Pandemic Halts Family Planning As More Women Freeze Their Eggs: 'It Is Frustrating'
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — There was a lot of talk about a pandemic baby boom with couples stuck at home during the lockdown.
While we're still waiting to see an uptick in babies, we are seeing an uptick in eggs. More women are freezing their eggs during the pandemic.
Bao Xiong planned every part of her growing family until the pandemic.
"It is frustrating. We had the perfect plan. Once my son turned one, we were going to start the cycle and that's what happened," said Bao.
Bao planned a little sister for her son. She and her husband have a frozen embryo ready to be implanted, but they're holding off over fears of COVID-19.
"Oh very disappointing. We never thought it was going to put our family on hold," said her husband, Xeng Vang.
"Their embryos aren't going anywhere and so they can then decide whether or not they want to thaw their embryos tomorrow or six months from now when the world is hopefully back to normal," said Dr. Michael Murray, Medical Director of the Northern California Fertility Medical Center.
Dr. Murray tells CBS13 not only are couples holding off on thawing their embryos, but he's also seeing an uptick in women freezing their eggs during the pandemic.
"Whether or not that's due to the pandemic or whether or not it's due to the fact that it's very difficult to start a new relationship during a pandemic. They'd rather freeze their eggs than wait another year," said Dr. Murray.
So life is on hold until they reach that light at the end of the tunnel.
"I am praying to get a vaccine as soon as a vaccine is available. I will be 34 next year in February and I really don't want to wait any longer," said Bao.
The baby boom we expected could actually be right around the corner.
Dr. Murray says the phone has been ringing off the hook since the vaccine came out. They had to add office hours and their backlog still jumped from a few weeks to three months as couples are ready to start their family planning again.
