Being part of a donor-related family can be emotionally challenging for you and those around you. You may be experiencing a mixture of confusing and unsettling emotions. Counselling can help you to process the impact donor conception has had on your life and help you understand more deeply yourself and others. Many people are reluctant to see a counsellor as it may feel like a sign of weakness or they don’t see how it could help. Talking to a person experienced in this area makes sense, just as you would consult a doctor, accountant or lawyer. Telephone counselling is available.
Family DNA testing is becoming increasingly popular on websites such as Ancestry and 23andme. Many people use DNA testing to find out more about their ethnic mix and ancestors while others want to build their family tree.
According to research done by VARTA (Victorian Assisted reproductive Treatment Authority) 37 of donor-conceived people discovered they were donor-conceived through DNA testing and 50 of donor-conceived people then went on to find their donor using family DNA testing. It is estimated that in 5 years 95 of people will be able to link to a relative via DNA testing.
Contact us if you would like more information about DNA tests.
We encourage you to use our services which are free and confidential, and available to all parties involved in donor conception.