egg freezing is a process that helps women to conceive when they are mentally prepared to become mothers.
Infertility diagnosis may sometimes lead to the decision of egg freezing in some cases. In other cases, it may be impossible for the patient to conceive due to chemotherapy. She might think of postponing parenting. In all these cases, the only solution available is egg freezing, which significantly impacts these women.
People mainly talk about mental health for egg freezing because even though it is an excellent method to conceive later on, women may experience depression and anxiety. A recent study revealed that almost 50% of women experience stress as they embark on the journey towards egg freezing. Women feel the same kind of stress when they get diagnosed with cancer or HIV.
This process helps you to concentrate on your career or treatment for a disease before you can mentally prepare yourself to be a mom. However, understanding this process will help you mentally prepare for this journey.
Egg freezing is removing eggs from the ovary to become pregnant later. Personal or medical reasons may lead to egg freezing. Even though doctors can't guarantee live births, egg freezing is a blessing to women who can't conceive immediately.
In this artificial reproductive technology, eggs grow due to medications. The healthy eggs are harvested, frozen, and used later. Scientifically, this process is called oocyte cryopreservation. Once a woman decides to conceive later, she decides to defrost eggs for egg fertilization to produce an embryo. The next is an embryo transfer cycle in which the embryo is planted in the healthy uterus of a woman. Some women will even donate ovum to support someone trying to conceive.
As mentioned, there are many reasons for a woman to opt for egg freezing. Let us elaborate on them:
You may want to postpone pregnancy if you are waiting for a promotion. For women, freezing their eggs before 35 years of age may increase the success rate for live births. In the U.S.A., egg freezing to delay conception is not endorsed by the American Society For Reproductive Medicine; however, due to uncertainty in career advancement, many women opt to preserve their oocytes.
You will choose to freeze your eggs when you're on the in vitro fertilization platform. The extracted egg is fertilized with sperm. It will produce an embryo, which will help you get offspring.
While undergoing gender-affirmation treatment, a woman may opt to harvest and preserve eggs for possible conception later. Hormonal therapy and restorative surgeries may hinder your ability to conceive immediately. You can conceive any time after the treatment is over.
For women undergoing cancer treatment, egg freezing might be an option. Such women might conceive following the completion of treatment as those injections of hormones may prevent conception.
Can we do something to tackle the emotional problem associated with egg freezing? Here are the tips:
To deal with this trauma in egg freezing, you'd have to understand what the condition means to you. Stress is all only if you do not know what goes on during the procedure. Not knowing anything about family planning or being alone for a long time during treatment gives you emotional stress. Treatment may always fail, and that can create the most terrible emotional trauma.
Consult a mental health professional to process emotional stress and help you with coping strategies. The reproductive endocrinologist will provide the necessary support to stay mentally healthy. Search on the internet for online therapy options. It will help you get help sitting at home.
Creating an efficient support system is fundamental to preserving emotional wellness during the egg-freezing journey. Some include opening up maturely to trusted partners or participating in monthly fertility support meetings. Chatting with individuals who've gone through egg freezing can be particularly beneficial, or contact patient support organizations that specialize in infertility. Being in the comfort of understanding people can help lessen feelings of isolation and offer emotional solace as you journey through this taxing process.
To cope with emotional stress, meditate regularly. Journal your experience or follow deep breath techniques, or you can start doing your favorite hobby that can relax your mind. You may choose the best alternative and practice it regularly.
In short, egg freezing is a process that helps women to conceive when they are mentally prepared to become mothers. If you wonder where are people talking about mental health for egg freezing, you have to understand that there are other reasons for postponing motherhood. When someone is undergoing treatment for cancer, they can't conceive. They opt to freeze their eggs to become a mom once the treatment is over. Freezing eggs might lead to mental and emotional problems they have to take care of due to hormone treatment.