Let's do the math. 

My bio dad donated sperm twice a week every week from late 1983 to 1989. Let's make it simple and say 6 years. 52 weeks in a year times 2. 52x2x6=624 potential samples given. That is A LOT of DNA! So what does that mean for me I could have up to 623 half-siblings in the world. But let's make it a little easier to comprehend. Say only half of those samples ended in a child. 624/2=312 Ok 311 half siblings are so much easier to wrap my head around. NOT! That is a lot of people that I share half of my DNA with.

Due to at-home DNA testing siblings can pop up in my life at any time. Talk about a gender reveal party! Normally these siblings arrive after the holidays due to them being on sale and people think that would be fun to find out my personal ancestry only to be greeted with the news that they aren't who they thought they were and their parents aren't who they thought they were. AHHHH!  Happy Holidays to you! 

The infertility industry is a dark scary place that brings babies to people that only want the joy of being parents. We live in a world that heckles Catholics and Mormons for having large families of 10 or more but lets the infertility clinics use the same donor 624 times. I guess it is ok because it's not the same parents raising those children. Right? NO! At least those kids know who not to be in a relationship with because they grew up with their siblings, and those kids know their family's medical history. It's the simple things that make you feel safe and secure.

Am I saying donors are in the wrong? No. Am I saying those people using the donor DNA are wrong? No. I am saying that Doctors, Clinics, and Labs need to stop being so careless about creating humans. Keep records and share them! Confirm the donor's medical history and share it with those that use that donor! Make updates to those medical histories and info for those that were donor-conceived! Transparency and ethics. That’s all we ask for. Let's make these things laws! Cause in the USA there aren't federal laws about this stuff.

I am so grateful for the gift of life. I just don’t want my experience to be someone else's painful experience. "Hey you look like a friend of mine." used to be no big deal when I heard it. Now I want to say "You should have them take a DNA test because they could be my half-sibling. Do they know all their family secrets?"

Secrets don't make friends but they make giant family pods!