Our North Houston fertility clinic has many treatment options available for hopeful parents, one of which involves using donor eggs as a part of their North Houston IVF treatment journey. But how does this process work, and is it a viable option for your reproductive goals? Our North Houston fertility specialists are here to help you answer these questions and prepare you for what to expect during IVF with donor eggs.
What is North Houston IVF?
The Woodlands IVF or Kingwood IVF, which is short for In Vitro Fertilization, is the process of retrieving eggs from a woman’s ovaries and fertilizing them with sperm outside of the woman’s body. The fertilized egg or eggs are then inserted into the uterus, where they will hopefully implant in the uterine lining and develop into a successful pregnancy. If our North Houston fertility specialist has shared that North Houston IVF using your eggs is unlikely to result in a successful pregnancy, then you may want to consider IVF with donor eggs instead.
What Is North Houston IVF With Donor Eggs?
There are a few reasons our Kingwood fertility specialist or The Woodlands fertility specialist may recommend North Houston IVF with donor eggs, such as:
- Age-Related Diminished Ovarian Reserve: as you get older, your egg count and egg quality can diminish, leading many to choose to receive donor eggs.
- Premature Ovarian Failure: If you are young, but your eggs count is low, it could be due to a number of environmental factors, such as chemotherapy, radiation treatments, autoimmune disorders, and genetic factors.
- Genetic Mutations: Multiple miscarriages are often discovered to be the result of genetic anomalies that prevent a viable pregnancy, often requiring the use of donor eggs.
Locating a Suitable Egg Donor for Your North Houston IVF Treatment
Many times, hopeful parents choose a trusted friend or family member to serve as an egg donor for their Kingwood IVF or The Woodlands IVF treatment. But if you need help finding suitable donor eggs, our North Houston fertility specialist can put you in touch with an egg donor agency or egg bank. An egg donor agency connects healthy egg donors with intending parents, often helping couples find donors who match specific genetic traits. The donor and the parent will usually undergo the IVF process at the same time so that their menstrual periods line up.Or, if you’d prefer to select frozen donor eggs, an egg bank may be the place to start. Just like at an agency, an egg bank may be able to match intending parents with certain characteristics they might be looking for.
North Houston IVF With Donor Eggs Process
Once a suitable egg donor has been located, you'll begin the IVF process. This means the collecting the eggs from your donor's ovaries and introducing them to sperm in our lab. If your donor eggs came from an egg bank, in which they were frozen, we'll first thaw the eggs in order to prepare them for fertilization. We will then introduce the sperm to fertilize the egg and allow the embryo to reach the blastocyst stage. The fertility specialists at our Kingwood fertility clinic or The Woodlands fertility clinic will then conduct genetic testing called Preimplantation Genetic Testing (PGT). This is done through a simple biopsy on the embryo in order to determine if your embryo has a high chance of leading to a successful birth. If we determine the embryo is genetically healthy, then we will prepare your uterus for pregnancy by giving you hormonal medications designed to encourage your body to go through the same hormonal changes it would with a traditional pregnancy. Once ideal hormone levels have been reached, the embryo will be transferred to your uterus with the help of an abdominal ultrasound. This painless procedure will take place in one of our North Houston fertility clinic locations.
HART Fertility Can Guide Your North Houston IVF with Donor Eggs Journey
We know that your path to parenthood may not be as simple as you intended, but there is still hope thanks to our team of knowledgeable and compassionate North Houston fertility specialists and individualized treatment options. Call us today to discuss your reproductive goals and see how we can help.
There are a variety of options available for those hoping to get pregnant amidst fertility issues. Two of those options at our North Houston fertility clinic are IVF with donor eggs and IVF with a gestational carrier, each of which is used to address different causes of infertility. This article will discuss the IVF process and then explain the differences between these two procedures and which one may be right for you.
What is North Houston IVF?
In vitro fertilization, or IVF, is the process of retrieving eggs from the ovaries and introducing them to sperm outside of the woman’s body. The fertilized egg or eggs are then inserted into the uterus, where they will hopefully implant in the uterine lining and develop into a successful pregnancy.
How Is IVF With a Gestational Carrier Different?
The North Houston IVF with surrogate process begins with the same steps as a typical IVF procedure. What makes IVF with gestational carrier different is that instead of the mother’s uterus, the embryos will be placed in a surrogate’s uterus in the hopes that it will lead to a successful pregnancy. If so, the surrogate will carry the baby to term. This may be recommended at our Kingwood IVF and The Woodlands IVF clinics for:
- Women who have medical problems with their uterus
- Women who have had a hysterectomy
- Women of advanced age
- Women with underlying conditions that may make pregnancy risky
- Gay couples
What Is North Houston IVF With Donor Eggs?
North Houston IVF with donor eggs, on the other hand, is pursued for those who are likely able to carry the pregnancy, but require eggs from a donor due to the following reasons:
- Age-Related Diminished Ovarian Reserve: age contributes to infertility, so many women with low egg counts or poor egg quality choose to receive donor eggs.
- Premature Ovarian Failure: oftentimes issues such as chemotherapy, radiation treatments, autoimmune disorders, and genetic factors lead to low egg count, as well.
