About the egg donor timeline

Hello! I’ve just made the decision of becoming an egg donor, but now I want to find out what do I need to do to get started, can you help me? If possible, a step by step guide will be the perfect reply 😉 Thanks!!!

Hello Holly,

This is a very useful question, since many prospective egg donors ask themselves the same question. I’ll try to fulfill your desires by presenting a step by step guide. Let’s see if it helps:

1. Now that you’ve decided to become an egg donor, the next thing you have to do is filling out an application once you’ve decided with which egg donor bank or fertility clinic you want to work with. Then, the staff at the center will review your information.

2. Some centers schedule a phone consultation with potential donors once they approve the initial application. The entire conversation is not usually very long, and is useful for you both, since it gives you an overview of the whole process and all your doubts or queries about the process will be clarified.

3. If everything goes as expected, you’ll be accepted and they’ll create your profile, a document that contains your characteristics and traits. It will be given to intended parents. It can take long until potential parents choose you as their donor, but don’t worry since it usually develops this way. This is probably the longest part of the process.

4. Once you are selected by the intended parents, you will be screened thoroughly. The screening includes psychological, medical and genetic screenings.

5. You will have to spend some time drawing up contracts so that the whole process is made legal.

6. If the afore mentioned steps work as expected, then you’ll begin your medical cycle, which usually lasts between 2 and 3 weeks and includes injectable hormone medications. Many donors are concerned about this, but there’s no reason to panic since the needles are very small and the process is not painful. The purpose of taking these medicines is stimulating your ovaries, thus triggering follicle production. During this period of time, you will have to attend several doctor’s appointments.

7. Once your body is ready, egg retrieval (follicular puncture) will be scheduled. The aim of the puncture process is to retrieve your eggs. This surgical intervention usually lasts 15-20 minutes, but donors remain at the center 3 hours at least.

Hope this step by step guide has helped you 😉