What to Expect During Your Egg Donation Psychological Screening

Egg donation psychological screenings are a crucial part of the donor application and qualification process. Psychological screenings, in addition to genetic and medical screenings, ensure that egg donors are good candidates who are mentally and physically prepared for the donation process. Egg donation psychological screening also ensures that the intended child conceived will have the best chance at a happy, healthy life.

Keep reading for how the egg donation psychological screening works and what to expect during the screening process.

Why Is An Egg Donation Psychological Screening Required?

Recommended By American Society For Reproductive Medicine (ASRM)

The American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) sets the standard guidelines for egg and sperm donation.

All reputable, successful egg donation facilities follow the guidelines set forth by ASRM, which recommends a thorough genetic, medical, and psychological screening of both egg and sperm donors. ASRM also provides exclusionary criteria to ensure that recipients of donor eggs egg recipients are getting the healthiest eggs possible.

Donors who have never received an evaluation and returning donors who have not been evaluated in over 24 months should undergo a psychological screening.

ASRM breaks the screening into several components, recommending that facilities screen potential donors for the following:

• Motivation to donate
• Current mental stability
• Understanding the potential consequences of donating eggs
• Identifying disqualifiers

Motivation For Donation

During the screening, a licensed mental health practitioner will determine why you are interested in donating your eggs. They will look for evidence of coercion by someone else, especially financial and emotional coercion.

Egg donation by coercion is non-consensual and therefore automatically disqualifies a potential donor. Donating without being fully invested can be psychologically damaging, and no reputable facility would engage in this practice.

Mental Stability Throughout The Donation Process

While donating eggs is not a lengthy process, it requires some mental commitment and resiliency.

You need resilience because egg donation medications are hormonal and may cause mood changes. These changes are generally mild for individuals in good mental health. However, people with extreme emotional instability may suffer from serious mood swings. Injections and appointments can be stressful for donors, and those who are currently dealing with extreme stressors without coping skills will not have the resiliency needed to complete the donation process.

Also, while medical injections, egg retrieval, and recovery are straightforward, potential donors have to remember to complete necessary evaluations, administer injections, and make it to appointments. For individuals with mental health problems, such as ADHD, this can be difficult.

In fact, while individuals with mild ADHD are usually eligible for egg donation, ASRM does not recommend individuals with severe ADHD attempt to donate eggs. Those with severe ADHD often miss medication doses and may miss appointments, which lowers the effectiveness of the donation process.

Understanding Future Implications Of Donating

There are several potential future implications of donating eggs, including:

• A potential loss of anonymity depending on what information is released and to whom. There are two separate types of egg donation: open ID and closed ID. Open ID means that if an intended child is born and turns 18, they can reach out to a third party for a request of information. However with closed ID, they cannot.
• The potential for future biological offspring to attempt to contact donors via DNA websites, social media, etc.
• The potential for donations to go to specific types of families or multiple families without your direct knowledge
• Communication with future partners (e.g., informing them of your donation or omitting this information)

There is also a slight chance of short-term or long-term emotional or physical effects of donating. In accordance with ASRM guidelines, egg donors are thoroughly educated about these potential implications. This ensures that donors are confident about their decision before starting the donation process.

Related: If you’re not sure whether you want your donation to be anonymous or you want to give identifying/contact information to families and children born as a result of your donation, read our post on anonymous vs. full disclosure donations.

Identifying Potential Disqualifiers

Many mental health disorders are genetic, at least in part. Disorders like substance abuse disorder and anxiety disorders are a result of both genetic abnormalities and environmental factors. Those abnormalities, or genetic mutations, are hereditary, meaning that donors can pass those mutations on to an egg.

While no one can predict a child’s environmental circumstances later on in life, a psychological screening of an egg (and sperm) donor and a donor’s family history can determine whether the child may be genetically predisposed to a mental health disorder. Family histories typically include siblings, parents, and grandparents.

To reduce the likelihood of a child suffering from a psychological disorder later on, potential donors with a personal or family history of serious mental illness are usually excluded, as recommended by ASRM.

Serious mental illnesses typically include (but are not limited to):

• Bipolar disorder
• Schizophrenia
• Schizoaffective disorder
• Major depression

Note: Different facilities may have different personal and family history requirements. For example, some facilities, such as The World Egg and Sperm Bank, require potential donors to have no history of substance abuse, while others may only require individuals to have abstained from substances for at least six months.

What To Expect During the Egg Donation Psychological Screening Process

The egg donation screening process will vary slightly between different egg banks. In general, you can expect the following:

• 1-on-1 consultation with a licensed mental health practitioner
• An extensive questionnaire that includes questions about your personal mental health, any current stressors, and mental illnesses in your family
• Counseling on the egg donation process so that you understand the expectations of preparing your body and mind for egg retrieval

During your consultation, the practitioner will most likely be particularly interested in the following:

• Situational experiences of depression, anxiety, substance abuse, etc.
• Current life stressors and coping techniques
• Diagnosis of OCD, eating disorders, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, personality disorders, and other major mental illnesses
• Whether mental health disorders such as ADHD affect your daily functioning
• Previous suicide attempts
• Current or previous psychiatric interventions
• Current or previous use of psychoactive medications such as antidepressants, mood stabilizers, and sleeping pills
• Educational background and work history
• Interpersonal relationships
• Sexual history
• Legal history
• Current financial stability
• History of abuse or neglect

Note: While taking medications like antidepressants in the past will not automatically disqualify you from donating eggs, current donors cannot take antidepressants during the donation process. This is because antidepressants may affect the effectiveness of fertility medications.

Donating Eggs At The World Egg And Sperm Bank

At The World Egg and Sperm Bank, potential donors can expect a 1-hour consultation with a psychologist, a questionnaire based on mental disorders, and ongoing education about the process to be sure they understand what to expect.

If you are interested in donating your eggs and think you would be a good candidate, contact The World Egg and Sperm Bank to initiate the preliminary donor screening with no financial commitment on your part! Not sure whether you’d qualify for egg donation? Read our posts about the requirements to donate eggs and signs that you’d make a great egg donor.

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