Brian Dowling has opened up about his struggle to start a family with his husband Arthur Gourounlian.
Over the past few months, the couple have been looking into surrogacy and adoption – but they’ve faced a lot of hurdles along the way.
Speaking on Georgie Crawford’s podcast The Good Glow, Brian explained why they’re leaning towards adoption right now.
He said: “I think in America anything is possible, so it was great when we were in America and we were looking at surrogacy and talking to people about surrogacy and we were on the adoption system there.”
“And then I was like, ‘Well the adoption system there isn’t necessarily where we’re going to go’. We were very much surrogacy.”
“And then through Arthur’s history in his life, coming from Armenia and you know not really having anything and then having to seek asylum in Belgium and then the Salvation Army having to look after them…”
“He’s very much like, ‘Why are you paying all this money when you can adopt a child?’ And that’s where we’re at now. We haven’t necessarily ruled out surrogacy altogether, it’s just that this is the door we’re knocking on now.”
Although they’re leaning towards adopting, they haven’t found the process easy since moving back to Ireland earlier this year.
Brian explained: “To be honest with you, we’ve been reaching out here in Ireland and I suppose with Covid – Covid is not making anything easy.”
“But from the last conversation we had I just wasn’t sure if the lady we spoke to, what their feelings were on same sex adoption.”
“Because she was like, ‘Mm Yeah, Oh’. And I just thought, ‘b***h please, you give me that phone right now and I will let her know who she’s talking to’.
“Just her whole tone changed. And he’s [Arthur] trying to get the phone away from me because he knows those conversations are recorded. And I’d be like, ‘Have you any idea?'”
“We’re still waiting for them to send us stuff but we’re not really getting any information, so we’re just kind of doing it through our friend Alan who adopted a little boy a few years ago.”
“So we’re kind of getting [information] through him and a social worker he knows. But 2020 is just the year that keeps on giving with everyone, it’s just hurdle after hurdle.”
Brian also joked about asking his best friend Pippa O’Connor to be their surrogate.
“I’ve asked but she has never been drunk enough to say yes. Come on Pippa,” he laughed.
“I’m going to have to try, but could you imagine a child with her DNA and mine? That would be something you would see on Jurassic World, this new breed of dinosaur.”
“I don’t think the world is ready for that yet,” he added.
