Why should you think about freezing your eggs?
Freezing one’s eggs has become much more popular in recent years. Women choose to freeze their eggs for a variety of reasons. As women, we don’t have an unlimited supply of eggs, unfortunately. The timing of our reproductive systems doesn’t always coincide with life timing. Many people want their eggs frozen as a backup plan. Whatever your reasoning may be it’s never too soon to think about freezing your eggs.
WHAT IS THE PROCESS OF EGG FREEZING?
Freezing your eggs is neither a simple in and out procedure nor a complex tedious procedure. It is important to know the process of freezing eggs before you consider whether this is an option for you.
Oocyte cryopreservation or the freezing of one’s eggs requires about a two-week process. Choosing a fertility clinic you trust and doctors who explain the procedure to you in detail is important. After you choose your clinic and doctor you will begin receiving hormone injections to stimulate your ovaries to produce multiple eggs. You will visit the clinic every five to ten days to monitor your ovaries and determine when the eggs are able to be extracted. After one to two weeks of the hormone treatments, your eggs will be retrieved. The egg retrieval process is very short, it may only take ten minutes. Typically the patient is sedated and the doctor will use an ultrasound to guide a needle to remove the eggs from the follicles. After this, the eggs will be frozen and kept safe for you if and when you want to use them. When you decide to use your eggs they will be harvested through IVF. [1]
WHY SHOULD YOU FREEZE YOUR EGGS?
There are a few reasons why freezing your eggs may be the right choice for you.
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Most importantly freezing your eggs takes away some of the biological time constraints that many women feel if they want to have children. You don’t have to have as much stress and worry when you hit 35, you have a safety net and could still have children.
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When women age the quality of their eggs decreases. This makes women more likely to miscarriage, have riskier pregnancies, or have children with birth defects.
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Women are born with all the eggs they will have, and we lose them over time. As women age women lose more of their eggs.
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Many women may have an illness or fear of developing an illness that will jeopardize their ability to have children. Women with endometriosis, PCOS, or who have a high risk for ovarian cancer may choose to freeze their eggs to protect their chances of having a child. [2]
WHEN SHOULD YOU THINK ABOUT FREEZING YOUR EGGS?
There is no one right time to freeze one’s eggs. If you can afford the procedure and know you want children one day then you should look into freezing your eggs. Life plans don’t always coincide with biology and women shouldn’t have to sacrifice a goal or plan to have children before a certain age. Freezing your eggs ensures that you have a great chance of having children when it is right for you and your life.
The decision to freeze your eggs is medical and personal. You may have to consider the possibility of being a single mother in the future. Some women freeze their eggs when they are with a committed partner and some women are single. Single women who freeze their eggs may consider having their children without a partner in the future.
Your medical background and personal goals are what are most important to consider when you wish to freeze your eggs. If you know this is something you want to do, the sooner the better. Freezing your eggs before you are in your late reproductive years is best to ensure you will have viable eggs. [3]
Sources:
[2] https://www.atlantainfertility.com/about-us/blogs/2022/february/5-reasons-to-freeze-your-eggs/
[3] https://www.yalemedicine.org/news/egg-freezing-fertility
