intrusive and uncomfortable, having an idea of how you’d like to respond ahead of time can help you to feel more in control of the situation.
Balancing need-to-know against nothing-to-hide
On the one hand, questions about your child’s gestation and birth can feel intrusive and uncomfortable for a reason; no one is owed an explanation of how your family came to be. It’s up to you what you want to share with the world in general about your family’s origins and health information.
On the other hand, though, as your child grows, it’s important to remember that he will be watching how you answer questions about how he came to be, and that there’s a good chance that he will take his cues for how to feel about it from you. This means that if a new neighbor asks a question about your reproductive history, you may find yourself needing to balance your personal feelings about how much you may want to share with this person against the fact that, if your child senses that you’re embarrassed to talk about the circumstances of his birth, he may internalize that as embarrassment about him. Making sure to talk to your child directly about his origins is an important step, but it’s not the only step.
Reacting to your child’s reaction
If Baby is interested in his origins, there may be a phase in his life where you can expect him to be the one bringing up the subject – even with people you’d prefer him not to. On the other hand, he may go through stages of discomfort or self-consciousness with the subject. As he grows, it will be important to keep the conversation open about what he wants to share with the world, what you want to share with the world, and where both of your points of view can meet.
And right now, when he is too young to understand what you’re saying? Now is a great time to practice what you’re going to say and how you’re going to say it, so that by the time you’re telling your family’s story to your verbal tot, you’ve had as many dress rehearsals as you need to feel comfortable and confident in what you’re saying.
