Pausing for Meno

Yesterday I met with a counselor, which is standard procedure before donation.  They want to make sure I'm not some crazy person, and that I'm ready for this process.  I passed! :)

Not only was Kathy* wonderful, she gave me a lot of additional details about the process, some of which I knew, some I did not.

During my first phase of shots, I will experience menopausal symptoms.  Time to break out the hand-held fans!  Once the second phase starts, these symptoms will disappear and my ovaries will begin to fill with eggs.  For the extraction, the doctor will use a hollow needle attached to a long hose.  Once the ovary is penetrated, the needle will extract the contents of the follicles and the eggs will go through the tube, straight into the lab for insemination.  It's crazy to think that the beginnings of this baby will be taking place before I even wake up!  All eggs extracted will be inseminated and by day 5 we should have some healthy embryos.  Two will be implanted into the mother-to-be, the rest will be frozen.

The remaining frozen embryos could be used for a number of things: another implantation if the first attempt does not work, subsequent children for the couple, stem cell research, or use by other families.  Of course the father would have to agree to any of those options as well, as his sperm will be half of the equation. 

With each step in this process I get more and more excited.  Not many 20-somethings get a sneak peak into menopause...here's to hoping it doesn't make me fear my 50's.

*Names have been changed for anonymity