It’s National Infertility Awareness Week. I wanted to share a variety of perspectives surrounding fertility. Luckily, Ness offered for me to repost this wonderful story of hers about donating her eggs. This post originally appeared at The Girl with the Five Lads and appears here with Ness’ permission.

Today there is a mother snuggling her children due to a decision I made over twelve years ago. Like many women, I made the decision to donate my eggs to help another woman have the right to feel the way I do. Being a mother is the most beautiful thing I have ever achieved in my life.

Egg donation offers new hope for a large number of women who previously thought they could never have children. For me, this would have devastated me knowing I could not become a mummy. All I longed to be as a small child was a wife and mum. Luckily for me conception was never a struggle, for some this brings such heartache for women who have lost their ovaries or the function of their ovaries whilst young. This could be because the ovaries have never developed properly, or because of cancer, surgery, chemotherapy or radiotherapy or, for a surprisingly large number of women, early menopause.

I was married at the time of donation and I already had three beautiful children. If I am totally honest my husband at the time did not like the idea of donation and never gave me his blessing but it was something I wanted to do. For him, it was odd and just not right.

In the past, people who donated sperm, eggs or embryos could choose to remain anonymous. Donors had to give identifying details for our Register, but these stayed confidential. Under the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990, people could apply to find out if they were conceived using donated sperm, eggs or embryos. They could also check whether they were related to someone they wanted to marry, but they did not have the right to know who the donor was. April 2005 a new law came into effect, which allows people conceived through donations made after this date to find out who their donor was, once they reach 18.

I was given a small piece of card with a section only a few inches big to write a note to the child if every they decided to find out about the woman that gave their mum ingredients to make them. It was the most surreal moment, writing to an adult about why you donated eggs. I cannot remember what I wrote exactly but it was about me, my personality and that I gave the eggs with love so that their mum could feel the love of being a mother.

I can always remember being pregnant with my fourth son and the phone rang. It was Liverpool Women’s hospital to tell be that a baby had recently been born as a result of my eggs and a lady was pregnant with twins. They do not give you details other than that, I did not get told the sex, date of birth etc just that the parents had requested for the further eggs in storage for siblings. You can only have 10 live births regardless of donating 16 eggs. I put the phone down and cried, it was a happy feel good cry knowing a mum is now cuddling her baby and she once thought that moment was denied for her.

When you are told of the process for egg donation it appears very daunting. The side effects sound horrific and enough to put you off. If you were sat down with a health professional and the leaflet for a paracetamol was read out, the side effects, overdose dangers. Would you take a tablet so easily? That is all they are doing, by law, they have to give you every snippet of information so you make an informed consent.

Did it hurt?

No, you have to have a series of injections in the run up to extraction. Just a small thin needle, if you have had a blood test in the doctors, a tattoo or a piercing it is no worse as the needle is tiny in comparison.

Did you get all the horrible side effects from the medication?

No none at all, in fact, I felt better as I had no PMT. I asked the doctor could I not stay on the medication that switched off my ovaries as it was lovely having no PMT, but he laughed and said no.

Did the process of extracting the eggs hurt?

No more than a smear
How did you feel knowing the eggs are going to be babies but you are not the mother?

I felt honoured to have helped another woman.

If like many you have thought about being a donor but never got around to doing it or unsure how. Please have a think of all the women in the UK today that have to read endless facebook updates about mothers love. All you need to do is telephone your local maternity/women’s hospital tomorrow and ask them to put you through to the reproduction unit. It is that simple. I then got a pack through the post to read, then after reading there was a number to call if I still wanted to be a donor. You have an appointment with a nurse in the unit and it is all explained.

You have the power to change someone’s life forever.

Love, laughter and gentle hugs
Ness xx

Make sure to follow Ness’ journey on her site, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and Bloglovin.