A 34-year-old Canadian woman who is also a single mom of twins says she found her sperm donor through Facebook. Sarah Magnat said she tried to use a traditional sperm bank but described it as “too impersonal," per People. So she took matters into her own hands and found a “Canadian Sperm Donor” group on Facebook, the magazine reported. She experienced complications both during her pregnancy and during childbirth, but the mom of two said her sperm donor was very supportive.
Magnat also shared that she made the decision to become a single mom one morning in July 2020, according to the Daily Mail. Though she had been single for nearly eight years, she decided she didn’t need to wait for the right person to start a family with and that she was ready to become a mom.
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The mother said she wasn’t always sure she wanted to have children.
Magnat said she didn’t always want to have kids, but one day that changed. “I enjoyed being selfish and not being responsible for someone else. But that day I woke up and thought, ‘I want to have a baby now.’ It was so strange," like a switch had flipped "and I was ready,” she said, per the Daily Mail.
The mother of two also shared that she didn’t want to wait for the right person to come along, which led to her decision to use a sperm donor.
After trying a traditional sperm bank, she took matters into her own hands and found a donor through Facebook.
Magnat described the sperm bank's process as “too impersonal,” per People. She discovered the Canadian Sperm Donors Facebook group and connected with a particular donor.
After the potential sperm donor had STI and genetic testing done, Magnat decided to meet in person. "At the sperm bank, you can only meet them when your child turns 18. But I wanted to know the person before that,” Magnat said, according to People.
They met in person for the first time in February 2021. Though meeting someone online in real life can be off-putting, the meeting apparently went well and Magnat found out she was pregnant with twins in November 2021. "I nearly had a heart attack when they told me there was two," she said, the news outlet reported.
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The twin girls were born prematurely, and the first few months of their lives were challenging.
Magnat's happy pregnancy news, however, also came with complications. Magnat was told by doctors that she has a short cervix, which could cause a miscarriage or premature pregnancy, per People. Magnat had a cervical stitch done to prevent early labor but still went into premature labor in April 2022. Her twins, Elora and Addison, came at 27 weeks on April 30, 2022.
“They were so tiny, literally all skin and bone. They looked like aliens," the mom of two said, per Daily Mail. "Both of them were wrapped in plastic to stay warm. I later found out that Addison had to be resuscitated, which was terrifying.”
Both twins had heart defects and undeveloped lungs because of being born prematurely and required breathing machines, but they were discharged at 3 months.
Even though it’s been a difficult journey, the mom of two said ‘it’s the best decision I ever made.’
Magnat shared that the days and months in the NICU with her twins were hard. “Every day I left the hospital at 5 p.m. and go home to an empty house. That was a difficult part about doing it by myself. I couldn't comfort them when they cried,” she said, according to the Daily Mail.
She shared that because she didn’t have a partner that her mother was a huge support for her during that time. "Being there became my nine-to-five, and for the first few weeks my mom, Jane, went every day too. I couldn't have done it without her," Magnat said.
Despite all the challenges, the mom of two wouldn’t change anything. "You can't wait forever for the right person to come into your life," she advised, per People. "If you're thinking about doing it alone, I say do it. It's the best decision I ever made."
