June 29, 2018 - Oh My Heartsie Girl

Why choose donor eggs?

It may come as a surprise that IVF with donor eggs has such a high success rate – up to 55% – and is one of the preferred options for women 35 or older. Using donor eggs is a viable alternative for couples struggling with egg quantity or quality, genetic diseases, or previous IVF failure. The success of donor egg IVF relies on a quality database of donors and highly skilled physicians and technicians. Respected donor egg programs or networks will ensure their donors are in optimal health and age, and screen eggs to ensure only the best are made available for transfer.

Where do I start?

Once you have made the decision to proceed with using donated eggs, you’ll need to find a donor. Some people turn to family or friends, but you can also find reputable programs with an extensive egg donor database and sufficient background information about the donors.

Then, you’ll need to decide whether to use frozen or fresh donor eggs. Using fresh eggs is more complicated, and often costs more than using frozen. Fresh cycles also involve the donor and recipient having to sync their cycles, and in turn, offers little control over exactly when a transfer can occur.

Conversely, when the recipient uses frozen eggs they know exactly how many viable eggs they have beforehand and can plan for the day of transfer.

First, you’ll need to choose your donor. High quality donor egg programs provide information on all of their donors’ biological attributes, life accomplishments, and health. Some couples decide to focus on donors who have similar physical features to them, while other recipients choose to consider other factors.

After your decision, arrangements will be made to deliver your frozen egg lot – a group of five to eight of your donor’s most viable eggs – to your fertility clinic.

What happens after the eggs are delivered?

Your eggs can remain frozen at your fertility clinic until you are ready for transfer. Your fertility specialist can help you better understand the process, and will work with you to ensure you have the best chance of conceiving.

You’ll need to take medication to thicken your uterine lining to give your fertilized eggs (embryos) the best environment possible. Usually, the medication comes in the form of injections, but may also include oral medication. Most couples find that the process doesn’t interfere much in their daily lives and support one another through it. Naturally, you may be concerned about side effects, but most women experience very little or no issues with the medication.

Around 3-5 days before your transfer is scheduled, your eggs will be thawed and fertilized with your partner’s sperm. Fertilized eggs become embryos, which are then monitored for development and to identify the best one(s) for transfer.

What happens during transfer?

Depending on your situation and personal preference, one or two embryos will be selected for transfer. The transfer process is relatively non-invasive. Ultrasound is used with a small catheter-like tube to insert the embryos into the uterus. Most women report experiencing no or little discomfort, rather than pain, during the embryo transfer process. Some describe it as similar to having a pap smear.

What happens after transfer?

The following weeks are often the most frustrating as you wait for nature to take its course. It’s important to stay as calm as possible during this time. Your fertility clinic will ask you to come back around two weeks after your transfer for a blood test to measure your human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) levels. HcG is known as the pregnancy hormone and isn’t typically detectable until a couple of weeks after conception. Hopefully, you’ll receive positive news and your pregnancy proceeds like any other. In any case, your fertility clinic will be there to support you and determine your next steps.

No matter how much money we have, there is always that little extra we need for paying down a debt installment or for buying a new car or financing tuition fee for our children.

But, in order for us to be able to cover all the extra expenses that might arise on an everyday basis, we don’t always need a new job – sometimes we need to learn how to manage the funds we already have.

Sometimes, following simple habits and slightly changing our consumerist mindset is all that we need. We need to learn how to allocate money that we have more efficiently and need to familiarize ourselves with the most common pitfalls of money management.

Whether you’re buying new clothes for your teenage kids or you’re taking them out for a dinner, you should always be able to find ways on how to save a buck or two.

Sticking with pre-made lists of what’s needed to buy and what’s not as well as allocating certain amount of your budget to your children as a clothing allowance would be a good start.

In this article, we will bring to your attention some of the neatest budgeting tricks that will get your family budget growing in no time.

Fix the Budget Leaks

Every budget has its leakage. Overspending on certain types of things is common for families, especially if you’re earning more than you actually need to get by.

However, all those little expenses account for a big sum when you add them all up. If you put pen to paper and write down all there is, you will be surprised by the amount of money you are throwing away just not paying attention every day.

If you’re planning a vacation with your family, keep in mind that you should take all options into consideration Think about the ways to save money by booking in early season so you won’t have to pay double during the high holiday season. That way you can still find good accommodation, and stay on top of your budget! If you are a mountain lover, with Lantern Thredbo Apartments you can choose from a variety of premium accommodation options in both the Thredbo Alpine Village and the Snowy Mountains. You just have to search for options and your vacation doesn’t need to cost a fortune!

Prioritizing your buying and making lists can always help in this situation. We already mentioned the necessity of organizing your spendings by making lists prior you actually go shopping. For instance, paying visit to the supermarket or a grocery store can eat up contents of your wallet if you are prone to impulsive shopping.

Do you really need everything you buy every time you go to the supermarket? Certainly not!

Restraining from being impulsive when it comes to shopping or booking and sticking to pre-made lists of the things you really need is of utmost importance here.

Of course, it doesn’t mean that you can’t treat yourself with something nice from time to time, just make sure not to make a regular habit out of it.

Digging Even Deeper Into Family Expenses

Furthermore, go through your monthly expenses in search of some more pain points that are devastating your budget. You’ll probably find out that you’re paying for some services you are not even using anymore.

For instance, do you really need to pay for your Netflix if you don’t have time for yourself and you don’t practice movie nights with your family anymore? How many services you subscribed for on a monthly basis that are charging you on a recurrent basis? Make sure to go through all of them and to cancel all of those unnecessary subscriptions. Try to find budgeting options and make sure you keep an eye on those finances!

Perhaps you’ve come to that point when you should start cleaning out your closet for good. And we mean in real terms. What’s the use of keeping stuff around the house if you don’t intend to use them anymore?

Consider organizing a garage sale on weekends or listing your stuff for sale online. You’ll get some money out of it, plus you’ll definitely free up some living space for you and your family.

Last but not the least, if you owe some money to the bank (and lots of us are) you should seriously think of consolidating or even refinancing a loan.

There are many things you can do when it comes to this matter and, luckily enough, there are lots of articles online that can help you out with money management.