Woman, 28, became single mum of 4 after finding sperm donor on Facebook

A single woman who decided she “didn’t want to date anymore” has opened up about how she got pregnant with the help of social media – and without having sex.

Brooke Withington, from Queensland, Australia, told news.com.au that she’d dreamed of having “at least five children” ever since she was a little girl.

Amazingly, aged 28, her dream has already come true, and she’s now the proud sole parent to two boys and three girls.

Her kids Edward, eight, Gilbert, six, Odette, four, and Mabel, four months, were all conceived during relationships that have since ended. But her one-year-old daughter Nora was born thanks to a sperm donor she found on Facebook.

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“After I had my third baby Odette, I didn’t want to date anymore,” she explained. “I was so happy and content on my own, but I still wanted more children.

“That is when I decided I would go down the sperm donor route instead.”

Brooke considered visiting a sperm bank but didn’t like the sterile environment and wanted to meet her child’s biological father in person.

That’s when she remembered hearing about a Facebook group called ‘Sperm Donation Australia’.

“It sounded perfect for my situation. I loved that you could learn about the donor, and actually meet with them and know what their personality is like,” she said.

The mum then posted about her situation and was contacted by a few potential donors.

She whittled down the list to her preferred candidate and the pair arranged a meeting, he also provided her with detailed information about his health and family history.

“It was also really important to me that my donor had a limit of families he donated to,” she added. "This donor had a Facebook messenger group with the other families he had helped, so we can keep track of the kids and organise catch-ups from time to time.”

Once they’d agreed the terms of the donation, and Brooke was satisfied everything was above board, she booked a hotel room and the donor went in to leave his donation.

She then followed and used a syringe to artificially inseminate herself.

“I stayed laying down for about 15 minutes after I inseminated the semen,” she recalled. “One thing that I believe is important is getting the semen into the syringe incredibly slowly and also inserting it slowly to make sure no sperm get damaged in the process.”

A short while later, Brooke discovered that she was pregnant. She gave birth to Nora in May 2021.

Whilst her experience was a positive one, experts warn that seeking a sperm donor online rather than from a registered clinic carries significant risks.

“There are long and short-term dangers for women and their future children that we have to consider,” Dr Alex Polyakov from Melbourne University, told news.com.au.

“The men who are donating outside of the proper channels are not usually subject to appropriate screening procedures. They have not been thorough evaluations or been tested for various genetic conditions and different types of infectious diseases.”

Still, although Brooke admitted that her kids didn’t arrive in the way she’d always envisaged, having assumed she’d get married first, she insisted: “It feels like it all happened exactly how it was meant to.”

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