Emma Rosenblum discusses the growing trend of professional women freezing their eggs in order to have children later in life, when they are more established in their careers and have more time to parent:
Imagine a world in which life isn’t dictated by a biological clock. If a 25-year-old banks her eggs and, at 35, is up for a huge promotion, she can go for it wholeheartedly without worrying about missing out on having a baby. She can also hold out for the man or woman of her dreams. Doctors hope that within the next 30 years the procedure will become a routine part of women’s health, and generous would-be grandparents will cover it as they would a first-mortgage down payment. “If you’re going to give your daughter a college graduation gift, what would you rather give her—a Honda or the chance to make a decision about when she’s ready to have a baby?” asks Dr. Geoffrey Sher, the medical director of the Sher Fertility Clinics, which has eight locations around the country and the Web address haveababy.com. And because it’s done before fertility issues arise, “the potential market for egg freezing is exponentially larger than that of in vitro fertilization,” he says.
Jessica Grose praises Rosenblum’s piece:
The reaction to the piece so far has largely been about the misleading coverline, which says “Freeze Your Eggs, Free Your Career.” “Solution to all of your problems, ladies,” Jezebel’s Erin Gloria Ryan tweeted this morning, “simply be rich enough to freeze your eggs.” But that’s really not what Rosenblum is arguing in the piece.
All of the women in her story wish they could have had kids earlier—it just wasn’t in the cards. And Rosenblum is careful to point out that freezing one’s eggs is a very expensive proposition: It can cost up to $12,000, not including storage fees. She also mentions two companies that are trying to democratize egg freezing, charging a $1,500 down payment and then $250 a month for the next 24 months, which Rosenblum describes as putting “eggs on layaway.” …
If we want more women to be able to have high-powered jobs and families, and if we want women to be able to raise children with partners, we should welcome this option. That egg-freezing technology has evolved and the practice has become less stigmatized is a very good thing.
The Dish 