Posted:
As we all know very well by now, HD is all about spreading misinformation when it comes to some very serious issues. Be it mental illness, surrogacy, brain tumors, or rape, the HD team excels at depicting these topics in the most absurd of ways.
I have no idea what the upcoming track is going to be about but the article suggests that the track may revolve around issues of infertility, surrogacy etc. Even before the initiation of the track, I already see misinformation popping up all around the forum. So as a dutiful citizen of the forum, I thought I'd do my part to clear some misconceptions about infertility/surrogacy etc.
In this day and age, a man and a woman do NOT have to be physically intimate to make a baby! That's right...IVF (in vitro fertilization) which has been around for at least a few decades now makes it possible for an embryo to be conceived outside the woman's body, making physical intimacy unnecessary. The egg donor can either be the wife or a random woman who has (out of the kindness of her heart) decided to donate her eggs. The identity of the donor is never revealed. Because of the obvious legal issues involed with this, there are strict rules/regulations/contracts which donors have to sign which prohibit them from claiming any rights on the child. These contracts are not "mean" or "cruel" or "heartless"- rather they are to protect all the parties involved, including the child.
The second issue with infertility has to do with surrogacy. In this case, the woman may be able to conceive but may not be able to carry the fetus to term. in such cases, embroy's conceived thru IVF are usually implanted in the surrogates womb (similar to Shweta's case but not quite). The process of surrogacy is a structured/standardized process. Yes you may chose a relative to help surrogate the baby, but in many cases, woman lend this service to couples (who are strangers to them) for a fee. Again, there is always a contract involved, as there shoud be, to prevent problems down the line. Having never spoken to a surrogate personally, I don't know what emotions are involved with being a surrogate...I suppose getting attached to the baby may be a natural reaction. But this is the reason that these contracts exist...they are not meant to be cruel or heartless towards the surrogate...they are to protect all the individuals involved.
I know people who are not familar with this techonology and the concept of surrogacy tend to attribute a lot of emotion to this sphere. But I'd like to clear up that a egg donor or a surrogate does NOT equal being a mother in any way or form. We live in a wonderful world now where the advances in technology have allowed these amazing things to happen. With the advent of this technology however, the traditional defintions of mother/father blur quite significantly and we should be cautious before applying our traditional understanding of relationships to these situations. Obviously there are many moral/ethical/legal issues that continue to remain undefined and are constantly debated.
Given HD's track records so far, I am quite certain that the concepts of infertility and surrogacy will be handled just as poorly as all the other serious issues they have tried to depict so far. I am pretty much expecting to watch a 80's movie...doors closed...man and to be surrogate locked inside...wife waiting anxiously..and rain and thunder outside (I have to credit Kanan for the 80's movie idea). But this is NOT how things happen in real life anymore. I just wanted to do my part to clear up some of the misconceptions for people who many not be familiar wih these issues in real life.
If anyone has any questions or is confused about what I wrote, please feel free to ask and I'll be delighted to answer đ And thank you for taking the time to read!
Anupamaa
Naagin 7
Health and Fitness
