Selling Your Body

March2

And no, I’m not talking about prostitution…Get your minds out of the gutter!

Here is a fact you probably didn’t know about me: I “donated” my eggs a few years back. (And by “donated” I mean “sold”, but as long as I say “donated”, the $7,000 I received is untaxable. Gotta love loop holes.) I was featured on FertilityAlternatives.com and my ova was anonymously purchased by a couple in Los Angeles. That’s when the fun began…I had to swear off alcohol, caffeine and sex for a month and I had to inject myself with fertility hormones twice a day for 2 weeks, which made my body “pop” multiple ripe ovum (22 to be exact). For you that don’t know, usually a women only produces one per month. Well, when I signed up for this gig, they failed to mention that these shots are really really painful. And I’m not talking about the needle part. The actual drugs burned as they were being injected and sent shooting pains up and down my thigh. RAD! And I got to do that twice a day! Then my ovaries were so swollen that I had to stop running because I could feel them bouncing around (Ewwwww. That grosses me out just thinking about that again). Next I was required to go to the fertility doctor EVERY day for 2 weeks. Okay, imagine having to go to the gyno every day, mix in super moodiness brought on by raging hormone injections and then have some quack poking your swollen ovaries from the inside out. Let’s just say that the doc and I exchanged a few words. And a lot of mine started with F. So after a month, my eggs were ripe for the picking, so I went to the hospital and was harvested. When I first woke up from surgery, I actually felt a lot better since my ovary were no longer filled with eggs, but the day after surgery my ovaries started leaking fluid into my abdominal cavity. They poked 22 holes in my ovaries and expected them not to leak like a seive?! Fabulous. So I was bed ridden for at least another week.

SO, after all of this trouble I went through, the couple that spent all of this money trying to get pregnant with my genes DID NOT get pregnant. What a bummer! They offered me $10,000 to do it again, but I politely turned them down while my mind was screaming, “No way in hell!!!”.

posted under Random Stuff

29 Comments to

“Selling Your Body”

On March 3rd, 2005 at 4:44 pm Yelena Says:
My ovaries feel swollen just from reading this.. I am glad you are not doing this again..
Just out of curiosity: how much would they need to offer you to do it again?
On March 3rd, 2005 at 9:43 pm Vicious Summer Says:
I wouldn’t do it again for less then $50,000. Any takers? HAha…The problem is that they don’t really know the after effects of egg donation on your body since it hasn’t been around for that long. Maybe I just shortened my lifespan by 20 years…Or perhaps my children will be born with 2 heads…
On March 6th, 2005 at 8:29 am Al Says:
It’s so much easier and more pleasurable for men to donate in fact most would do it for free
On March 7th, 2005 at 6:38 am toseef piniyini Says:
Damn that is a killer post, on of the best I have ever read.

Just out of curiosity, why did you donate at that time? Where you in desperate need of the money? Or did it *seem* like an easy way to get your hands on some tax-free dough?

I didnt know there was such a market for things like this …

& yes Al it is so much more easier and pleasurable for guys to donate, we'd probably say, huh that was donating for a good cause? Again, again, again !

piniyini
On March 8th, 2005 at 5:24 am Vicious Summer Says:
My decision to donate was fueled by a lot of things…Money was one of them but I was also curious about the process (I like experiments! Even if I’m one…haha). I also thought it was a good thing to do in the aspect of helping someone have a baby that was unable to do so on there own. Also, at the time I was pretty sure that I didn’t want kids of my own, so I figured I should pass along my genes somehow. Weird? Yes, I am. =)
On March 8th, 2005 at 8:35 pm Lever Says:
Summer, you have even more of my respect than ever… you are one cool cookie Lance Armstrong’s wife went through the same procedure, and this is at the same time as reading about the guy’s battle with cancer and his chemo-therapy !! Harrowing tale.

You want more Jaffa Cakes, you just say the word princess xx
On April 26th, 2005 at 2:59 pm Anonymous Says:
Hi,

I am/was seriously considering donating my eggs when I stumbled upon this site. It was refreshing to hear an honest and straightforward opinion. If you don’t mind, I have a few questions I hope you can answer.

-How long were the visits to the doctor for the ovary ultrasounds? 30 minutes? An hour? I hear they draw your blood everyday for a week too. Ouch!

-On a scale of one to ten (one being pulling off a band-aid and ten being burnt at the stake) how painful were those hormone shots? Did the pain last long?

-I hear it takes about two months with the whole finding a couple, filling out forms, tests, etc. But how long is the ACTUAL donation? What I mean is, from when you start injecting to when the eggs are “harvested”–exactly how many days/weeks did you endure?

Any information you can give would be greatly appreciated. Thank you again for posting this on your blog and giving me some insight on your experience.

-E. Greenwood
bowlingisforlovers@gmail.com
On April 29th, 2005 at 1:28 am Vicious Summer Says:
- The Dr visits averaged about an hour, but they were almost every day, which means you will miss work. They do draw blood everytime and if you think that hurts…just wait until the fertility injections that you will have to give yourself TWICE a day for a week.

