Lesbian Women Choosing Motherhood: The Journey to Conception

Brenda Haymana*, Lesley Wilkesb, Elizabeth Halcombc & Debra Jacksonda University of Western Sydney, Sydney, Australiab University of Western Sydney, Sydney, Australia, and Centre for Nursing Research and Practice Development, Nepean/Blue Mountains Local Health District, New South Wales, Australiac University of Wollongong, New South Wales, Australiad University of Technology, Sydney, AustraliaAddress correspondence to Brenda Hayman, University of Western Sydney, Locked Bag 1797, Penrith NSW Australia 2751. E-mail: b.hayman@uws.edu.auIncreasingly, lesbian women are choosing to have children in the context of a same-sex relationship, and their journey to conception and on to motherhood involves a range of decisions that are unique to lesbian couples. While creating a de novo family is burdened with decisions, choosing to be parents was a deliberate and conscious decision made by lesbian women participating in our study. The findings presented in this article focus on choosing which partner would be pregnant, donor decisions, as well as methods of conception used by lesbian women participating in a qualitative study that examined the experiences of lesbian mothers in Australia. This article is not intended to be interpretive, but rather a description of the processes engaged by participants.