How To Prepare For Egg Freezing | IVF Matters

Deciding to freeze your eggs can be a big decision. But, it can also be incredibly empowering, allowing you to take control of your fertility until you’re ready to start a family.

However, before you decide to take the plunge, it’s important to carefully consider all the factors involved during the process to ensure you are as prepared as possible going forward.

In this article, join us as we run through everything you need to know about preparing for egg freezing, giving you the best chance of egg-freezing success.

What to consider before egg freezing

The first step in deciding that egg freezing is right for you is to consult a fertility specialist.

During your appointment with them, they will likely highlight several considerations that you should be aware of. This might include:

Your age. The most critical factor that affects your egg-freezing success rate is how old you are at the time of freezing. You will give yourself the best chance of success if you freeze your eggs in your twenties to early thirties when female fertility is at its peak. If that’s not possible for you, egg freezing is best done before age 38.
Fertility testing. Before proceeding with your cycle, your fertility consultant will discuss your complete medical history with you and run various fertility tests. One of the key factors involves the assessment of your ovarian reserve, which indicates how many eggs will be able to be retrieved.
Future family planning goals. You should be prepared to answer how egg freezing will fit in with your future family planning. There is no right or wrong answer here, but it’s helpful to know what you’re looking for so your consultant can tailor your treatment accordingly.
Potential emotional and physical challenges. The egg-freezing process brings with it its own set of emotional and physical challenges. You should consider whether now is the right time to take on those challenges.

Preparing for egg freezing

Once your fertility specialist deems you a suitable candidate and you decide to go ahead with freezing your eggs, there are several things you can do to prepare yourself emotionally, physically and financially.

How to prepare for egg freezing - planning

Plan ahead

You’ll find it much easier to achieve your fertility goals if you have a clear idea of what you want.

Having a timeline for when you might feel ready to try to conceive or undergo future fertility treatments can be helpful. Your fertility specialists can then give you tailored advice based on your specific goals.

In the short term, an egg-freezing cycle only takes a few weeks from start to finish, but there are several stages to the treatment that you’ll need to consider.

After your initial tests and workup, you’ll then undergo ovarian stimulation for about 12 days before the egg retrieval procedure. Most patients self-inject the ovarian stimulation drugs at the same time every day, but you could also ask a friend or partner to help.

Planning ahead means ensuring you don’t have any work, travel or personal commitments that could interfere during the process. You should also arrange to have a support person pick you up from the egg retrieval procedure and stay with you for 24 hours while you rest.

Optimise your health

Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is one of the most important things you can do to improve your reproductive health. During your egg-freezing cycle, it’s critical to optimise your overall health and well-being by making healthy lifestyle choices, such as:

Avoiding all tobacco products (including vaping)
Avoiding alcohol
Limiting your caffeine consumption to less than 200mg per day (1-2 cups of coffee)
Eating a healthy diet rich in nutrients and antioxidants
Doing gentle exercises like yoga, swimming or walking (and avoiding high-impact activities)
Getting 7-8 hours of sleep at night

Support for Fertility Treatment and Egg Freezing Treatment

Prepare yourself emotionally

Undergoing an egg-freezing cycle can be a stressful thing to go through, which is why it’s so important to have a strong support network in place.

It’s also an excellent time to start thinking about implementing a healthy self-care routine — whether that be through activities like walking, therapy, yoga, meditation, enjoying nature or acupuncture.

Prepare yourself financially

Egg freezing can be an expensive treatment to finance, so you’ll need to consider two key costs before you start: single-cycle versus multiple-cycle egg-freezing packages and long-term storage.

The initial egg-freezing cost won’t include the price of any fertility treatments to thaw and fertilise your stored eggs. Therefore, before committing to an egg-freezing treatment, you should be aware of all the costs both now and in the future to ensure you can afford it over the long term.

Choose the right fertility clinic

When choosing a fertility clinic that’s right for you, there are several important factors to consider; from the clinic’s location to its birth success rates. You should also evaluate whether that clinic has expertise in the treatment you are looking for.

Here at IVF Matters, we are a leading fertility clinic in London with a team of highly experienced fertility consultants that have provided egg-freezing treatments to many women. Our live birth rates are twice the national average, and we take great pride in helping women preserve their fertility.

Book a consultation with an egg-freezing expert today

Deciding to freeze your eggs may feel like a big undertaking, but there are many things you can do to ensure the experience is more positive than overwhelming.

By carefully planning ahead and preparing yourself for the emotional, physical and financial commitment you’ll need to make during the process, you can optimise your chances of preserving your fertility with multiple healthy eggs.

To get started on your egg-freezing journey, book a free advisory call with one of our fertility experts today.