Egg Freezing: Take Control of Your Fertility Timeline

At RHWC, we believe strongly that women should have it all. You shouldn’t have to sacrifice any of your goals or choose between them and your ability to have children. Fortunately, egg freezing can help you take control of your fertility timeline.

Biological Limits of Your Fertility Timeline

Many women don’t realize how limited their fertility timeline is until it’s too late. 

You’re born with all the eggs you will ever have, and the majority of your eggs are lost before your first period. After that, you lose about 1,000 eggs every month, and by the time you reach age 35, most of your eggs are gone. By age 40, you have less than a 5% chance of getting pregnant during any given month. 

The quality of those eggs also decline, which means you have a higher proportion of genetically abnormal eggs as you age. This makes you more likely to have a child with a genetic disorder or to experience problems with embryo implantation or miscarriage. 

How Egg Freezing Extends Your Fertility Timeline

Egg freezing extends your fertility timeline by preserving your eggs for future use. Rather than being limited by your biological age, you can pursue your life goals knowing that you have eggs available to have children when you are ready.

Preserving your eggs at your current age means they’re less likely to have genetic abnormalities. So if you freeze your eggs when you’re 24 and have children at 40, your eggs will be just as healthy as if you conceived at 24. 

Although you can choose to freeze your eggs at any age (as long as you have viable eggs available), your eggs are healthiest when you’re younger. It’s important to remember that egg freezing never guarantees a successful pregnancy, but your chances are higher with healthier eggs.

Reasons to Choose Egg Freezing

Education and Career

It takes time to earn degrees, move up the corporate ladder, or establish a business. Egg freezing gives you the time you need to pursue education and career goals without worrying that you won’t have viable eggs when you’re ready to start a family. 

Lifestyle Choices

Whether you want to travel the world, own your own home, build up your savings, or simply aren’t ready to have children, egg freezing gives you the freedom to live the life you choose. 

Finding the Right Partner

The old adage “There are plenty of fish in the sea”” may be true, but you’re not looking for just any fish. You want to find someone compatible who shares your values, and with whom you’re excited about the prospect of raising a family–and there’s no crystal ball to tell you when that might happen.

Prior to Gender Transitions

If you plan to undergo a gender transition but want to have biological children in the future, freezing your eggs gives you that option. Talk to Dr. Rosencrantz and your other physicians if you’d like to freeze your eggs prior to transitioning, so your doctors can work together on a treatment plan.

Medical Reasons

Medical treatments for common conditions, like cancer and autoimmune diseases, may damage your eggs or even necessitate the removal of your reproductive organs. Other medical conditions, like heart disease, diabetes, endometriosis, and PCOS, also place you at increased risk of infertility. 

Finally, any of us could experience an unexpected accident, injury, or illness that impacts fertility at any time. Egg freezing provides peace of mind, knowing that you have a path to parenthood regardless of what happens with your future health.

The Egg Freezing Process

The first step is fertility consult to discuss your goals and create a treatment plan. You’ll also have an ultrasound, blood work, and possibly other tests to make sure you’re a good candidate for egg freezing.

You’ll then take medication to stimulate your body to mature multiple eggs rather than the single egg that normally matures each cycle. Once your eggs are big enough, you’ll come in for an outpatient procedure where, under sedation, Dr. Rosencrantz will remove the mature eggs. 

Your eggs will be flash frozen and you’ll recover at home. You may experience minimal discomfort for 24 hours, such as cramping, constipation, or bleeding. Tell us if your symptoms persist or become severe.

Getting Started with Egg Freezing at RHWC

Are you ready to take control of your fertility timeline? Schedule a consult to speak with Dr. Rosencrantz and the RHWC team about your fertility goals and the egg freezing process.