The joys of motherhood linger in many same sex relationships, and for many couples, pregnancy remains just a dream, but with the availability of alternative methods of falling pregnant, such as artificial insemination, the dream of a lesbian mothering her own child can become reality.

“Artificial insemination involves collecting and processing semen and placing it directly into the woman’s vagina, cervical canal, or uterine cavity. The sperm may be from the husband or male partner, Artificial Insemination by Husband (AIH) or from a donor Artificial insemination by Donor (AID)” said Aziza Cassim, Manager of Bio Art Fertility Clinic.
For most lesbian couples the most preferred method is using donor sperm, which can be taken from various sperm banks across the country.
Peggy Birrell, Medical Technologist at Cryobank, a sperm bank in Johannesburg, says the demand is “great and growing fast.”
“We get all races, black, white, indian and colored, single women and women in same sex relationships.”
Sue Ficher* a married lesbian who had a successful procedure in 2009 however says there is a shortage of donor sperm around the country.
“The legalities are that if a donor has had about five successful births, they are scratched from the donor list to prevent incest. And also when donors fill the form to give the sperm they are allowed to say if they do not want their sperm to be used by same sex couples, so your pool is quite small”, says Fischer.
But Birrel says Cyobank has never run out of sperm supply even though she says it is becoming increasingly difficult to get them [sperms].
“But we have never had anyone saying that homosexuals may not use their sperm”, Birrell pointed out.
She added “We cannot prevent incest, we work purely on a donor number system. Even though one may not be allowed to donate at our bank after five successful births, they might choose to go to another bank making it difficult for us to prevent such.”
The process of artificial insemination seems quite easy and affordable.
Fischer had to go to the clinic every month when she was ovulating. She opted for just insemination without fertility drugs, which cost her about R1000. After a few visits she was told that she was pregnant with twins.
She however warns that there are other institutions in Johannesburg where the procedure may cost as much as R4000 every time one goes to the clinic.
The actual total cost of artificial insemination varies from patient to patient, Lizzette White of the Pretoria East fertility Clinic explains.

“Consultation fees can be paid up by the medical aid, but the actual insemination will have to be paid up in cash, which can roughly cost up to R1200, for the insemination only, but it all depends on the patient’s needs as there are various costs involved”, White says.
Prior to 1997 only married women were allowed to go for artificial insemination but the Act which prohibited single women from undergoing artificial insemination, Artificial Insemination of Persons and Related Matters Act was amended in 1997 making headway for lesbians to go for the procedure.
According to Bio Art Fertility Clinic results of artificial insemination may depend on one’s age since, Cassim says, younger women usually have healthier eggs with higher success rates.
“The national average success rate is around 35-40 %. This figure represents the average chance of one delivering a healthy baby with their first attempt.”
On the other hand, HIV positive males are not allowed to donate sperm, unless if the male is a husband or partner to the mother.
Bio Art states that all donors are thoroughly monitored throughout their donating period and that where a woman is found to be HIV positive, she undergoes a procedure called Intracytoplasmic sperm injection, which is used to reduce HIV transmission and increase fertilisation rates, and if a husband is HIV positive, sperm wash is conducted.
Bio Art says medical data shows that no transmission of HIV to offspring’s has been reported so far with sero-discordant couples (where the other partner is positive and the other negative) who have undergone proper treatment and procedures.
Dr. Dasoo of Bio Art says if both partners are HIV positive, “they need to be an ideal couple.
“In other words they need to have back up, their CD4 count needs to be stable and their viral load should be low. They must also be prepared to accept a small risk of infection to the offspring”, he said.
Artificial insemination seems to be by far the most accessible and convenient way for lesbian couples to conceive and perhaps another way of casting off stereotypes that lesbians cannot mother their own children.