Running a sperm donation website gives me an unprecedented insight into the world of sperm donors. For the last 15 years I have witnessed a steady rise in the number of women searching for sperm donors and also men who are willing to donate sperm.
Covid 19 and Sperm Donors
In March 2020 when the world entered into the Covid 19 pandemic we were all thrust into a sudden lockdown. Single men and women and couples were forced to stay indoors with no social mixing. The lockdown raised questions to those who were looking to start a family through sperm donation.
You may think that most people would put their plans to have a baby on hold and wait for the pandemic to be over however the opposite is true. March 2020 saw the largest increase in memberships to spermdonorhub,com. The number of sperm donors almost doubled in the weeks and months that followed the first lockdown and the number of women looking for donor sperm lso increased dramatically.
Why are there so many lock down sperm donors?
Reading members profiles it was apparent that people did not want to put their life on hold. In fact most embraced the concept that life is short, why wait until tomorrow what you can do today. That mindset, added to the fact that people were at home spending a lot of time on the internet with no distractions led to many new registered members starting their journeys to become pregnant through sperm donation.
Sprint 2020, throughout the summer and into the winter saw the number of sperm donors continue to increase . By the time the winter lockdown hit we had seen memberships dobel from what they were pre lockdown. At this point I considered that membership numbers may plateau however winter again saw a significant rise in men and women searching for sperm donation options.
With people unable to mix with others and physically meet up the preparation work was done in creating donor/recipient profiles and online chat with potential parenting partners. The planning was based around the fact that one or more potential matches could be sourced and then when the lockdown lifts face to face meetings could take place.
Online sperm donors websites work in the way that you meet your match via a sophisticated matching service, message them and then perhaps exchange personal contact information and then finally meet face to face to discuss what your sperm donor requirements are.
Demand for the lockdown sperm donor
In a recent article for Sky News (02/03/21) a 29 year old American sperm donor claims he fathered at least 35 children through meeting recipients on social media.In the UK regulations stipulate that a sperm donor can father no more than 10 children through the donation process.
From what I have witnessed it is not very common for sperm donors to father more than 1 child. Sometimes the same donor will be used to help the birth mother have a sibling for their child in future years. Most men registered on sperm donation websites are looking to help women achieve their dreams of becoming a mother. A handful of men are looking for a co-parenting role, a large number are willing to be known to the child in some capacity and there are always plenty of donors who would like to help out but remain anonymous in the child’s life.
What is clear is that online sperm donation will not go away. It is a method to become a parent which is growing in popularity and one which has not just survived lockdown but excelled throughout it.