While egg donation is illegal in this country, I was always under the naïve impression that if legal, it would be an altruistic act where compensation was not the main motivation as the participation in giving the miracle of life to another, trumps all else.
Having been through fertility treatment to conceive my child, I have first hand knowledge of how the fertility drugs wreak havoc on your system – nagging pelvic cramps, bloating (I’ve felt like a beach ball more often than I care to remember), mood swings (my silently suffering husband still has occasional nightmares), pounding headaches, and weight gain (I imagined my weighing scale about to pop a spring or two). I went through this pill-popping, needle-jabbing stage so that I could hatch more eggs to increase my chances of pregnancy.
By subjecting myself to poking and prodding, fertility drugs, and countless painful ultrasounds, I gave Mother Nature a nudge and eventually a high five and a little dance of joy when I finally fell pregnant.
But the question here is, would you subject your body to all this “trauma” just to buy branded bags and smart phones? That’s why I was totally baffled when I read about women actually willing to sell their eggs for money.
Why in the world would you want to stimulate your ovaries and subject yourself to unimaginable hormone imbalances, just to carry that handmade leather tote or have a conversation with smart Simon Siri.
To make matters worse, it is doubtful if these women are even aware that donating eggs in Malaysia is illegal. This opens up another can of worms. Who are the middlemen, who are the doctors who perform the egg harvesting, what happens to the retrieved eggs, who are the recipients, is there aftercare for the donors? The list of questions is endless.
In my overactive mind, I have visions of “egg recruiters” in trench coats, fedora hats and shades of course, lurking in the fringes of campuses, handing out “get rich quick” pamphlets. They target girls with dumb phones, not smart phones, and cheap brand-less bags, knowing all too well these gullible girls desire more fancy stuff. After all, they are not selling their body, or are they?
But in comparison, egg donation in the US is legal. In fact it is considered an act of giving life.
According to an internationally experienced egg donor agency in the US, “donors are compensated generously for their time and effort” and their recipients are assured that whatever payments they make to the donor are not inappropriate compensations.
It further states that an egg donor compensation pay rate ranges from US$6,500 to US$15,000. In addition to the compensation paid to the egg donor, all related expenses, including an airline ticket, hotel, and ground transportation, is paid for by the recipient. For the retrieval trip, the donor will be allowed to bring a companion, whose expenses will also be covered.
Throughout this particular company’s website, it stresses that the compensation is for the time, effort and dedication given by the donor.
Not here in Malaysia it seems.
Though it is commendable that these women are exhibiting entrepreneurial skills (in a bizarre way), they seem to lack an understanding of their responsibility to the law and themselves. Have they even thought of the short and long term side–effects? Do they have any legal redress should something go awry?
For you women who just want to look good in designer wear, you are clearly being cheated. You are cheating yourself as well and most of all, your precious body.
Please don’t put all your eggs in one basket, for Hermès sake.