- Genetic Mutations or Disease: Multiple miscarriages are often discovered to be the result of genetic anomalies that prevent a viable pregnancy, often requiring the use of donor eggs.
Finding a Suitable Surrogate or Donor Eggs for North Houston IVF
- Surrogacy: some parents may ask someone they know to act as a gestational carrier, while others turn to agencies that match intending parents with women who are interested in serving as surrogates. Regardless of how you match with a surrogate, clearly establish your expectations for the process, including an initial medical exam, legal agreements, and any other issues of importance for each person involved. Doing so before beginning the IVF with surrogate process will ensure a smooth and straightforward experience for all.
- Donor Eggs: Like those seeking surrogates, many choose someone they know and trust to serve as an egg donor for their Kingwood IVF or The Woodlands IVF treatment. But sometimes patients need or choose to turn elsewhere when selecting an egg donor, such as egg donor agencies or egg banks. These organizations connect healthy egg donors with intending parents, often helping couples find donors who match specific genetic traits.
Our North Houston Fertility Clinic Can Help you Understand These Treatment Options
If you still have questions regarding North Houston IVF with a gestational carrier or donor eggs, you should schedule an appointment at our Kingwood fertility clinic or The Woodlands fertility clinic and get the information you need from our trusted and informed fertility specialists. We look forward to guiding your next steps with warmth and compassion.
If you’ve been struggling to get pregnant on your own, you may be exploring other paths to parenthood, such as In Vitro Fertilization, or IVF. This important decision warrants proper research, as you want a compassionate Kingwood IVF or The Woodlands IVF specialist with a proven record of success. But given the personal nature of your fertility journey, there are many other factors to consider when choosing an IVF clinic that will meet your unique needs, which is why our fertility specialists have compiled this list of what to look for when choosing a North Houston fertility clinic.
What Should your North Houston IVF Specialist Offer?
A reputable North Houston fertility clinic will have most or all of these available at the heart of their practice:
- Detailed Records: not only should your North Houston IVF specialist keep detailed records of their success rates and outcomes, but they should also report annually to the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technologies (SART), which tracks pregnancy rates from clinics across the country. Our Kingwood fertility clinic, as well as our The Woodlands fertility clinic both report to SART, as we believe in providing our current and prospective clients with the transparency you deserve.
- Wide Range of Services to Meet your Needs: Sometimes patients come into our North Houston IVF clinic expecting one treatment, but discovering a different approach is more appropriate. For that reason, you want to choose a clinic that offers a variety of diagnostic and therapeutic options to address infertility, such as ours.
- Board-Certified North Houston IVF Specialists: Board Certification demonstrates a level of expertise not found among all practitioners. Our North Houston IVF doctors and specialists are board-certified and well-versed in the latest research in the field of fertility.
- On-Site Laboratory: Since many fertility treatments and diagnostics require use of laboratory technology, an on-site lab is an important feature of the most reputable IVF clinics, and our Kingwood fertility clinic and The Woodlands fertility clinic are no exceptions. In fact, ours is the only IVF lab in North Houston.
- Access to Donor Egg and Donor Sperm Banks: Both our Kingwood fertility clinic and The Woodlands fertility clinic work closely with reputable egg and sperm donor banks that provide a wide number of diverse options for donor egg and sperm should that be a part of your fertility journey.
Trust Your Instincts When Choosing a North Houston IVF Specialist
Don’t ignore your intuition when making this important decision, as you want this choice to “feel right” for you and your fertility journey. Begin by reviewing the clinic’s website for SART data, services offered, and customer testimonials, all of which will provide insight as to whether or not it’s a good fit. If so, you'll want to schedule an initial consultation, which not only gives you an inside look at the clinic’s day-to-day operations, but also an opportunity to ask any questions you may have and learn the clinic’s treatment recommendations.
See Why So Many Trust Our North Houston Fertility Clinic
Whether it’s at our Kingwood IVF clinic or The Woodlands IVF clinic, our patients have trusted us to provide diagnostic and therapeutic options to address their fertility needs. We’ve been honored to provide quality, compassionate care to hopeful parents since 1985 and we’d be honored to provide the same for you. If you’re exploring your fertility options, schedule an appointment with one of our North Houston IVF specialists and see why so many have chosen HART Fertility Clinic for their reproductive needs.
The IVF process is a highly personalized one, with a variety of paths available for those hoping to become parents. That’s why our North Houston fertility clinic, with both Kingwood IVF and The Woodlands IVF locations, offers multiple options for our patients, two of which are egg freezing and embryo freezing. But how do these treatments compare? And is either the right choice for you and your fertility goals? Here are the most frequently asked questions our fertility specialists receive about North Houston IVF with frozen eggs versus North Houston IVF with frozen embryos.
What Is Egg Freezing At Our Kingwood Fertility Clinic and The Woodlands Fertility Clinic?
There are many reasons some women choose to freeze their eggs at our North Houston IVF clinic. Freezing your eggs provides you with more flexibility in the time you choose to begin the North Houston IVF process, allowing the opportunity to embark on this journey at a time that best suits your plans.
