Donor conceived journalist, Louise McLoughlin, delves deeper into the lives and families of donor conceived people, while trying to make sense of her own story by finding the man who, presumably, looks like her.
I am an only child with an unknown number of siblings.
I was conceived in a lab at 13 years old.
My parents told me my dad wasn't actually my dad.
These things do not define me, but they have had a very real impact on my life.
And maybe the strangest thing of all is that when I was younger I felt like I was the only one going through this.
But there are hundreds and thousands of us across the world, children and adults just like me.
I am donor conceived.
And if you are too, or if you're just curious, then this podcast is for you.
The fertility industry is only growing and more and more couples and singles are turning to donation.
The first few generations of IVF children are old enough to speak.
Let's hear what they have to say.
The best and worst thing is that each day has the possibility of being full of surprises.
I feel like I have lost my identity and don't know who I am.
My father passed away two years ago and never told his family I was donor conceived.
At 34 years old, I'm worried about being rejected and treated differently from the only family that I've ever known.
I don't speak for every donor conceived person.
In fact, I can really only speak from my own experiences.
But this podcast is a way to follow my story and give a voice to the amazing and often confusing experiences of other donor conceived people.
Will follow my personal journey as I try to track down the man who donated his sperm in the 90s who I didn't know existed until 2004, who presumably looks like me Will follow the journeys of other donor conceived or DC people, some who have found their biological parent or parents, half siblings or full siblings, sometimes in the hundreds.
We will talk about how finding family can lead to open arms or restraining orders.