Egg freezing
Egg freezing may be an option if you’re certain you’re not ready to have a family and you want to maintain the chance of having one in the future.
Find out more about Egg freezing
Share your experiences by joining our Patient Engagement Forum.Single women
If you’re single you might be thinking about what your options are for having a family without a partner. Get an overview of some of the key issues you may want to consider before starting treatment.
Treatment options
Fertility MOTs
Fertility MOTs assess your ovarian reserve (the number and quality of eggs) by testing for two hormones: follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH). The tests can give some indication of how fertile a woman is although the results are not guaranteed.
Intrauterine insemination (IUI)
IUI or artificial insemination is the main treatment for single women who want a family. You can have it with or without fertility drugs.
Find out more about IUISurrogacy
Surrogacy could be an option for women who have a condition that means it's dangerous or impossible for them to give birth.
Find out more about Surrogacy
In vitro fertilisation (IVF)
If you have any conditions affecting your fertility you may be advised to have IVF, which gives your doctor complete control of the fertilisation process.
Find out more about IVF
Home insemination
Home insemination is when you impregnate yourself at home with donor sperm. We don't recommend this as there can be serious health and legal implications.
Find out more about Home inseminationTreatment abroad
If you're considering treatment abroad, it's important to be aware of the risks to ensure your treatment is safe and effective.
Find out more about Treatment abroad
Using a donor
Whether you want to use just donated sperm or donated eggs too, find out everything you need to know about using a donor in treatment.
Find out more about using a donor
Choose a clinic
Ready to choose a fertility clinic? Get all the information you need to choose the best clinic for you and prepare for your appointment.
Take care of you
Fertility treatment is not an easy thing to go through.
There are plenty of things that can go wrong with treatment and no guarantee it will be successful, so you need to prepare for that. Even if you are successful, just the process of taking fertility drugs and travelling back and forth to the clinic for appointments can be exhausting. Make sure you're getting plenty of support from family, friends, a charity or a qualified counsellor. Gingerbread is a charity supporting single parents and the Donor Conception Network provides information to anyone conceiving with the help of a donor. Alternatively you can find an accredited counsellor through the British Infertility Counselling Association.
From our partners
Treating infertility (NHS Choices)
Information and support for single parents (Gingerbread charity)
Understanding ovarian reserve (The British Fertility Society)
Publication date: 20 April 2021
Review date: 20 April 2023
