Single Men are Becoming Dads Through Surrogacy

One category of intended parents that is growing is that of single men. In 1960, the Pew Research Center reports, single father households comprised only one percent of all U.S. households. By 2018, single dad households made up eight percent of all U.S. households. As of 2016, the U.S. Census Bureau notes that there were two million single fathers living with children under the age of 18. Increasingly, single men are making the decision to become fathers through the surrogacy process. There are many reasons why single men, whether heterosexual or gay, may choose to become dads through surrogacy. Today, these single fathers by choice are accepted as intended parents by most surrogacy agencies, including Simple Surrogacy.

Reasons Single Men Choose Surrogacy to Become Dads

In the September 2017 issue of the journal Human Reproduction, the results of a study of single fathers using surrogacy were discussed in detail. Researchers determined that single father surrogacy is chosen for a variety of reasons. They include, but are not limited to:

• Feeling that it is simply the right time to become a father
• Fearing getting older without having become a father (47 percent of single dads in the US are over the age of 40)
• Deciding not to wait for the right relationship before becoming a father
• Fear of divorce or separation if waiting for a relationship to become a father
• Having a deep desire to have a child
• Being encouraged by others to become a single dad

One Single Father Who Chose Surrogacy

In 2018, the Chicago Tribune interviewed Bill Guest, a single gay man who, nearing the age of 40, had decided that the time was right to become a father through surrogacy. He had considered adoption and fostering a child, but wanted a baby, not the older children typically available through these methods. After receiving encouragement from his mother to explore surrogacy, he discovered that he could become a single dad to a baby through surrogacy.  He learned all about surrogacy and egg donation processes, as well as financial assistance that was available to help him begin the single father surrogacy journey. Today, Guest is the happy single dad to a daughter who was born via surrogacy in 2016.

Famous Single Men Who Became Dads Via Surrogacy

As surrogacy’s popularity grows, more and more men are choosing single father surrogacy. Rather than waiting for the “perfect family” to arrive, they are creating it themselves. Even single male celebrities have chosen to become fathers through surrogacy. Some of them include:

• Andy Cohen, host of Bravo’s “Watch What Happens Live,” who chose to become a single father through surrogacy at the age of 50 and welcomed his son, Benjamin Allen, in 2019.
• Michael Jackson. The late pop singer became a single dad via surrogacy in 2002 when his youngest, Prince Michael II, was born.
• Ricky Martin, pop singer, decided that he wanted to become a father and went through the single father surrogacy process in 2008, when his twin sons, Valentino and Matteo were born via surrogate.

Concerns Single Men May Have About Becoming Fathers Through Surrogacy

Of course, all intended parents who are considering starting or adding to their families through surrogacy have concerns. Single men, however, may have some additional considerations not typically thought of by couples. Firstly, prospective single dads may wonder if it is detrimental to a child to grow up in a household without a traditional mother figure. Most research suggests that children from single-father households are as well-adjusted as children from single-mother households, so this should not be a concern if you are considering becoming a single dad through surrogacy. Other females in the child’s life, such as aunts or grandmothers, can take on a “mother figure” or mentor role, if necessary. Studies have shown that single dads who have support from family and friends tend to feel more successful as a parent.

Single fathers may also feel left out when faced with living within their communities. Many towns and cities offer support for single mothers but fewer are found for single fathers. However, as more and more men turn to single fatherhood through surrogacy and other means, more and more support groups and resources for single fathers are popping up in communities of all sizes. Online resources are also available for single dads.

Those who choose to become single dads through surrogacy will also need to adjust to increased household duties and learn to balance work and family life, as all parents must face. Single dads will still, of course, be able to provide their children with the needed values, emotional support and, most importantly, love, that all parents give their children.

Outcomes for Children of Single Dads

Not much research has been conducted on what happens to children who are born via surrogacy and raised by single fathers, but in the little research that is available on single dad households, there is some promising news. Research done by McLanahan and Bumpass in 1988 found no differences in the rates of teen birth and teen marriage in teenagers who were raised by a single father households than the rates of these occurrences in two-parent households. It was also discovered that children raised by single dads have the same rates of low self-esteem, depression, anxiety and antisocial behavior as children raised in two-parent households.

Do You Want to Pursue Single Father Surrogacy?

If you are a single man who is interested in becoming a parent, Simple Surrogacy welcomes you! Should you decide to pursue parenthood through surrogacy with us, you will go through the same matching process, in which our representatives will match you with the perfect surrogate mother, and, about nine months later, you will become a dad through gestational surrogacy! Whether you decide to maintain contact with the surrogate mother after the child’s birth is completely up to you and the surrogate, and will likely be decided and put into your surrogacy contract before the surrogacy process begins. Please contact Simple Surrogacy online or call us at 1-866-41-SURRO for more information on becoming a single dad through surrogacy.