Should you choose to freeze your eggs, you’ll begin by receiving hormonal injections to stimulate your ovaries to produce multiple eggs at ovulation. We then use transvaginal ultrasound technology to retrieve your eggs before dehydrating and freezing them for future use. Dehydrating your eggs before freezing them prevents the formation of ice crystals, protecting them from destruction and giving you the opportunity to use them at the time of your choosing.
What Is Embryo Freezing At Our North Houston Fertility Clinic?
Embryo freezing, unlike egg freezing, involves fertilizing your eggs with sperm at our Kingwood IVF or The Woodlands IVF clinic immediately following retrieval. Upon embryo development, we’ll freeze them for you to use at a later date.
Which Method Is Right for Me?
Personal preference is the most influential factor when deciding between egg and embryo freezing. Egg freezing offer a bit more flexibility and can be beneficial for the following reasons:
- You can wait to begin North Houston IVF until you meet the right partner
- If you’re a single woman, you can always opt for donor sperm when you’re ready
- If you get pregnant before needing your frozen eggs, you can discard them.
What Are the Limitations of Embryo Freezing?
There are a few reasons embryo freezing at our North Houston IVF clinic may not be suitable for your IVF journey. Consider the following when deciding between using frozen eggs or frozen embryos for your North Houston IVF process:
- You must have your preferred sperm source available if choosing embryo freezing because the egg must be fertilized immediately following retrieval.
- Sometimes frozen embryos must be discarded for a variety of reasons. Your moral, spiritual, or religious beliefs may take issue with this possibility, so consider that potential before choosing this path.
If You Still Have Questions, Meet with Our Kingwood Fertility Clinic and The Woodlands Fertility Clinic Specialists
Because the North Houston IVF process is highly personalized, you may still need more information about these two options. The most effective way to determine which method may be best for you to preserve your fertility is to schedule a consultation at one of our North Houston IVF clinics. Regardless of your decision, we will provide you with warm, compassionate care based on the best practices and medical research available. Our North Houston IVF doctors are here to help you understand your options and guide you on this important journey.
The right diet and nutrition choices can mean wonderful benefits for your overall health, such as disease prevention, a stronger immune system, and weight management. But did you know that there are certain foods that may actually boost fertility? If you’re beginning a North Houston IVF journey, consider the information in this article and begin adding certain foods to your diet that could increase your chances of a successful pregnancy and eliminate those that may be hindering your fertility.
Our North Houston Fertility Clinic Specialists Recommend The Following Foods
Our Kingwood fertility clinic and The Woodlands fertility clinic specialists recommend a diet rich in antioxidants, whole grains, and healthy fats for their North Houston IVF patients. The following foods may be especially helpful for those looking to optimize their fertility diet:
- Citrus fruits: vitamin C has been touted to improve the health of semen and ova. Squeeze some lemon or lime juice into your ice water or slice some oranges in the morning to snack on throughout the day.
- Full-fat dairy: Full-fat dairy is rich in saturated fats, which can boost fertility and reduce the likelihood of ovulation problems. Swap your skim milk for whole milk and reach for full-fat yogurt and cheese options instead of those labeled low-fat or fat-free.
- Oysters: Oysters contain a plethora of fertility-boosting nutrients such as vitamin B12, zinc, and iron. Raw oysters should only be consumed before the embryo transfer, but fully-cooked oysters are safe to eat at any time in the IVF process.
- Eggs: Eggs, especially the yolks, are packed with omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins A and E, and are a great source of protein. Scramble a few for breakfast or keep some hard-boiled eggs in the fridge for a healthy afternoon snack.
- Pineapple: Pineapples are rich in bromelain, which reduces inflammation and boosts your immune system. Since chronic inflammation has been suggested to suppress ovulation, bromelain is a good addition to your fertility diet. Many grocery stores carry freshly-sliced pineapple in their produce sections, making it even easier to enjoy.
Foods to Avoid During Kingwood IVF or The Woodlands IVF Treatment
Some foods can impede ovulation, increase inflammation, and raise insulin levels, all of which can affect your chances for a successful IVF pregnancy. Which means that what you don’t eat can be just as important as what you do. Our North Houston fertility clinic specialists recommend avoiding the following:
- Refined carbohydrates: White bread, pasta, and sugary foods and drinks all cause your blood-sugar to spike quickly, affecting insulin levels in the body. Elevated insulin can negatively impact reproductive hormones and stunt egg maturation.
- Trans fats: Like refined carbohydrates, trans fats can also affect your insulin levels, so stay away from fried foods and overly processed products that contain hydrogenated vegetable oil.
- Alcohol: High alcohol consumption has long been associated with infertility, and even moderate alcohol consumption should be avoided during your North Houston IVF process, especially following embryo transfer.
Our North Houston Fertility Clinic Can Help You Plan a Healthy Diet
We want to help you make the types of healthy choices that will support your North Houston IVF journey. We encourage you to schedule an appointment to meet with one of our Kingwood IVF or The Woodlands IVF specialists so that we can answer your questions, suggest ways to promote a healthy lifestyle, and offer you the support you need during this important time.
