Why emBorrow?
Our Founder’s Story.
I knew I always wanted to have my own biological children, but by the age of 35 I was still not at the point in my life where I was ready to have children. I had heard about egg freezing in the past but did not have much information about it. I decided to go to a talk about egg freezing at a local fertility clinic where I learned about a fertility test that could provide you with your “fertility age.” In layman’s terms, “fertility age” meant that just because you are 35 years old, your fertility may not be 35 years old. After taking the test, I learned that I had low egg reserve for a female of my age. I was asked by the nurse “why did you take this test?” to which I responded, “I was thinking of freezing my eggs.” The nurse then told me “this would be the right time to do that.” I didn’t really know what all went into the process of freezing my eggs, but I knew I had to proceed because I never wanted to be told I missed my window of opportunity to have biological children. Having children of my own was always very important to me and since I was getting older, this was the best way to preserve my fertility, and stop the anxiety that comes along with my “biological clock ticking.”
During my first treatment, however, I did not know much of what to expect.
Another fundamental reason for the founding of emBorrow is the cost of fertility treatments.
I ended up undergoing three rounds of fertility treatments with three successful egg retrievals. During my first treatment, however, I did not know much of what to expect. I was provided with links to videos on how to administer the shots, but other than that I had no idea what I was putting my body through, how the process worked, how long I would be on the shots, the monitoring that would take place through the cycle, the actual retrieval of my eggs, etc.
It wasn’t until my third round of fertility treatment that I felt like a pro. I knew exactly what to expect in terms of the injectable medications, how I would physically feel during the process, the monitoring of my ovaries and the egg retrieval. Many women freezing their eggs, however, won’t be going through three rounds of treatment and honestly, before you start the first round, you want to know EXACTLY what the process will be. This is one of main reasons that I wanted to start emBorrow. To educate on what it is like to actually go through fertility treatment. And not just the actual administration of the medications, the monitoring and the retrieval, but all the emotions that you will experience during this process.
Another fundamental reason for the founding of emBorrow is the cost of fertility treatments.
Let’s face it, they are not cheap, and this is a huge concern for women and future parents who dream about having children. Of the many women that I have talked to who are considering freezing their eggs, the main concern is the cost: Does insurance cover any portion of the cost? How much is the medicine? How much is the procedure? How can I afford this? It’s extremely disappointing to hear women say that while they want to preserve their fertility and not be told in the future that they cannot have a biological child, that they cannot proceed with freezing their eggs because they cannot afford it. People should be able to afford the costs of fertility treatments in order to have the family that they dream of, whether that be egg freezing, IVF or surrogacy.
This is what emBorrow will make happen.
