Any experience on donating eggs?

[Bambamdaisy]

I saw an add on FB recently about donating eggs and it's something I'd love to do. I thought my asthma would rule me out but I messaged them and asked and they told me it wouldn't. I just want to know if anyone has done this before and can give me their experience?

[RNBrie]

I donated eggs a couple of years ago. I volunteered through Altrui who match you with someone. The process takes a while and you'll need a couple of sessions of counselling to make sure you understand the ramifications.

Then you might need to take drugs to sync your cycle with the recipient.

You do 10-14 days of stimulating injections with check up scans every couple of days to see how your follicles are developing. Then you are sedated for the egg collection which takes a couple of hours to be in and out. Then you go home and rest.

The couple I donated to have a little girl from my donation. Dead chuffed for them!

[Flossiesmummy]

*Rnbrie
*
How do you feel knowing that you have a child out there that's yours but not yours?

I've always thought I'd like to donate.

[RNBrie]

When I first found out it was really weird and intense, I'll not lie. But dh and I talked it over a lot, how we felt, how we would bring up our dc to be aware etc and we just sort of got used to it. And it does feel really good to know we could do something for that family.

I'm also quite relieved they had a girl and we only have girls so we don't have to worry about them randomly meeting at 16 and having sex and getting pregnant. That was always the big "what if" for my dh, that our girls would have to check with every boy they dated that they weren't a donor conceived child!!

Their daughter was born the same year as my dd2 so I think the year she turns 18 will be weird as that's when the donor child could get our identifiable information if she chooses to, but it's so far off in the future, I try not to dwell on it now!!

[Bambamdaisy]

I hadn't considered the chance of my LO and a their child meeting and having sex. So that's something I'll ask about. I really do have a lot to think about but my phone call is on Monday so I have the weekend to think.

[RNBrie]

The chances of it happening are TINY!! But it was the one thing my dh got really hung up on

I think it's far less likely to happen if they grow up knowing it's a possibility as well.

I guess my biggest concern is that she doesn't have a happy life but I trust that any couple willing to go through the process must really love their children when they arrive.

[Bambamdaisy]

I completely agree that if a couple have gone through all that to conceive the child would be very loved.

Do you know how it works with regards to if the child ever needed bone marrow/a kidney etc? I'd really want the parents to be able to contact me in that circumstance so I could help.

[RNBrie]

They wouldn't be able to contact you directly as they wouldn't be able to get your details until the child is 18.

The clinic you donated through might be able to contact you to let you know but you'd need to check the ethics involved, I can't remember the rules.

[muddyboots]

I have recently donated eggs and would consider doing it again.

For me, the biggest problem was the inconvenience of the appointments - it can be difficult to work your life around them if the clinic isn't really local to you.

The actual treatment, which is just the first stage of IVF, wasn't too taxing. Whilst I was desperate for the donation to work, I didn't have the same emotions or physical longings that many of the women on here have when going through IVF. I knew it was a 'one-off' process and that my life would soon be back to normal again whilst I was giving another woman hope.

My recipient has had a negative result and that has hit me harder than I thought. But she has frozen embryos so I'm hoping it will be good news next time.

[Bambamdaisy]

Unfortunately they've told me I'm not eligible to donate. My aunty had breast cancer and my mum has epilepsy which rules me out.

[doceodocere]

This has been on my mind recently. I had my third and last baby in January, so am officially the luckiest woman alive. But for a few desperate years we didn't know if we could have any at all, and it was a terrible time. Now I'm done I can imagine finding it possible to donate and give another couple the chance of children, but I am now 38 and the cut-off is 35!

[Cdnm368]

I hope you don't mind me messaging on this thread but I just want to thank you Bambamdaisy for even considering becoming an egg donor and sorry it didn't work out. I am currently looking for an anonymous egg donor myself for me and my husband. I am 30 years old and unfortunately 3 years ago I had to have emergency surgery which resulted in me having to have my ovaries removed.. as egg donation is our only hope of having a family I really do appreciate women like yourself even considering this.
As we are still looking for a donor if anybody is willing and is aged between 21 and 35 please contact Liverpool Women's Hospital on 0151 702 4212 and quote reference 621R.
Thankyou xx