Week three: initial injections for egg donation
I first got involved with donating my eggs, having seen an advert in a Sunday supplement; a couple had been desperate to have children for many years and now their only hope was to find an egg donor. I knew immediately that, so long as my own health or fertility would not be put at risk, I would definitely help them. I contacted Guys and St Thomas’s, the clinic the couple were using, and started the ball rolling from there.
Seeing as the first couple I’d wanted to help were using a clinic in London, I made a few trips down there in the initial stages; I spoke to the egg co-ordinator, the fertility counselling and started the medical screening. Given the staff appreciating the distance I was travelling from, they were often considerate in doubling up appointments, to limit the amount of travelling I had to do.
The clinic explained that any travelling, child care or expenses from taking time off work were reimbursable, so I wasn’t at all worried about paying for my train fare and claiming the expenses back.
I shared my thoughts on egg donation with family, friends and colleagues, most of whom knew as little about the subject as I had. Some close friends thought I was talking about surrogacy and were very concerned at how I would cope with “giving your baby away”. But once they understood what egg donation involved, the medical process and felt satisfied that I’d explored all risks to myself, everyone was very supportive and encouraging of what I wanted to do. Work have been exceptionally patient in allowing me mornings off work to go for appointments and scans, on the understanding that I’d make up any hours I’d missed, staying after work.
The treatment for egg donation can be split into two parts; suppressing ovaries followed by over stimulating them. To suppress my ovaries from working as they usually would do, I used a nasal spray twice a day, which was a little strange the first time I tried it, but didn’t bother me after that. There were no side affects from the spray and is was only small, so easy to carry round in my handbag. Given how similar it looked to sinus medication, I didn’t think twice about using it at my desk at work and no one quizzed me.