I was desperate for a baby – I turned to Facebook for sperm
Share:
Scrolling through sperm bank websites from my apartment, everything felt so sterile. They listed hair, eye color and height, among other characteristics. That’s all well and good, but I wanted to know who these men really were. Is he a good person? What is his temperament? If my child tracked him down years from now, would I feel good about the biological father that he would meet?.
![[Valerie Bauman: I found my sperm donor on Facebook]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/SEI_233859489-cd26-e1734711225518.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
By comparison, making the decision to become a solo mother by choice seemed easy. At 38 in 2020, I knew I wanted to have a baby, so I was out of time to do it the traditional way. A partner and marriage had been elusive, despite my best efforts. After days of mindlessly scrolling through sperm bank sites, it suddenly occurred to me that there were other options out there.
![[Valerie Bauman: I found my sperm donor on Facebook]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/SEI_233859602-1122-e1734711204918.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video. Up Next. I pulled out my phone, Googled ‘sperm donor that you know’ – and, over the next several days, I discovered the world of freelance sperm donation. It’s where men offer their genetic material for free to women seeking assistance to become mothers.
![[Valerie Bauman: I found my sperm donor on Facebook]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/SEI_233859494-c418-e1734711176545.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
I found many groups on Facebook where men were offering their sperm and women were urgently seeking it out. In those early days, I chatted with dozens of men. I made a post about myself, explaining I was a professional journalist, grew up helping care for my three younger brothers, and always dreamed of being a mum – and I received about 60 messages from sperm donors.
![[Valerie Bauman: I found my sperm donor on Facebook]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/SEI_233859606-4b5b.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
