What is your relationship with surrogate baby in the womb?
The main emotional difference between carrying a surrogate baby and one’s own child lies in the psychological awareness of the baby’s parental ownership.
Janelle explained that the relationship with a surrogate baby feels more like babysitting because the carrier knows the baby belongs to someone else.
This awareness lessens sentimental feelings during pregnancy compared to carrying one’s own child.
The surrogate still experiences joy in fetal movements but frames them as signs to share with intended parents (IPs).
This mindset allows the surrogate to focus on the eventual positive outcome of handing the baby to the IPs after birth.
The experience remains rewarding even though the emotional connection differs from that with one’s own children.
Transcript: Hi, it's Janelle with Ask A Surrogacy Expert. Our question is, while in the womb, how is your relationship different with your own children than your relationship with the surrogate baby? So really, I think there's that psychological piece of knowing, hey, this isn't my baby. So when you feel kicks and flutters and things like that, it's like, oh, it's so cute. So it really just does feel like babysitting. For me, it wasn't quite as sentimental. I think everybody's a little bit different with that. But it was cool to be able to text the IPs and let them know baby's kicking like crazy today.
But it doesn't feel quite the same because you are aware already that you are just growing someone else's baby for them and that eventually you'll be able to do this awesome thing of giving baby back to them once he or she is born. And it's just, it's incredible. So not the same, but also amazing.