How to Prepare Yourself for an Upcoming Egg Retrieval

Being an Egg Donor can be an incredibly rewarding experience – and all the more so when an Egg Donor enters into it knowing exactly what to expect. What follows is a brief summary of the four main things new Egg Donors should be aware of before they start their journey to help grow a loving family.  

1. Take care of your physical body – go above and beyond.

When it comes to donating your eggs, nothing is more important than physical health. Everything matters! While an Egg Donor is not actually preparing for a pregnancy, it is best for her to conduct herself and treat her body as though she is until the retrieval is over. A lot of it is common sense: smoking, drug use, and excessive alcohol consumption all can have a detrimental impact on your body’s overall health. Foregoing these behaviors will boost the health of your eggs – and will ensure that the donation does not fall through entirely, as substance screenings are often a part of the donation process with most reputable agencies and fertility clinics. 

2. Make sure your time is relatively flexible during the process. 

Donating your eggs may sound simple, but the reality is there are a lot of moving parts, appointments and last-minute changes that go into an egg donation – and almost all of it is time sensitive, especially once the IVF injections begin. This revelation can be very surprising to first time Egg Donors, especially since egg donation and surrogacy are still largely misunderstood by the world at large. Having a system to keep track of everything in a way that works for you is crucial to the success of your cycle.

3. Have a support system.

For many Egg Donors, navigating who to tell about your upcoming retrieval and who not to tell can be very tricky, and unfortunately there is no one-size-fits-all guide for determining who is who without knowing each Egg Donor’s exact situation. However, one thing is crucial: anyone who is looking into being an Egg Donor (or Surrogate) will need external, personal support at some point in her journey. To best set yourself up for success, identify at least one person in your life – whether friends, family, or some other ally – who can help spot you with anything that may come up, from rides to appointments to general support. 

4. Advocate for yourself.

As with any other medical process, you are your own best advocate, and that is especially true with egg donation. The first way you can be your own advocate is by choosing a reputable agency like Simple Surrogacy to represent you and your interests. Even after that key step, however, there will be many times during the process where only you and the medical staff of the clinic are in the room and able to make decisions. The doctors are there to help, but it is your responsibility to speak up in terms of how your body is doing. There is no such thing as unnecessary information when it comes to your wellbeing! Remember: it is better to over-share than under-share in this scenario. Never write off your instincts because you are afraid of being silly – and be sure to report it to your agency if you do not feel your concerns are being taken seriously by the clinic. Your agency is there to support you, but it takes two to tango. 

If you are interested in becoming an Egg Donor, please contact the qualified professionals at Simple Surrogacy today. We would love to hear from you, and to help you start down this wonderful path!