Egg retrieval — the finish line.

Before you go

Retrieval is scheduled 34–36 hours after the trigger shot. The clinic confirms the exact appointment time when giving the trigger instruction — those two pieces of information arrive together.

A few things that need to be in place before arriving:

Nothing to eat or drink for 8 hours before arrival. This is standard for any procedure under anesthesia. The nurse confirms the exact cutoff time when scheduling the retrieval.

An escort is required — no exceptions. Someone must physically come inside the clinic to sign discharge instructions and take the patient home. Walking alone or taking a rideshare unaccompanied is not permitted. This is mandated by NYU Langone Medical Center and the accrediting body. No escort means no retrieval, full stop.

No jewelry, makeup, or contact lenses. Come as you are. Small lockers are available for belongings.

No NSAIDs — no Advil, Motrin, Aleve, or any blood-thinning supplements throughout the treatment cycle and especially before retrieval. Tylenol only. This affects bleeding risk during the procedure.

The day, hour by hour

At NYU Langone, retrievals start at 7:30am and are scheduled every 20–30 minutes. The appointment time corresponds to the trigger shot time — 34–36 hours later. Here's how the day generally flows:

The procedure itself

The retrieval uses transvaginal ultrasound-guided aspirationA thin needle is passed through the vaginal wall into each follicle, guided by ultrasound imaging. Each follicle is aspirated — the fluid and egg inside drawn out — in a matter of seconds. — a needle passed through the vaginal wall into each follicle, guided by live ultrasound. Each follicle takes seconds. The whole procedure is typically 5–10 minutes.

Intravenous sedation means complete unconsciousness for the duration — this isn't light sedation or local anesthetic. There's no awareness of the procedure. Waking up in recovery is the next thing that happens after going under.

The embryology team evaluates the eggs immediately after retrieval. Mature eggs go through vitrificationUltra-rapid flash-freezing using cryoprotectants that prevent ice crystal formation. The standard method for egg freezing — significantly better survival rates than older slow-freeze methods. and are frozen within hours. A preliminary egg count is shared in recovery, but this reflects total eggs retrieved — not yet how many were mature or successfully frozen.

The egg count — and what it actually means

This is the number most people are building toward from the moment the cycle starts. It comes the day after retrieval, in a call from the lab. It's the number of mature eggs that were successfully frozen.

Understanding the funnel before that call arrives helps put the number in context:

Each step reduces the count. The final number is almost always lower than the follicle count seen during monitoring, and that's expected and normal. It's not a measure of whether the cycle succeeded or failed — it's information. What matters is what that number means in context of age, ovarian reserve, and goals — something the follow-up conversation with the physician covers.

After retrieval — what recovery looks like

Rest for the full day. No operating machinery, no walking alone for 6–8 hours, no plans. The escort stays for 12–24 hours post-discharge.

The days immediately after retrieval can be uncomfortable. Bloating — sometimes significant — is common as the ovaries, which have been enlarged throughout stimulation, begin to return to normal size. This typically peaks around Day 2–3 post-retrieval and improves by Day 4–5. Staying well-hydrated helps. Coconut water is specifically mentioned in the NYU Langone materials for electrolyte replenishment.

No high-impact exercise until after the first post-retrieval period — which arrives approximately one to two weeks after retrieval depending on which trigger shot was used. The ovarian torsion risk that existed during stimulation continues until the ovaries have returned to normal size. This isn't optional.

Tylenol is fine for discomfort. No NSAIDs. If pain is severe, bloating is rapidly worsening, or there's significant weight gain in a short period — contact the clinic. These can be signs of OHSSOvarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome — when the ovaries over-respond to stimulation. Mild OHSS post-retrieval is relatively common. Severe OHSS is rare but serious and requires medical attention..

Storage and what comes next

Frozen eggs are stored in liquid nitrogen at –180°C — onsite at NYU Langone or at their long-term partner CryoFuture in Palisades Park, NJ. They can remain stored indefinitely.

Within two weeks of the procedure, an account is created with Prelude Cryopreservation — NYU's billing partner for storage. A welcome email arrives with instructions to set up a profile and auto-pay for annual storage fees. First year of storage at NYU Langone is $1,250.

A post-retrieval follow-up with the physician happens within two weeks — by phone or at the clinic. This is the conversation about the cycle outcome, what the egg count means in context, and what the plan is going forward: whether to do another cycle, when to revisit, and what using the eggs would involve when the time comes.

There's no timeline pressure on the eggs themselves. The decision about if and when to use them can wait. What's stored stays stored until there's a reason to do something different with them.