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Freezing one’s eggs is becoming increasingly popular. For many women, the ability to freeze their eggs means they don’t have to choose between having a child and…anything at all. They don’t need to rush to have a child when they don’t feel financially stable enough, all because the clock is ticking. They don’t need to have a child with the wrong person, all because he was up for the challenge of parenting, and be tied to him for eternity. They don’t need to have a child when, quite frankly, they’re not done being selfish yet! They still want the option to pack up everything and travel for a month if the inspiration hits. They still want the option to buy $200 shoes and not feel terrible about it. They still want the option to get a little too drunk on a Wednesday. And that’s okay. Freezing your eggs means you don’t need to choose between having a child, and everything else. But here are some things you should know about it.

Image Source: Shutterstock

Image Source: Shutterstock

Women do it for health reasons too

Women don’t only freeze their eggs because they aren’t ready to have kids; they also do so for medical reasons. Some women, for example, who have cancer have to freeze their eggs before undergoing chemotherapy, since it can damage their eggs.

 

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Shutterstock

If you’re a drinker…

If you can truly limit yourself to around three drinks per week, this shouldn’t affect your egg health. But if you’re a heavy drinker, you may need to stop drinking entirely for three months before freezing your eggs, to reverse some of the damage.

 

 

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You may need to go on a special diet

Not to lose weight, but just to make your body as healthy as possible before freezing your eggs so that you can make your eggs as healthy as possible. Some common dietary recommendations are eating mostly organic foods, and staying away from processed ones.

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Shutterstock

You’ll freeze 15 to 30 eggs

The clinic where you have your eggs frozen will recommend that your freeze between 15 and 30, depending on your age, health, and other factors. This is because not every egg is guaranteed to produce a pregnancy, so you need backups.

 

Image Source: Shutterstock

Image Source: Shutterstock

Not just anybody can or should do it

It’s ultimately your choice whether or not to freeze your eggs, but your clinic will do due diligence and perform an ovarian assessment report. This will measure your hormone levels to determine the likelihood that your eggs will result in pregnancy.