Maija`s story about donating: For the recipient, it’s the most important thing in the world

I just turned 34, I don’t have children, and they’re not currently in my plans either. Instead, I’m considering if I should go donate eggs once more.

I heard a story of an acquaintance of mine that had donated eggs, and the idea of donation stuck with me. Some time after that, my friend told me about a couple they knew, where the woman had started menopause in her thirties and needed donor eggs to have a child. That’s when I finally decided to go donate. Later, I found out that the couple had two children from the donated eggs, which made me really happy.

I had talked about donation with a colleague at work, and we decided to donate at the same time. We wanted to help because we had the opportunity. I’m a nurse by profession, and I administer injections to people as part of my job, but self-injection was admittedly a bit strange. Maybe my background also contributed to the fact that donation has been, in a way, “just one procedure” among others, and the purpose of those procedures has been to help other people. I’ve always thought about the whole thing more from a clinical perspective than from an emotional one.

It was also motivating for me to get a comprehensive health check as part of the donation. My own genetic issues, fertility, and health were quite thoroughly examined, and it was nice to hear that many things were in really good shape. So, I went to donate with my colleague, and inspired by us, a third colleague also went to donate. I’ve donated twice now, and indeed, a third time is still under consideration.

It has been even bewildering how both acquaintances and strangers have emotionally thanked me for donating eggs and emphasized its significance, when I personally have not approached the matter with such emotional weight. But it’s completely understandable that for the recipients, it’s their most emotional and significant thing. It was really difficult to accept the first unexpected compliments, but they also greatly opened up the emotional aspect of the matter for me.

As advice, I might say that when considering your own donation timing, it’s good to take into account that there’s a period going on when the meetings related to donation can be easily fitted into your schedule. In my case, shift work required a bit of adjustment from both sides. Otherwise, the donation process didn’t affect my daily life much. And jumping around was prohibited just before the operation, so I took it easy in boxing classes. So, it was quite easy once I had made the decision to donate.

Maija Kalliola, donor