Since new laws were introduced in January 2021, the UAE has seen a significant increase in the number of women opting to freeze their eggs. Here we speak to Cassie Destino, fertility doula and founder of IVF Support UAE, to find out more about what is involved in the procedure, what the costs are and if there are any risks attached
What is the prime age for a woman to freeze her eggs and what are some of the reasons she might decide to do it?
As a general rule, the younger you are when you freeze your eggs, the better. But we don’t always have it on our radar when we are young, or we might not be in a good financial position to do it.
Freezing eggs before the age of 30 will likely give the best outcomes. A smaller number of eggs can be expected between the ages of 30 and 35 with a significant drop in quantity and quality of eggs after age 35.
Please can you explain what to expect during the process?
The egg-freezing process is the first part of an IVF procedure. A woman will give herself a series of injections to stimulate the egg production process and she will have a series of appointments where she is monitored by her doctor at the clinic. Once the eggs are almost ready to ovulate she will give herself a final, carefully timed injection and then she will go to the clinic for egg retrieval. This is a short, outpatient surgical procedure where the doctor will remove the eggs from her ovaries.
How long can eggs be stored for and are there any risks associated with egg freezing?
Eggs can be frozen for decades and still go on to produce healthy babies. In the UAE you can currently freeze eggs for a period of five years.
There is always a risk in freezing and thawing eggs but with current technology, there is a very small chance that something will go wrong in the process.
Is it expensive and is it painful?
Egg freezing can certainly be costly but many clinics offer special egg freezing packages to make it accessible to more women. The costs vary from clinic to clinic so it’s worth doing your research and finding out if any clinic has an egg freezing promotion when you are ready to begin.
The process of egg stimulation can be a bit uncomfortable as you are increasing the amount of hormones you would normally have in your body. Once the eggs are stimulated and growing in your ovaries you can also experience some discomfort. It is often described as a heavy feeling. You typically will be asleep for the egg retrieval itself and it can be a little bit painful afterwards. It depends on how many eggs are retrieved, and therefore how many times the doctor has to insert the syringe into your ovaries. It can feel like heavy menstrual cramps for the following day or two
Follow @cassie_destino_fertility_doula for more information.
