Low ovarian reserve - what does it mean??

[Baby86]

I have been getting some tests done to see if i could be suitable as an egg donor, and everything came back fine except one thing. I apparently have a low ovarian reserve. I really didnt know what that meant, and was told that if i wanted more kids, to not leave it until i was 38...
Im 22, have had two children whom were both accidents, and am trying to figure out how now as i have googled information and it is freaking me out a little.
When I was chatting on the phone to the person telling me about my test results i asked if it was possible to have my own eggs frozen for my own future use if i dont meet my Mr Right in time and decide i do want more children. I was told they dont freeze well, and statistically 50% wouldnt survive the thawing process.
Am a little lost on what it all means for me. Help?

[Ritchie]

I was told that they suspected I may have a low ovarian reserve too. They suspect this if you have a high first day FSH level (over 10) - which basically means that your body has to secrete more of the hormone to get your follicles up and running.

People with a low follicle reserve have less eggs and are likely to have an early menopause. It also means that if you are going to do IVF - as I may have too :( - they will need to give you a higher dose of hormones which may result in quality issues with your eggs and increased symptoms.

This is my basic understanding anyway - hope it helps :)

[Baby86]

It helps. Anything anybody can tell me on it would help as I know very little.
I was told for me personally, that it didnt necessarily mean early menopause (but this wasnt ruled out).
Think I will have to get in touch with the clinic again to get some clarification of my results.
How does a higher dose of the drugs in IVF mess with the quality of eggs?
I guess I am at least lucky i have had 2 children, and as hard as im finding it, I do want more in the future, but I guess perhaps less of a gap than i would have otherwise planned.
Does anybody know if you have low reserve, when fertility really starts becoming an issue?

[MrsMiggins]

As a general rule, it's from the age of 35 that a woman's fertility starts a sharp decline. I'm not sure if that means yours would be earlier?

Having said that though, I have 2 friends (sisters) who had their first babies at 38 & 40 - both first month TTC, no problems. So even after the decline, whenever it may happen, that doesn't necessarily mean you will have problems conceiving.