- The hormone shots were easily an 8, and I have a very high pain threshold. The pain didn’t last too long, but it definately did linger for a few minutes after the shot was done being injected.

- The time to match you with a “buyer” varies depending on how much you are willing to take for the donation and the agency you go through. I took almost a year to match with a couple. The process of dr’s visits through harvesting the eggs is 1 month.

I hope this info is helpful to you! And if you do decide to go through an egg donation, I suggest that you only do it one time max. They really don’t know what the after effects will be since this procedure is relatively new and I’m sure it can’t be a positive experiance for your body.
On May 2nd, 2005 at 10:09 am Anonymous Says:
Thanks for the information! You’ve given me a lot to think about. Like: oh no, I have an aversion to needles AND a very low pain threshold. Do you remember the name of the hormone shots by the way?

Believe me, if I go through with this, I will not be doing it more than once. I heard it may cause ovarian cancer, or at least increase the risk of it. Too bad donating eggs wasn’t invented a hundred years ago.

Thanks again. Now I have to weigh whether I have enough masochism in me to deal with such excruciating pain…

Best,
Esther
On May 4th, 2005 at 2:31 am Vicious Summer Says:
Esther,
I’m glad I could help. The people that make money off of you donating your eggs make it sound like a breeze, so I’m glad I could give you a real 1st person experience.

I don’t remember the name of the hormones I was shooting up, but I’m pretty sure that they will all hurt the same.

Aside from the pain, egg donatation turned me into “Super Bitch”, from all the raging hormones I was pumping into my body, so if you do decide to do it, definately warn people. You’ll have PMS X 100 for 3 weeks or so.

Good luck !
On June 29th, 2005 at 11:31 am Anonymous Says:
Hi, I also have been considering donating my eggs. You mentioned having moodiness and extremely bad PMS..was it controllable? Because I know that I can be a bitch when I’m PMSing, but I can also control it while I’m at work and I’m afraid I won’t be able to. Did it affect you on the job?
On June 29th, 2005 at 5:32 pm Vicious Summer Says:
I’m sure the severity of the PMS varies from person to person. I would realize that I was being a bitch and I would know that it was because of the hormones, but even then I couldn’t stop being incredibly annoyed and bitchy. But, I didn’t throw my computer at my boss or anything. I suppose it would depend on what type of work you do, but it could affect you at work. Donating your eggs does interfere with work, though, because you have to see the dr almost every day for two weeks. You definately will need to take time off of work.
On December 21st, 2006 at 10:56 am serious looking into Says:
My husband can’t have kids which means I’m not having kids. He’s 65 now and I’m 38 ,married 17 years –so you see no kids but just the idea having a little bit of somewhere makes me want to sell my eggs!! I’m starting a new business and I’ve never been one to ask for help, especially (i don’t know why) from him- I’m moving away as well!!!Holy this isn’t the Dr. is in for advice site!! Sorry -
Can I get a little advice for selling my ovaries I’m Canadian and confused-HELP!!
On December 21st, 2006 at 2:45 pm Vicious Summer Says:
Unfortunately you have to be fairly young to sell your eggs (usually 18 – 29, max)
On March 18th, 2007 at 7:00 pm Software Patterns - A students' View Says:
Thanks so much,there!my friend and i were thinking of selling our eggs to help pay 4our PostGraduateDiploma but then i guess,after what we read we’d rather get loans n work like donkeys.We think you should raise an awareness program.
jan.(United Kingdom)
On January 9th, 2008 at 8:08 pm Anonymous Says:
I’ve also thought about selling my eggs I’m already a mother of two beautiful little girls me and husband really don’t plan to have any more anytime soon i was just wondering what are you allowed to do and what aren’t you allowed to do? for example when you get your period can you use tampons etc. is there a limit to how many eggs you want to donate?Do they have any other preferences for example does one have to be a certain race, full blooded anything of that nature?
On August 30th, 2008 at 11:34 am deskah Says:
I was just looking on the internet to see if they had the day after side effects of donating eggs. I just went through my second cycle and it was much more painful doing it this time than last time. I am having trouble walking around and breathing when standing. The Dr. told me that I had to drive 2 hrs back in tomorrow morning to make sure everything was ok. For anyone that is wondering it is extremely painful. It is nice to help couples have babies and everything but OUCH!
On December 17th, 2008 at 1:13 pm Anonymous Says:
I am canadian, 31 yeaers old and have two beautiful girls and want to sell myeggs how do i start the process…where do i look to get started??
On February 3rd, 2009 at 4:16 pm Charlotte Says:
Hey,
I’m 21 and live in England and Canada and I have monumental student debt. I already knew that you could sell your eggs, and I’ve been seriously considering it. I was also wondering though if you could your ovaries? Kind of like you can sell your spleen\apendix\other non essential organs. I had always planned on adopting anyways so that would never be a problem.

Thanks,
Charlie.
On February 3rd, 2009 at 4:26 pm Summer Says:
Charlotte – I doubt you could sell your ovaries as they won’t really do anyone any good. I’ve never heard of an ovary transplant, have you? But you can sell your eggs multiple times. You have millions of eggs and with the fertility treatments they give you you only “pop” 20 or so. But, you have to be healthy enough and desirable enough for a family to choose your eggs. It’s not like you just donate them into some bank. A couple will choose you based on looks, education, goals in life, etc (The form I filled out was at least 50 pages long). It took around a year for a family to contact me in regards to donating my eggs.

