Aussie influencer responds to public outrage after travelling to the US to undergo banned $45,000 procedure
Australian influencer Caitlin Bailey has responded to public outrage over her decision to travel to the United States to access sex selective IVF.
The Melbourne-based single mum sparked heated debate over her choice to spend $45,000 on the procedure, which has allowed her to select the gender of her unborn baby.
Caitlin makes a living as a 'mumfluencer' and has three children - two sons and a daughter aged between one and five - who were conceived naturally.
Gender selection is banned in Australia on ethical grounds.
Caitlin, 31, is due to give birth to her second daughter in August, and this week told the Courier Mail that she has always wanted two children of each gender.
'Everybody gets a brother, everybody gets a sister,' she explained. 'I really love that they're close in age.'
Caitlin said she had heard of sex selective IVF 'loosely' before she decided to seek out Gender Selection Australia, an organisation that partners with California-based doctor Daniel Potter.
Dr Potter has a large following in Australia, having appeared on both 60 Minutes and The Today Show, and estimates his sex selection services have led to thousands of Australian births in the last 20 years.
In the US, mothers can opt to be implanted with only female or only male eggs.
Caitlin travelled to the US after selecting an American sperm donor and described the process as 'a bit like online shopping.'
It has been 10 years since medical experts have reviewed whether or not it should be legal to select the gender of the child in Australia.
Hundreds of parents travel to the US each year to undergo the process, but Caitlin's story has struck a public nerve.
On Tuesday, Sunrise reporter Andrew McCormack divided viewers when he asked about the case.
'My first gut instinct is no. So, yeah, no. But there is no real reason for it, I just feel like let the population be kind of natural and don't interfere,' one viewer said.
On Wednesday, Caitlin Bailey defended her decision to undergo the sex selective IVF and thanked the people who had shown her support after her story hit national news
'People should have autonomy over their own body. So, what they want to do is up to them. I personally would like the luck of the draw. It is a bit more fun when you don't know what to expect,' another argued.
Caitlin also appeared on 7News Melbourne to discuss her story.
On Wednesday, she took to her Instagram to thank her supporters and respond to backlash she has received since going public.
'I am genuinely sorry if anything that I choose to do in my life upsets anybody else, that would never be my intention and I would truly never want to hurt anybody, I know that I am a good person with a good heart.'
Sharing a photo of her unborn daughter's latest ultrasound, she wrote: 'I'm forever grateful that I'm lucky enough to have you join our family and to be your mum. You'll never know anything but love and support from me and your big sister and brothers.
'I want to take a quick moment to thank everybody who's taken the time to send me the most beautiful, supportive, loving messages over the past 24 hours,' Caitlin continued.
'I honestly had no idea that things were going to be shared so heavily in the media and I have been absolutely slammed with both positive and negative messages.'
Caitlin explained that her only goal was to share her experience 'in the hopes that it may help people out there who have the same struggles and feelings that I do.'
'My journey and choices do not mean that I am ungrateful for my children, and that I don't truly know how blessed I am,' she continued.
'I promise you, my kids know nothing but love, support, happiness and peace in their lives and I strive every day to give them the best lives and make sure they know how treasured and special they are.'
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