Auckland woman Hayley Carville will today have her first doctor's appointment as she moves to freeze her eggs for future fertility. Photo / Michael Craig
Auckland woman Hayley Carville will today have her first doctor's appointment as she moves to freeze her eggs for future fertility. Photo / Michael Craig
Auckland woman Hayley Carville talks to Katie Harris about her plans to freeze her eggs. Today she will have her first appointment.
Going alone to a fertility clinic appointment is not what Hayley Carville thought 33 would look like.
Having achieved the “Christchurch package” – house, dog and husband– in her 20s, Carville thought children were next, but a “life-shattering” breakup put her baby plans on hold.
Now, having rebuilt her life as a saleswoman in a new city, Carville is exploring the option of getting her eggs frozen to shore up her fertility.
“I hope that [egg-freezing] will make me feel more relaxed about my life now, so I can enjoy where I’m at, and not feel rushed, and feel like I might still be able to have that future [motherhood] that I always dreamed of.”
Today, Hayley Carville will have her first fertility appointment, hoping to soon freeze her eggs.
This afternoon, Carville will discover the result of her Anti-Mullerian Hormone (AMH) test at private fertility clinic Fertility Associates in Auckland.
The test helps estimate a person’s ovarian reserves. A lower figure indicates fewer eggs. Carville hopes the result is high enough for her to continue to the next step in the process.
“It might not be viable for me to go down the process of freezing my eggs. So yeah, there’s definitely nerves around that. I’m hoping I haven’t left it too late.”
Hayley Carville wants to share her egg-freezing experience to help others. Photo / Michael Craig
Egg-freezing for future fertility was introduced in New Zealand in 2003 and has grown rapidly in popularity since then.
Fertility Associates charges $13,130 for a first egg-freezing cycle, not including the cost of the initial consultation or the anaesthetist.
Storage fees for the frozen eggs vary, depending on how long the eggs are on ice. For example, 12 months costs $460 and five years $1290.
In New Zealand, women who want to keep their eggs frozen beyond the 10-year legal limit need to get national ethics committee approval.
There are practical uncertainties too for Carville. Will Friday night drinks still be on the table during the egg-retrieval process? Will she even get that far? She’s not sure yet.
“As a single woman in your 30s in a new city, you want to be out there having fun and sometimes that means cocktails on the rooftop, and I think this will be a sacrifice I need to make for a little bit, but in the end it’ll be hopefully worth it.”
Several clinics in Aotearoa offer egg freezing, including Repromed, Fertility Plus and Fertility Associates.
Access to publicly funded sperm and egg freezing is available to those with medical infertility.
If the result from Carville’s AMH test is promising this afternoon, the next steps are the same as for a standard IVF cycle – except the eggs will not be fertilised.
Patients go on medication that helps control when ovulation takes place, then they are given a “trigger injection” ahead of a clinic appointment where – all going to plan – the eggs are retrieved.
Carville doesn’t know what to expect, but says the thought of freezing her eggs brings her comfort.
“It feels empowering.”
Hayley Carville hopes by sharing her journey others feel less alone.
A best-case scenario would be meeting a long-term partner and not ever needing to use her frozen eggs, she said.
The worst-case scenario for her would be never having a child.
Carville has decided to share all the milestones in her journey with the Herald because she wants other women in the same position as her to feel less alone.
“I just really relate to their fears and not knowing what’s going to come when you’re single in your 30s and you just don’t know what your fertility is like or who you’re gonna meet.”
This is the first piece in a series of written and visual stories about Carville’s egg freezing experience.
Katie Harris is an Auckland-based journalist who covers issues including sexual assault, workplace misconduct, media, crime and justice. She joined the Herald in 2020.
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