Also, I would suggest keeping your ovaries. I didn’t think I wanted kids of my own either when I was 21 and that usually changes. Good luck!
On February 3rd, 2009 at 4:38 pm Charlotte Says:
Well it’s also illegal I think but that doesn’t matter too much. I thought that you were only allowed to sell them six times or something? I need more money than that…
Yeah, that’s what people tell me, but really, I’ve never wanted to be pregnant, I actually think I’d feel guilty…
On April 13th, 2009 at 4:20 pm Misa Says:
Hi there i am 29 and have 2 kids. looking to sell my eggs… where do i go?a ny recommendations?
On August 25th, 2009 at 1:51 pm Dawn Says:
Unfortunately Summer isnt 100% correct on the information provided.
Our ovaries produce many eggs each month, but under normal hormonal circumstances, only 1-2 ripen. The others just die away.

When fertility medications are taken, the hormones simply mature all of the eggs for that given month. (the ones that would have died, otherwise)

It is true, that egg donation is an uncomfortable and inconvenient prospect, which is why donors are paid in the thousands, and not the hundreds like a sperm donor.

Even being paid in the thousands, you are being compensated for my time, expense, incovenience, and discomfort, which is why it is egg donation. If you were asking for more than the going rate, it could very well be considered selling your eggs, because at that point, you really arent being being reimbursed for loss.

Of course every donor has different experiences. Almost 90% of donors, choose to do it again, because their experience was probably not as uncomfortable or severe as Summer. Some can handle it, and some people can’t.

Pain and discomfort is relative to each person. I guess you need to decide if the discomfort is worth the benefit of the given compensation, and the help you are providing an infertile couple.

I know in my 11 years of experience in the egg donation field, and as a 6 time donor myself, I have always given donors full disclosure on what to expect, from stinging medications, to the risks of hyperstimulation. My informational website covers everything. Infact I would rather be blunt and lay it out for a donor (even the negative) , and if she still wants to be a donor, then I know she is committed.
On August 25th, 2009 at 1:53 pm Dawn Says:
As an edit… YOu are compensated for your time.. (sorry about that)
On October 28th, 2009 at 11:27 am Kelley Says:
IN NEED OF CASH LIKE THAT! WHERE CAN I GO DO THISSS!!!?
On February 28th, 2010 at 3:45 pm Amanda Says:
Hey I’m also Canadian and have been considering selling my eggs. I understand there are health risks but there are also health risks in pregnancy. I am concerned about the hormone dosage but I already take birth control.

I do not plan on ever having children but have always felt the need to get my genes out there and I think this would be a great way. This way if I choose to have children later in life I can adopt without feeling guilty about not passing on my genetics.

When the couple bought from you did you have an option to be in contact by them? Also when you get all those eggs out at one time couldn’t you get a few people to buy them up? From your post I understood you produced 22 eggs and received $7, 000. would it be possible to sell more than one egg? what happens to the eggs that don’t get sold?

another reason I am considering this is that I feel like my eggs are being wasted right now!! I just get my period and be done with them when someone who is infertile or a gay couple can have the baby they would like to raise!

also what are the screening processes like for people wanting to get preggers? I don’t want to be irresponsible about this. If people are going to make a baby with my genome they better be able to take care of it and do a good job, yknow?

thanks for all your insights and this post.

A
On March 3rd, 2010 at 2:14 pm Summer Says:
Amanda – It totally depends on what agency you go through. It’s usually up to the buyer if they want to have contact with you or if they want their child to have contact with the egg donor. You never know how many eggs you are going to pop when you are on those hormones, so it would be very tricky to try and line up more then one couple for one round as they want as many as possible. The more eggs they get, the more chances they have at getting pregnant. All of the eggs are fertilized, a couple are implanted and the rest are frozen for future attempts if the first fails.
On December 15th, 2010 at 6:13 pm Elyse Says:
Summer,
From what I understand, selling tissue in Canada is illegal. So you must either be American or went through an American company. Is this correct?

Also, I assume that to donate your eggs you must be off birth control, because of the hormones. Correct?

After your eggs have been harvested, are your chances of becoming pregant yourself increased or decreased.

Thanks for your time!
On April 15th, 2011 at 3:49 pm Secor98 Says:
I’ve done this before several times and it was nothing like your description. I am terrified of needles so I had a friend who is a nurse give me my injections both at the same time in the evening. I did not look and felt nothing. ( I iced the area for a bit prior to the injections). The number of days varies on how quickly you respond but was between 7-10 days differed for each cycle. For the daily visits they lasted 15 mins and I was able to go early in the morning before work. They take blood and give you a quick ultrasound – there is no poking of the ovaries. When they were ready to harvest they made an appointment for me to come in for a longer appointment where they retrieved the eggs under sedation. I was very surprised at how easy it was given my fear of needles etc.

All in all it’s a wonderful gift that you are giving someone who cannot have children on their own.