Natalie Hart conceived her son Jenson via an egg donor. Since then, Natalie has forged a path to guide and support women & Intended parents create their own families via egg donation. Forming a community support network – The Donor Egg Companion Club.
Natalie is the author of a wonderful children’s illustrated book. The book supports parents & their children to navigate the conversation and bring understanding around donor conception.
This month Growing Families features Natalie Hart, a mum via egg donor to assist build her family. Here is her story:
How long did you try IVF with your own eggs?
With only 1% of my eggs left, there was limited time to try with my own eggs. I was lucky enough that my FS allowed me to try IVF to remove the “what if” from my head. With 2 cancelled rounds and basically 0 response from my eggs. I could have tried a 3rd cycle but I knew deep in my heart that there was no point. These 2 rounds were over a period of 3 months.
When did you eventually realise you might need to consider Egg Donation as your path to parenthood?
After the 2 cancelled rounds, I knew that the only way to have my family was via donor egg. Hearing I needed donor eggs didn’t scare me. I just needed to educate myself about how it was all going to work.
Was there a period of grief & did you seek counseling to talk you through the grief?
Once the 2nd round of IVF was cancelled, and I needed donor eggs, I knew I needed time to heal. I took 6 months off and didn’t look at anything donor egg related. After a trip to Vietnam, it was then that we were ready to start looking into options for going overseas.
Whilst I didn’t have any professional counselling I did have support from my family and friends. I still wanted to have a child and be a mum, donor eggs was the way for it to happen. Then I was going to make it happen.
Did you initially consider seeking a local ED?
After the 2 cancelled rounds of IVF with my own eggs. My Fertility Specialist advise if I knew someone younger than me (like a family member etc) locally. Otherwise, we were advised to go straight overseas and look for a donor there.
Your beautiful children’s book series – (The Journey to You) have been so incredibly well received within the Donor Egg community. When did you decide to go down the path of creating a book?
Jenson was just about to turn 3 when I started researching for books about donor conception. Most of the books I had purchased were not that exciting to read and just didn’t hit the mark for me. During lockdown, I started to write down a few words that turned into a poem. Sent it off to a few friends who thought I had found it on the internet! With a few edits and a fabulous illustrator – The Journey to You Children’s Books were born. I still think I totally whinged it – but I am extremely happy to be helping so many families have the conversation around donor conception!
Hear from Natalie Hart herself at the Growing Families Egg Donor Webinar – Learn More and Reserve Your Spot.
