There are many reasons why people choose to use an egg donor to build their family. You may know someone or several people who have had a baby using an […]
There are many reasons why people choose to use an egg donor to build their family. You may know someone or several people who have had a baby using an egg donor. At AsiaWest, we see many different paths that have brought our clients to us. What’s important to remember as you read about the different reasons why couples go through the egg donation process, is that each journey is valid, emotional, and worthy.
Same Sex Couples
The most obvious reason why a couple would need to use an egg donor is a same sex male couple. Our last blog post, (in honor of Pride month), looked at one such couple who worked with AsiaWest, Ken and Brian S. In some cases, just one intended father will donate sperm to fertilize the embryo(s). In other cases, the couple will choose to do a split cycle and both intended fathers will donate sperm. It just depends on the couple!
Infertility
Couples in which the woman has few or no eggs, but still wish to have a child using the man’s sperm will use an egg donor. Women experience infertility for a variety of reasons, including early menopause, being born without one or both ovaries, poor quality eggs, or previous disease or illness that has damaged the ovaries in some way.
Oftentimes, these couples have been through one or multiple rounds of IVF, and have come to egg donation at the end of their road. It is important for us as the agency, to be very mindful of this and to be sensitive and empathetic in our approach.
Sometimes, the couple will use a surrogate to carry the babies. Other times, the intended mother may choose to carry the baby herself. Again, it all just depends on the couple!
Age
Women in their 40s and above have a far more difficult time conceiving the natural way, and thus may turn to egg donation. The use of egg donation has become more common amongst older women, especially as women have increasingly been pushing back family-building in order to build their careers.
It makes sense that egg donation has increased in popularity as the success rates are much higher than with regular IVF treatment. The odds of a woman in her early 40’s having a baby naturally is only 19%, and that number drops to 2% once she reaches 45. However, using donor eggs that number jumps to 51% on the first fresh cycle; if she combines it with a frozen cycle, the odds jump to 70%.
Genetics
Some women have certain genetic factors or diseases that they do not wish to pass on to a biological child, and therefore would rather have a baby using an egg donor. Examples of these genetic diseases may include Tay-Sachs disease, Huntington’s cystic fibrosis, sickle cell disease, thalassemia, duchenne muscular dystrophy, and spinal muscular dystrophy.
In conclusion,
people use egg donation for an array of reasons. Many come to egg donation after a long road of trying other options first. Regardless of how intended parents came to us, we at AsiaWest prioritizes making our clients feel comfortable, safe, and taken care of throughout the egg donation process. We understand that it is often an emotional and sometimes painful journey, and do our best to be sensitive to our clients’ feelings. The most important thing is we do everything we can to help our intended parents have a baby!
If you are reading this and would like to help out intended parents like the ones described above, apply to be an egg donor today! (See application requirements)
-AsiaWest Egg Donors