“I thought that if I have something that can really help make other people’s lives better, then I should definitely go for it.”
One woman in the US who started donating her eggs to give couples the chance to become parents has been able to make enough money to put a deposit down on her first house.
The 25 year old laywer named Rachel has made €45k in compensation from the surgeries, in total she has given 36 eggs away to strangers.
Rachel was able to buy her dream home with the compensation she received and she plans on doing it all again. The 25 year old will complete her third donation later this year.
It is illegal to sell bodily fluids or parts in America but it is not illegal to receive compensation which Rachel received for her time, pain, suffering and the risks involve. Apparently egg donations and compensation is a big business in the US.
The donations aren’t regulated in the US but in the UK, this is limited per donation cycle.
Rachel tells Tyla: “The first time around the agency I was working with set the payment as I was really new to the process so I didn’t really know what to expect or ask for. So I received £9k [$12k] in compensation for my first donation where I donated 15 eggs.”
“I put this money straight into my savings as I knew I wanted to buy a house soon. I first donated in September 2019 and the couple has already had a baby, which is really successful. So, for my second donation, I increased my compensation rate to £14.5k [$20k].”
Rachel admits to being “nervous ” about increasing the payment, she says she “wasn’t sure if people would pay that much, but I was matched with a couple within a couple of weeks.”
“After having been a donor before it makes my profile more popular and desirable. It is also less risky as I know what to expect so I am less likely to back out. I put this money together with my first compensation payment and I was able to use it as a down payment on my dream home for my boyfriend and me.”
Rachel decided to start donating her eggs because she wanted to help people, “I thought that if I have something that can really help make other people’s lives better, especially as I am not interested in making use of my eggs for myself at the moment, then I should definitely go for it,” she says.
Rachel said she keeps in contact with the family who she donated her eggs to but she plays no role in their child’s life. “They’re such a happy family, I love hearing from them,” she says.
“I am a huge advocate of known donation, which means that the baby knows you from birth.”
