Are you considering freezing your eggs?

Egg freezing has enjoyed a dramatic surge of interest in recent years due to major companies like Facebook and Apple offering to pay for the procedure for interested employees.

For many, the idea of freezing one’s eggs for use at a later time is remarkable, providing women with options that did not exist for their mothers and grandmothers.

Fertility Solutions recognizes that even as the procedure gains in popularity, it is still a big decision, which is why we have created a helpful “cheat sheet” to kick off your research.

1. Women are actually born with all the eggs they will have in their lifetime. From around one million at birth, that number decreases to 300,000 around the age puberty begins.
2. Eggs that are not released during the ovulation cycle will dissolve and be resorbed into your body.
3. Motivation for egg freezing can be medical in nature, also known as fertility preservation. Cases in which women might freeze their eggs for medical reasons include a recent cancer diagnosis or a family history of cancer, endometriosis, and early menopause.
4. Motivation for egg freezing can also be social in nature, such as when a woman chooses to delay pregnancy in order to advance her career or because she has not found the right partner.
5. The cost of egg freezing will include consultation and appointments, screening, medications, the procedure itself, and yearly storage for the frozen eggs.
6. Most women will freeze their eggs in their mid- to late-twenties, as this is the age range most recommended by fertility specialists for optimal results. Women in their early- to mid-thirties are the second most common age group.
7. Most fertility centers will aim to collect around 15 eggs to freeze in order to successfully complete in vitro fertilization (IVF) when the patient is ready to conceive.
8. The egg freezing process takes most women a few weeks from start to finish. Women will take medication for about two weeks before the retrieval procedure.
9. Egg freezing will not impact your ability to carry a healthy pregnancy. Pregnancy rates with fresh eggs and frozen eggs are nearly equal.
10. Long-term storage is not known to have an impact on the quality of the eggs you freeze. Some women elect to use their eggs after only a few years, whereas others might wait as long as ten years. That said, your doctor may recommend a specific waiting period depending on your current age.

Would you like to schedule a consultation to discuss egg freezing options with Fertility Solutions? Please request your first consultation here.