Transgender Fertility Treatment

Steffi and Jonas come from Southern Germany and in 2020 visited us at Diers Klinik to have their wish for a child fulfilled. Because Jonas is transgender, the couple decided to be treated with donor sperm in Denmark, where the transgender fertility treatment options are much broader than in Germany.

Here, you can read more about the small family’s history, which is now complete after their daughter Juna was born in 2021.

Many thanks to you, Jonas and Steffi, for sharing your story!

Challenges in Germany led to Diers Klinik in Denmark

For the couple, the desire to have a child has really always been there. But because Jonas is transgender (born as a woman but with a male gender identity), the wish was pushed a bit into the background. Because of that, we couldn’t just have children naturally.

We called our health insurance in Germany, which immediately refused to pay for fertility treatment because Jonas was transgender.

In a roundabout way through friends of friends, we came across a story about a lesbian woman from Germany who had been treated in Denmark. This information opened a lot of doors for us. After that we started researching and collected a lot of information on the possibilities available for us.

After searching for a while, we eventually found Diers Klinik, which we were excited about from the first moment. On their website we could find all the information we needed in advance, and we also contacted the clinic to receive their information material. After reading the material, we made an appointment for the initial consultation in Denmark.

Consultation and preparation

The consultation took place in February 2020, and it was a really good experience. As we preferred the personal contact, we decided to go on a 3-day excursion to Denmark. In that way, we were able to see the clinic and meet the staff in advance.

From the first moment we entered the clinic, we felt comfortable and safe. The atmosphere was very relaxed, and all the employees are so nice and welcoming.

During the interview, we got answers to all our questions, and Line took the time to talk the whole process through with us. If we had more questions, we could also contact them by email at any time, and we found out that we could also always count on a quick answer.

When we had to choose a donor, we thought on the one hand about the external features, which we wanted to look like Jonas (eye colour, hair colour, etc.). On the other hand, we also considered the donor category. It is important that you think carefully and find out whether you want the child to have the opportunity to be informed of the donor’s identity, so that the child can contact his donor.

For us, it was important that our child himself, as an 18-year-old, could choose whether this was a need or not for him. Therefore, we ended up choosing a donor with ID-release.

First fertility treatment during the Covid shutdown

The first treatment took place on 07.06.2020. After we had intensively monitored ovulation, the ovulation test was finally – and with four days’ delay – positive on 06.06.2020 around 9 in the morning.

We immediately called the clinic so that they could send us the entry documentation we had to show at the border due to the Covid pandemic. The clinic sent us the documentation we needed to enter Denmark by email, and we got an appointment for treatment the next day at 10.

We packed our things, and around 10 AM, we drove north in our car. 12 hours later, around 10 PM, we arrived at The Wake Up hotel in Aarhus, where we had booked an overnight stay.

The next day we showed up at the clinic at 10 for our appointment. Again, we felt very welcome and comfortable. First, an ultrasound scan was done on Steffi, so we could see if the follicle was big enough. Everything was perfect, and we waited while the sperm unit was thawed and checked.

During the treatment, the catheter was led directly into Steffi’s uterus, and Jonas got to press the syringe at the end. After resting for 20 minutes, we said goodbye to the staff in Diers Klinik, had a cup of coffee downtown and drove some very tense 12 hours back home.

Success on the first try

After 10 very long days where we just waited and waited, Steffi took an ultra-early pregnancy test on 17.06.2020. To our great joy, the pregnancy test turned out to be positive.

Our family and friends had been privy to our plans, and they were all just as anxiously awaiting the outcome as we were. After the pregnancy test had shown positive, we therefore also immediately contacted them all and told them the happy news.

On 19.02.2021, our little darling Juna was born.

Challenges

Our biggest challenge in the whole process was the timing itself. Steffi works at a dentist. Therefore, she cannot just take a vacation, unless it is planned with her employer in advance. Therefore, we could only go to Denmark if ovulation coincided with a vacation.

In addition, the whole Covid-19 situation didn’t exactly make it any easier either. We had planned a trip to Denmark in April. However, because the borders had suddenly been closed, and it was not known at the time that you were allowed to cross the borders to receive fertility treatment, we had to drop the attempt. But luckily it all succeeded in June.

Gratitude

We would like to say thank you to Diers Klinik and all the employees for your support in the process.

Also, we would like to send a loving thought and a big thank you to our donor, as well as to all other sperm donors. You make it possible for us and others to have a family.