Freezing your eggs: the How and the Why

We are lucky to live in a time where women have more freedom than ever before over how and when they want to start a family. Until very recently, women did not have the option of freezing their eggs. Men have been able to freeze their sperm since the 1970s, but it was only in the early 2000s that this form of fertility preservation was available to women.^[1]

All those who wish to delay starting a family, but want to prevent issues trying to conceive in future, should consider freezing their eggs.

Egg freezing procedure

The first step is to consult with an experienced doctor who will help you start the process. This typically requires initial fertility and hormone tests to determine the best course of action for success for you. You will then be prescribed medications to take that will stimulate your fertility.

Your ovaries will be stimulated on the second day of your period. Over the next twelve days, you will undergo two separate scans to ensure that the dosage is working as expected. On the twelfth day, you go in to have your eggs retrieved under general anesthetic. At Medical Travel in Prague there are three options: travelling for only two days, if you can get scans at home; travelling for five days, so at least one scan is conducted at the clinic; travelling for 12 days, which means that the entire process can be carried out at the same clinic.

In the United States this entire process can cost thousands of dollars, whereas by travelling to freeze their eggs, women can pay only a fraction of the price for the same quality of care.

Why should I consider freezing my eggs?

"Age related infertility is difficult to treat even with aggressive treatments. Having more access to the procedure will help thousands of women avoid heartache and infertility struggles." Dr. Hodes-Wertz^[2]

One in eight couples struggle to conceive naturally.^[3] While factors like health, genetics and lifestyle certainly factor in, age also has its affect on fertility. Nearly two-thirds of women who opt to freeze their eggs are doing so because they wish to pursue their career or wait until they have found the right partner^[4]. Freezing their eggs improves their chances of getting pregnant at a later age.

Wall Street investors are literally banking on this trend, as this is a market that is currently growing at a rate of over 20% a year. Millennial women in particular do not want to be constrained by their optimal fertility window. By freezing their eggs they finally have the opportunity to dedicate time to both a career and a partner, if they wish, before deciding to have a baby.