We’re often asked if donating your eggs impacts your ability to have babies in the future. To get straight to the point: No, donating your eggs does not decrease your chances of getting pregnant.
Here’s why:
Egg Donation Does Not Impact Egg Supply
By the time of puberty, a woman will have about 300,000 eggs. Over the course of her reproductive lifetime, around 500 of these will be ovulated. Every time a woman ovulates, her body starts to mature about 15 to 20 eggs. Only one is released, while the rest are reabsorbed into the body. During an egg donation cycle, the body will mature about 10 to 20 eggs. Overall, there are the same amount of eggs left in a woman’s body following a natural ovulation cycle and egg donation cycle.
The Medical Process: Fertility Treatment and Risks
If you choose to donate eggs, your medical team will decide which fertility medications will best stimulate your ovaries to mature more eggs during a cycle. The medications are administered by injections, which will only impact your hormones during the cycle they are taken. Once you stop taking them, your body’s hormones will bounce back to normal. Your period may not immediately go back to its regular schedule, but the fertility medications will no longer be stimulating your ovaries.
Like any medical process, nothing is risk-free. In rare instances, a woman’s body reacts negatively to the medications, leading to ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome and ovarian torsion. During your phone consultation with our team, we will review the risks and answer all of your questions.
Own Your Fertility
If you’re dreaming about one day having a family of your own, in addition to helping a couple or individual create their own family, egg donation is a great way of learning about your own fertility. Your screening will include genetic screening, fertility testing and a consultation with a fertility physician. If you complete an egg donation, you will learn much more about your ability to produce viable eggs and know more about your reproductive health than most women ever will.
While nothing can guarantee pregnancy, a healthy lifestyle is medically tied to higher fertility rates. For example, women who smoke or have a caffeine intake of more than 200 milligrams a day have been connected to lower fertility rates. Other factors impacting hormones include weight, level of fitness and personal reproductive health.
Get an overview of the egg donor program at Growing Generations and learn more about the steps it takes to help those seeking an egg donor to build or grow their family.
Sources:
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/9118-female-reproductive-system
https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/getting-pregnant/in-depth/female-fertility/art-20045887
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/ovarian-hyperstimulation-syndrome-ohss/symptoms-causes/syc-20354697