Modern Families
Women's Health|June 2021
For many, the pandemic brought on a desire to spread their seed or start (or expand) their innermost circle. And for those in need of sperm, the Internet provided creative ways to make a baby.
Kristin Canning
Modern Families

A year ago, Anica Leon-Weil, 35, wasn’t planning for a baby, let alone using the sperm of a near-stranger she’d met online. But the pandemic spurred her to reprioritize: She moved back home to Santa Cruz, California, to be closer to her mom, and the time indoors made her want to nest. “I’d been thinking about having a kid on my own, and the way life had slowed down made it feel like the right time,” she says. All she needed was a sperm donor. After speaking with a friend who’d gone to a sperm bank, she knew that wasn’t right for her. “I was struck by how unaffordable banks are for a service that feels impersonal,” she says.

So she looked into another option: Facebook groups that connect sperm donors and those seeking donations. In one, she met Kyle Gordy, the founder and one of the group’s most prolific donors—35 biological children and more on the way—and after a brief interview and the exchange of STI information, she met with him in a hotel room during her ovulation window. She chose to have a natural insemination (meaning sex, though Gordy and many other donors typically offer their sperm in a cup for artificial insemination, or they send it frozen in the mail). Leon- Weil, a marriage and family therapist, is currently 15 weeks pregnant. “It might seem strange to some people, but I tried to think of it like this: If I had met someone at a bar and gotten pregnant at this point in my life, I would have kept it. This felt more ethical because Kyle was on board with the level of contact I wanted with a donor going forward.” Plus, the service was free.

Denne historien er fra June 2021-utgaven av Women's Health.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra June 2021-utgaven av Women's Health.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA WOMEN'S HEALTHSe alt
Silver Linings Playbook
Women's Health US

Silver Linings Playbook

You can learn how to become more optimistic, no matter your starting point.

time-read
6 mins  |
November - December 2024
THE RISE of the GENTLE C-SECTION
Women's Health US

THE RISE of the GENTLE C-SECTION

How a new surgical practice is transforming women's childbirth experience

time-read
4 mins  |
November - December 2024
The Next Health Tech Revolution Is Here
Women's Health US

The Next Health Tech Revolution Is Here

From smart watches to tracking apps, devices are providing valuable insights.

time-read
7 mins  |
November - December 2024
Planting New Roots
Women's Health US

Planting New Roots

Six late-bloomer lesbians\" share their stories of how they learned to live—and love—authentically.

time-read
8 mins  |
November - December 2024
GROWING FORWARD
Women's Health US

GROWING FORWARD

Country singer KELSEA BALLERINI is working harder than ever to shake (and remake) old patterns that no longer serve her. Here, she opens up about her intentional journey and shares her mental health musts.

time-read
7 mins  |
November - December 2024
"Learning to Ski at 57 Helped Me Embrace Uncertainty"
Women's Health US

"Learning to Ski at 57 Helped Me Embrace Uncertainty"

Tackling something new-and terrifying was exactly what one freshly single midlifer needed.

time-read
6 mins  |
November - December 2024
Grain Gains
Women's Health US

Grain Gains

This cozy quinoa salad paired with juicy chicken thighs clocks nearly 50 grams of protein.

time-read
1 min  |
November - December 2024
Healthy Eats, Delivered
Women's Health US

Healthy Eats, Delivered

It might be possible to say soodbye to grocery stores forever. But should you? yee

time-read
4 mins  |
November - December 2024
Shower Power
Women's Health US

Shower Power

How one writer improved her mental health by connecting with her body

time-read
4 mins  |
November - December 2024
Scent Solutions
Women's Health US

Scent Solutions

What was once a taboo subject-body odor-is now a convo more and more people are happily having.

time-read
4 mins  |
November - December 2024