“I Realized They Weren’t Mine to Keep:” One Woman’s Embryo Donation Story

The Petersen Family

Embryo adoption has been in the news a lot lately, but these stories wouldn't happen without the amazing gift of embryo donations. A family must first decide that they want to donate their embryos before another couple can adopt them and experience the joy of parenthood. Thankfully, more and more people are learning about embryo donation as a viable choice for their remaining embryos after building their family through in vitro fertilization (IVF).

Annabelle Peterson and her husband, Tom, had three children within just a few years. She had a 3-year-old, a 2-year-old, and a newborn at home when the couple decided they were done building their family. Tom suggested that they donate the embryos, but Annabelle was resistant at first because they weren’t just embryos to her–they were her babies.

Annabelle says that she had a revelation one day in the shower that these babies weren't hers to keep, and she wanted another woman to experience the joys of motherhood. Annabelle had experienced her own struggles with infertility, and she knew how painful it could be. When her youngest was just six weeks old, she registered with an embryo adoption agency and began the search for a family to adopt her remaining embryos.

Today, a couple in Canada now has two young sons to love and adore and it’s all thanks to Annabelle’s gift of embryo donation. Families who donate remaining embryos want to see their embryos have a chance at the life they were created for instead of being destroyed in a lab. If you are one of the thousands of couples with embryos in storage and you want to learn more about the donation process, visit www.embryoadoption.org.

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