6 steps on how to make home insemination succesful

1. Choose Your Sperm Donor

Visit our sperm donor search and browse our donor list which contains over 160 excellent choices. If you are curious how to find your perfect donor, Cryos has you covered - Read our guide on how to choose a sperm donor.

We recommend buying 2 straws of MOT10 ICI or IUI-ready sperm. Our straws are 1/2 ml, so a MOT10 is guaranteed to have between 5 - 9.5 million motile (moving) sperm, and 2 straws are the recommended minimum amount for a home insemination. Follow the link, if you would like more information on sperm straws and how much donor sperm to order.

We have the option of Non-ID Release or ID Release Sperm Donors. ID Release donors can be contacted at 18 by your child, but we do not disclose donor information to you at any point. A Non-ID Release donor (formerly anonymous) cannot be contacted in the future by your child, so take that into consideration when choosing a donor. One of the benefits of using an FDA approved sperm bank is that all of our donors have signed away paternity rights, so you have no legal issues to worry about in the future.

We also have the option of a Basic or Extended Sperm Donor Profile. Our Extended donor profiles are free to view and contain baby photos, family histories, handwritten letter, audio, and much more. Our Basic donors do not have baby photos and contain more minimal information about the donors - perfect for individuals who don't want to know too much about the donor's personality/appearance.

2. Select Your Shipping Method

There are 2 shipping options available.

1 ) A regular nitrogen tank that lasts 7 days from shipping date.

2 ) A large nitrogen tank that lasts 12 days from shipping date.

When selecting your shipping method, keep in mind your location and how many days shipping is going to take. These options will appear near the end of the check out process, after you select your donor and are ready for purchase. Follow the link to our blog about important shipping policies you need to know.

When selecting a shipping date, it's important to be able to accurately pinpoint when you ovulate to increase your chances of success. There are a number of ovulation tracking tools you can use such as menstrual cycle tracking calendars, apps, ovulation tests, and tracking your Basal Body Temperature, "BBT."

You will want to time your shipping date to ensure that your Home Insemination kit arrives before ovulation day. Your most fertile days will be the two days leading up to your ovulation and your ovulation day. The chances of pregnancy fall down to 0% after your ovulation day and rise again during your next ovulation cycle.

Learn how to handle your nitrogen tank here.

3.  Receive Your Donor Sperm for Home insemination

After you've purchased your selected donor, you will receive a tracking number. Use that number to track your shipment and make sure an individual who is over 18 is at the destination location to receive the shipment. Someone must be at the address you have shipped your donor sperm to, to sign for it.

Check the content of the shipment and make sure it is undamaged. You will receive everything you need to complete a home insemination. This includes:

• 1) The shipping container that keeps the sperm frozen
• 2) The sperm straw(s)
• 3) A needle-less syringe
• 4) An adapter that fits into our straws specifically
• 5) An individually wrapped alcohol wipe
• 6) A copy of your packing list and instructions

4. Thaw Your Straws

Remove your sperm straw from the nitrogen tank and thaw at room temperature for approximately 15-20 minutes. Do not put in warm water!

Once thawed:

• 1) Fit the thick end of the adapter onto the syringe.
• 2) Clean the straw using the alcohol pad
• 3) Using scissors, cut the sealed end of the straw (a maximum distance of 0.5 cm/o.2") opposite of the side with the ID-number/name
• 4) Place the cut end of the straw into the thin end of the adapter

Keep the syringe upright and slowly draw the content of the straw into the syringe. This video will also explain how to handle the sperm straw(s):

5. Insert Syringe into Vagina

Start by laying down comfortably, using a pillow to raise your hips. Take the syringe carefully and insert it as far into the vaginal canal as possible. Inject the sperm into your vagina to complete the home insemination.

Then lay still in place for approximately 30 minutes. Below is a video explaining the entire home insemination process:

6. Choose the best time to do home insemination

When doing home insemination, timing is really everything. In order to have the best chances of becoming pregnant you need to coordinate with your ovulation cycle and perform the insemination during the “fertility window”. For most women, the “fertility window” takes place between day 10 and 15 during their monthly cycle, which is quite a narrow period of time. Therefore, you should use an ovulation monitor, that helps you track your ovulation, so you know when to inseminate.

It is great to practice a month or two before you actually start the home insemination with donor sperm, so you are familiar with your ovulation tracker and know when the most optimal time for insemination occurs. Please note that this process is stressful, and your ovulation can change quite a bit when you begin trying to get pregnant. The time from insemination to a positive pregnancy test is also very stressful. If you want advice on what to do during your two week wait, then follow the link.

Have any questions on donor sperm pricing or something that we haven't answered here? Give our Customer Care Team a call at (407) 203-1175 or email us at [email protected] and let us help you with making your home insemination a true success.

If you want to learn more about the cost of home insemination compared to other fertility treatments, we recommend you to follow the link to our blog post on the subject.

We are also available to answer questions on our live chat system during regular operating hours via our website.

We look forward to making your family dreams come true!