So... I'm alive. And much less cheery about donating eggs than my previous post - wow!
Just to throw it out there - donating eggs (or more the getting super sick afterwards part) was one of the absolute worst and painful experiences of my life. Right up there with out-of-my-mind pain before my root canal.
Long story short, my body over-reacted to the fertility drugs, and my ovaries became "hyperstimulated." Meaning, HUGE. And for some reason that made me retain water, like 10-15 pounds of it. Yeah, my stomach was so swollen the skin on it started peeling and I literally looked at least 5 months pregnant. Oh yeah, and before I got all swollen, I was vomiting and blacking out.
All in all, I missed over a week of work, and spent my days and nights sitting and dozing in the recliner, trying to drink chicken broth (don't try it - ever), crying and feeling very alone. One of the worst parts was that since my stomach was so swollen, the fluid and stuff moved into my chest and made it so I could barely breath. I also couldn't sleep for that whole week, as I could not lay down flat since it pushed on my lungs more. And my back was all messed up from sitting up straight all the time, and yeah, just bad.
I eventually started feeling better, and I am pretty much back to normal now. The one other bummer was that one of my ovaries is still huge, and the week of Dam to Dam (the race I was training for), my doctor advised me not to run for a couple of months. Apparently enlarged ovaries can twist on themselves and cause damage and pain with repetitive jarring movements, like running. Boo. I have a few more weeks and then I'll start up again. For now, walking.
I'm coming to the end of my complaining, but not before I mention this - last week I was sent a bill from the fertility clinic, charging me for services they gave me WHEN I WAS SICK. Yeah. Apparently after you donate, all medical expenses are on you. I was so mad I cried on the phone when I was trying to bitch them out for charging me. So although yes, I did get paid a nice sum to donate, I felt very wronged that I was charged for being sick after their procedure.
But I'm past that all now, and getting better. And pretty sure that I will never donate again. I don't think my body can handle it, or my mental health.
1 comment:
omg, i can't believe your egg donating experience was that awful. if i had gotten charged for the medical expenses, i would have cried too...i almost popped an eyeball out several times this whole week...i was so mad that my moving day kept getting pushed back, which is nothing compared to your experience. at least everything gets better eventually :)
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