Episode #6
Don't Talk Yourself Out of Becoming A Surrogate
What if the thing you think disqualifies you from becoming a gestational carrier actually doesn’t? For many women considering surrogacy, the psychological evaluation can feel like a test they have to pass. A history of anxiety or depression, medication, therapy, a difficult relationship, or something else in their past can lead them to rule themselves out before they ever speak with an evaluator. In this episode of Family Fronds, we talk with psychologist Karyn Rosenberg about what the surrogacy psych evaluation actually looks for. Karyn has spent more than two decades working in family building. She explains how evaluations work, what psychological testing can and cannot tell an evaluator, how mental health history is considered, and what can genuinely raise concerns. The conversation also goes beyond screening. We talk about alignment between gestational carriers and intended parents, setting expectations early, recognizing when something feels off, and learning to advocate for yourself without feeling like you are being difficult. CHAPTERS 00:00 Don’t Talk Yourself Out of Carrying 02:00 Why Carriers Get Nervous About the Psych Eval 07:00 What the Evaluation Actually Looks For 14:00 Testing vs. the Clinical Conversation 19:00 Mental Health, Medication and Therapy 26:00 What Actually Raises Concerns 31:00 Alignment With Intended Parents 37:00 Boundaries and Self-Advocacy 43:00 Karyn’s Advice for Gestational Carriers
