Our Decision to Use Frozen Donor Eggs

Fairfax EggBank has partnered with Parents Via Egg Donation (PVED) to launch a blog series written by Heather, a recent egg donor recipient at Fairfax EggBank. Our hope is that through PVED, Heather’s voice can be shared with others who are just beginning their donor egg journey and are seeking authentic experiences of others who have been through it.

Stay tuned through either PVED’s website or ours to read Heather’s upcoming blogs.

Our Decision to Use Frozen Donor Eggs

Once we decided to pursue donor egg treatment, we did extensive research to figure out how we could find the best egg donor out there in the world to help us conceive.

We learned there were two major options available to start: fresh donor eggs and frozen donor eggs. There are advantages and disadvantages to either option, and so we carefully assessed our needs and evaluated how strongly each option measured up to them.

Need #1: Privacy. We knew we didn’t want someone who we knew, or someone who was in an open donation program. Though many fresh programs offer anonymous egg donors, we felt frozen donor egg banks offered a much bigger selection. Fairfax EggBank offers Non-ID Option Donors which is what we wanted.

Need #2: Timing and Control. I frankly didn’t want to deal with the effort of being matched to a donor, having her undergo screening, then synchronizing cycles with her – which is the process when using fresh donor eggs. I wanted to do this treatment on MY time, for once – and not feel like I’m a victim to time and factors outside of my control.

Need #3: Cost. Through my research, I learned frozen donor eggs would cost about half the amount of fresh donor eggs. This was huge to us as we had already invested so much into treatment.

Need #4: Reliability. We were sick of bad surprises that could prolong treatment and make it even more expensive.  With fresh donor eggs, it’s harder to know what to expect: maybe we’d get a bunch of donor eggs from the donor, but there’s also a chance we’d get none. With frozen donor eggs, we knew we’d be guaranteed at least six to eight eggs, and that egg banks also offer a guarantee in the quality of eggs.

Need #5: Good Service. Throughout our journey, often times we felt like part of a cattle herd alongside other patients, and our care was rather impersonal. By that time we were ready to pursue donor egg, we were EXHAUSTED, mentally and physically. While not a deal breaker, it was important to us to be able to work with a donor egg company that was known for valuing and taking care of its recipients. And while we knew of no distinction between fresh and frozen donor egg companies in this regard, we did hear that Fairfax EggBank, a frozen donor egg bank, was particularly well known for its customer service.

After weighing our priorities, it was a no-brainer: frozen donor eggs were a better option for us. At this point, I started to get very excited. I finally felt that I MIGHT be able to be a mom. We had gone through so many disappointments, so I was reluctant to get my hopes up too much…but all I knew was that frozen donor eggs was the right choice for me.

I contacted Fairfax EggBank, and the donor coordinator I talked to further confirmed we made the right decision. I ended up working with her throughout my process, and she was beyond amazing. I seriously cannot praise her enough. When I talked to her the first time, I literally felt like she and I were friends for years. I could call her four times in an hour with questions if I needed (which, I’ll admit, I totally did).  She was so encouraging yet down to earth, and it made the experience that much better.

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Heather’s Blog Series:

#1: Intro to my Donor Egg Story

#2: First Comes Love, then Comes Marriage, then Comes…Infertility?

#3: Our Decision to Use Frozen Donor Eggs

#4: Selecting an Egg Donor

#5: Three Resources to Use for Your Donor Egg Research

About PVED

Parents Via Egg Donation, or PVED, was created to provide an informational and supportive environment where parents and parents-to-be can learn and share information about all facets of the egg donation process.

Our mission is to educate, support, and empower families and individuals at any stage of the process who choose to use egg donation to build a family. We share information about agencies, legal and medical professionals, treatment centers, mental health therapists, pharmaceutical companies, and other resources.

PVED is a national, not-for-profit 501(c)(3) charitable organization headquartered in Scappoose, Oregon

Their website contains a wide variety of information and ideas to help you in your family-building journey. If you can’t find what you are looking for, our listserves can link you to others who may have had similar experiences and are happy to share their knowledge.