How many times would you try before you gave up?
Kristin Duncan already knew what it took to become a single mother by choice. Her son Blake was conceived with donor sperm. But trying for her second child brought a whole new level of heartbreak, repeated IVF rounds with her own eggs, ovarian PRP, multiple clinic changes, a backup donor who fell through, and a journey that tested everything she had.
In this episode of the Building Your Family podcast, Kristin sits down with Lisa to share the full story of how she finally conceived her daughter Brianna using both donor sperm and donor eggs, including how she found her donor through Instagram, why she preferred a known donor over a bank donor, and what it actually felt like to keep going when everything kept failing.
What you will learn in this episode:
What it is really like to pursue IVF with low ovarian reserve and endometriosis as a single mom
How Kristin navigated multiple clinic changes, ovarian PRP and round after round of unsuccessful transfers
The emotional toll of parenting one child while desperately trying to give him a sibling
Why her first backup donor did not work out and how devastating that was
How she found her egg donor through Instagram
Why she preferred a known donor and what that relationship looks like
The mental shift from repeated disappointment to trusting that this child was the one she was meant to have
What she wants every single mother by choice to know about fertility testing and planning ahead
This is one of the most honest and moving conversations about persistence, donor eggs and single motherhood you will hear.
Resources:
Building Your Family Community: familybuilding.net
Take the free quiz: familybuilding.net/welcome-quiz
Lisa Schuman LCSW is the founder of The Center for Family Building, author of Building Your Family: The Complete Guide to Donor Conception, and host of the Building Your Family podcast.
Your feelings deserve attention. And your decisions deserve clarity.
Guest Resources:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mysmbclife/
