The Fertility Podcast
The Later Years: Why Egg Freezing Could Be All It's Cracked Up To Be?
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Episode notes
Welcome to our final episode of The Later Years Series.
We're hoping to bring you one final episode of 2020 just before Christmas and we’re very much hoping that the two of us can get together to record in person - Covid restrictions permitting!
This week we’re talking egg freezing with Catherine Hendy author, yoga teacher, and co-founder of Elanza Wellness, and Sophia Money-Coutts journalist and creator of the podcast Freezing Time.
So, you might have reached 35 or over and you’re thinking what next?
Have you thought about freezing your eggs?
Catherine did after her marriage broke down at the age of 32 and found that there were so many presumptions about a life - childfree. This made her interested in finding out more and eventually made the decision to freeze her eggs.
Sophia has recently frozen her eggs and shared her egg freezing journey in her fantastically funny, informative, and emotional podcast. It is a must-listen if you’re considering freezing your eggs or even if you’re about to embark on your first round of IVF.
Catherine wanted to find out about the misconceptions of egg freezing and the questions women want to know. She found that the common questions were women considering if they’re the right age, the pros and cons, how much egg freezing costs.
We ask for Sophia and Catherine’s opinion on fertility MOT testing. Sophia found the test really useful as it helped her with decision making going forward. Catherine made the decision to go to a clinic to have the hormone test along with the antral follicle count scan to provide more in-depth information.
Sophia talks about the importance of feeling really comfortable with your choice of clinic and doctor. She recommends attending clinic open evenings to help you make a decision on which clinic. Sophia decided on the Lister Clinic and (in her words) the ‘lovely Dr. James’.
Natalie asks whether they considered freezing embryos as well as eggs. Sophia felt that this decision was rather rushed and didn’t want to ‘panic buy sperm’, so in the end made the decision to not freeze embryos on this occasion but doesn’t rule it out for the future. Catherine was only 32 when she froze her eggs and felt as though she had enough time to meet a partner. Therefore, freezing embryos was not really on her radar at that time.
Finally, we chat about how they both feel about their decision to freeze their eggs in a Covid world. Sophia says her overriding feelings are relief, positivity, and gratefulness. She still is questioning whether or not she feels broody yet but after a year of Covid, she’s looking forward to a bit of travelling before making any more decisions. Catherine on the other hand, two days after freezing her eggs met the partner she now lives with, so time will tell….
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