*The following is a real life testimonial from a thankful Ovatures egg donor.
I’m thankful for a lot of things in my life this week. I’m thankful for my husband, our daughter, my extended family, and my health. I’m thankful for our home, our jobs, and all the wonderful memories we’ll make sitting around the dinner table this Thanksgiving.
There’s one more thing I’m thankful for: the opportunity to donate my eggs. The amount of happiness I feel when I think I was able to help another woman start her family is hard to describe. It’s boundless.
I’m not new to the world of reproductive endocrinology. After my husband was diagnosed with testicular cancer, we realized we’d need to start our family through In Vitro Fertilization (IVF). He underwent a testicular sperm extraction, but it was unsuccessful, and we ended up using a sperm donor to get pregnant. We were successful, and our beautiful daughter is the light of our lives.
When I was going through my IVF cycle, I met other women going through the process, some of whom needed an egg donor to proceed with care. Having used a sperm donor, I understand the value of someone else’s help during the fertility journey, and, since I had no issues with my own eggs, I always envisioned being able to give back to this community of women.
After my daughter was a year old, I decided to donate my eggs through Ovatures. I started my stimulation cycle this past September, and had my retrieval at the beginning of October. The whole process was a great experience. The process has many steps, but you take each stage one step at a time. I had great communication with my nurse and was given detailed instructions on what to do each night and when to come for monitoring. The staff was so kind and friendly, too, and that made the entire process more enjoyable. In fact, I am already planning my next egg donation cycle.
Ovatures has given me the opportunity to help make someone’s dreams come true. The fact that I have helped make someone a parent is a remarkable thing: not only have I given a gift, but I feel I have also received a gift. I feel very lucky to have had this experience. Being a donor takes work: you are giving yourself injections every night, waking up early for monitoring, and going through the egg retrieval procedure. But knowing you are giving someone the greatest gift ever is worth it.
My heart feels so full knowing that I was able to donate a small part of myself to someone else to allow them to start a family and fulfill their dreams. If there are any women out there now wondering how they can give back, donate your eggs. It will be the best decision you make!
