Skin-to-Skin After Surrogacy Boosts Bonding
For intended mothers navigating surrogacy, that first moment of holding their newborn can bring a swirl of joy, fear, awe, and uncertainty. A new clinical trial published in the Iranian Journal of Nursing and Midwifery Research (2025) explored whether immediate skin-to-skin contact could help biological mothers who used surrogacy form a stronger bond with their baby.
In a setting where skin-to-skin isn’t typically offered to mothers in surrogacy arrangements, the researchers asked: Could this simple, natural gesture change the quality of connection?
Key Findings
Mothers who held their babies skin-to-skin had significantly higher attachment scores than those who did not (p < 0.001).
Emotional bonding behaviors (eye contact, touching, smiling) were most improved by skin-to-skin contact.
Caring and proximity behaviors—like changing clothes, holding, hugging—also rose sharply in the skin-to-skin group.
All mothers received similar postpartum care, but only the skin-to-skin group had a dedicated hour of bare chest contact immediately after birth.
No differences were found in attachment scores based on maternal age, education level, marital duration, or gestational age.
The effect was consistent even though the babies were carried in a surrogate uterus, highlighting how physical closeness can repair the absence of prenatal bonding.
Why This Matters
In my work with clients who build their families through surrogacy, I often hear the quiet fear: What if I don’t feel like the baby’s real mom right away?
That fear makes sense. Without the shared physical experience of pregnancy, many biological mothers in surrogacy worry that bonding will be delayed or missing altogether.
This study offers hopeful, concrete guidance. It shows that the act of holding your baby close, skin to skin, can jumpstart the emotional and physiological connection even if you didn’t carry the pregnancy yourself. It lowers maternal anxiety, boosts caregiving confidence, and supports the baby’s development.
It also reminds us that hospitals must adapt their postpartum protocols to support all family structures. Skin-to-skin is not just for vaginal deliveries or “traditional” births. It’s a vital first step for any new parent who wants to connect.
If you’re pursuing surrogacy, you deserve postpartum care that welcomes your body into the parenting experience—not as an afterthought, but as the beginning of your relationship with your baby.
Study Limitations
COVID-19 pandemic constraints limited broader in-person data collection
The study assessed only short-term postpartum effects (no long-term bonding data)
Conducted at a single center in Tehran, which may limit generalizability
Small sample size (50 mother-infant dyads)
Did not include outcomes for fathers or non-gestational co-parents
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