how many siblings?

Ivettina

Would like to hear anyone's thoughts on your child having 20 half siblings?

lookingforwardtobeingamother

I don't think it bad. At least you get a sense of the quality of sperm. One day maybe your child might want to know them. This is the nature of he beast for lack of a better word. Good luck!

jjr3

It is overwhelming to think about but usually those siblings are spread all over the world. I have 3 kids with the same donor and have been in contact with two of the families but know off many more. I know one of the families has a set of twins that are in the same area as me but I have never spoke to them. Just saw them registered in the sibling registry. My daughter is close in age to them and I can't help worrying they could end up in the same school and not be the wiser. Otherwise I think it is a nice way for the kids to know a genetic side that they may never know.

austingurl123

I went into it knowing there would be siblings, and I would have no control over the number. My daughter has 4 half brothers. I am in contact with two of the moms and the other ones have chosen not to stay in contact. I think it's fun to see how much they look alike. And I think it's good she will have something of a "father's side" to her family. It might answer some questions for her later in life. I haven't heard of too many situations where there are actually 20 kids from the same donor, but maybe I am just not aware of those families. My experience is more like 6-10. I know all my daughter's halfies were born within a year of each other, so I think it would be fun to meet one day when they are older because they might have some of the same interests. But if the other moms don't want that, then I will respect that too. The two moms I am in contact with are both single moms too, so I think it might be good for the kids to have some connection to their paternal side.

ktkbb

I agree that it is comforting to know that my child will have a shot a some kind of connection with "the other side of the family". When I first read alarmist, horror stories of 30+ half siblings, I will admit to being a little thrown. But when I stepped back and thought about it, I actually like it. I come from an enormous family--I have 54 first cousins. Big families feel right to me, and half siblings have the potential to feel like cousins. Maybe we can have an annual picnic. :)

Chebat

My understanding is that CCB tries to limit to 25 families. And I see the occasional post about a particular donor only being eligible to contribute to those who already have pregnancies with him. So where a donor hits 25 families I think it's safe to assume at least 25+ children. I wonder how often that happens. 25 families seems quite high to me. I'd be a lot more comfortable with 10 or 15 as the limit. At the end of the day it is a business....