My Profile Is Up!

Well I spoke to the agency today, trying to figure out whether a paralegal I know can be the proctor for my psych test. They said that would be fine, so I'll be taking that this week or next, whenever it arrives in the mail. It's the "NEO P-IR" psych test, which I read a little bit about online, seems easy enough. Anyone ever take it before?

While we were talking, the coordinator (who I'll call "N" from now on) said that my profile had been completed and was up online now. She said that she or her co-worker, "V" would be in touch with me soon with any matches. They said that I've caused "quite a stir" in the office - I guess my time in the military and academic achievements carry a lot of weight, combined with the fact that I'm very adventurous and athletic!

Anyway, I've been watching those baby & adoption stories on TLC lately, and it brings a tear to my eye every time I see a couple struggle to conceive on their own without success. It just confirms that I have made the right decision to go forward with this process. My DH is quite supportive, he just wants to make sure I'll have some eggs left for him if we decide to have kids of our own down the road! He's not too ecstatic about the "no sex" for a few weeks, but I reminded him that his kids will be staying with us for half of the summer - so if I do my cycle during that time, it would be perfect, since we won't be having sex anyway with his kids in the next room!

I'm not too excited about the shots though, that's still a big drawback for me. I HATE needles. I got on YouTube and watched some women giving themselves the shots though, and most of them didn't look too bad. The Lupron & FSH shots are usually with teeny tiny little needles, and most people swear it didn't even hurt. The HCG shots looks bad though - big huge needle (one woman said it was an 18 gauge needle!), and it's intra-muscular - NOT fun! I might need my DH's help with that one. Luckily, he's been through some medical training for work, and has given shots and put in IVs before. I'm also pretty worried about OHSS, but have read a lot about it, including the warning signs and treatment protocols. It seems that I have a lower chance of developing the syndrome, since I'm at the older range of donors. Younger women are more prone to develop OHSS, and since I'm so aware of the possibility, I think I'll know what to look for.

Now, off to study for more law school finals... Ohh fun!

:)

The Phone Interview

Well, today was my phone interview with my match coordinator. It lasted about an hour, and most of the information was stuff I had already put in my application. She asked me to tell her a little bit more about myself, basically expanding on all the personality questions. I asked her my list of questions too, and was happy with all of her answers. It sounds like a simple enough process, the biggest thing I'm afraid of is the daily injections! The next step is for me to sign some forms, my donor profile will be posted, and then I'll start the psych test (I guess they want to make sure you're not crazy! Actually, I'm sure it's just to make sure you can handle giving up your eggs and won't feel some unbearable connection to the child someday). After I'm matched, I'll talk with a geneticist and a lawyer, then I'll go in for my medical screening. Apparently that may require traveling to the recipient's doctor, so if they're not from around here, I hope it is somewhere that I've never been! After the screening - and blood draw
:( - I'll go on the pill so my cycle will be matched with the recipient's, and then I'll start the various injections. First is Lupron, to stop ovulation, then is a follicle-stimulating drug, and finally the "trigger" shot - HCG. About 36 hours later, the retrieval takes place. If I have to travel, I'll be wherever the recipient is for about 5 days during the retrieval process. After that, I go on bed rest, and then go home!

The girl was very nice, and we had a great conversation. She made me feel at ease about the whole process, and really made me feel like I was making the right decision. Based on my educational level, athletic abilities (and I'm sure physical attributes), the agency has classified me as a "top donor" which gives me even more compensation for my time, and a greater chance that I'll be matched with a couple right away, which is good, because I would really like to do this over the summer, with a retrieval sometime in August. It would be ideal, because I won't have to stress about school when I'm running around to these doctor appointments and injecting hormones into my body, and my husband will be working every day. Great way to spend summer vacation, huh?!

Anyway, I'm excited. I can't believe I actually decided to do this, and it looks like it's really going to happen! More updates to come!

The beginning of a new experience...

So I've decided to start a blog to track my experiences as a new egg donor. My journey is just getting started, and I have some idea of what to expect, but I'd like to chronicle every step in the process. Hopefully, my experiences can help other people who are considering egg donation, and provide an accurate account that I can go back and read someday after this whole process is over.

This is something I've been thinking about for a few years. I don't want children of my own right now, since I'm currently a busy law student, and my husband is often away on business. But, I would like to provide the opportunity to someone else, who is not able to conceive on their own. So the thought was bouncing around in the back of my head for awhile, and just recently I got around to doing some real research on the topic. I read several other donors' blogs, as well as news stories, research papers, donor websites, forums, etc. After looking into several agencies in my area, I finally chose a highly-respected agency that has been around for almost 20 years. There have been countless positive reviews and several news stories about the agency, so I felt very comfortable with their reputation.

The application was easy enough. I went on to their website, read about the process and the qualification requirements, and then filled out the short pre-screening application. The next day I was notified that I had "passed" the initial screening, and was asked to go back to the website to fill out a more complete application and upload some photos. This application was much longer and much more detailed. They want to know all about you - education, SAT scores, GPA, ethnic background, height, weight, hair color, medical conditions, family medical conditions, including any causes of death for grandparents, parents, and siblings, etc. They also want to know why you are doing this, what your philosophy on life is, what kinds of things you like to do, and much more. I finally completed the full application after about an hour, and then uploaded about 10 pictures of myself - from birth to present. I received a confirmation email, and was told I would be contacted in a few days.

After about 3 or 4 days, I received an email from the agency, saying that my application had been accepted, and that I was an "ideal" candidate. They told me what the next few steps would be, and attached some documents that I would need to fill out and return. I also received a more personal email from their "matching" coordinator, asking to set up a time for a phone interview. After a few exchanges, we settled on a time for the following week. Since I was right in the middle of final exam time for school, I had to schedule a time when I knew I wouldn't be too stressed out about studying! Then I read the documents they sent, and was surprised to learn that if I was chosen to be a donor, I would receive compensation for my time in an amount that was way more than I had been expecting! The other documents were various contracts, including an agreement to meet with a geneticist. Apparently they screen you for all kinds of genetic disorders, which I am not aware that I have any, but I guess we'll find out soon enough!

So there we are, that's all there is to tell for now. My phone interview is this Thursday, and after that I'll find out what the next few steps are!