My Visit to IVF (Test Tube Baby) Center

What is IVF ?

In vitro fertilization (IVF) is a process by which an egg is fertilized by sperm outside the body: in vitro (in glass). The process involves monitoring and stimulating a woman’s ovulatory process, removing an ovum or ova (egg or eggs) from the woman’s ovaries and letting sperm fertilize them in a liquid in a laboratory. The fertilized egg (zygote) is cultured for 2–6 days in a growth medium and is then implanted in the same or another woman’s uterus, with the intention of establishing a successful pregnancy.

Well, that is to say, a test tube baby center.

I was visiting a friend, who was working at a Hospital. I didn’t know what her profile was, we were in school together and didn’t have much contact after that. We got in touch after college and that’s when we used to talk on calls. One day, when I was returning home from my job city, she asked me to come down to the hospital as it was near to the Railway Station. So I went to meet in the evening, when I arrived to my home city.

I reach the hospital and wait at the reception. There comes my amazing friend, in a commanding walk, signals me with her eyes to wait for a moment and goes to the office boy and talks something. Then she turns towards me, smiles and asks how am I. We talk a bit and then she asks me to follow her.

We go to the floor where she used to work. She told me to wait outside a chamber, I was already nausea with the smell of the hospital. I was standing outside the chamber and towards the right side was an Operation Theater. I was like, should I have even come to meet her here ! As I was in my thoughts, she opens the chamber, asks me to come in. It was an airlock room. I was asked to change my shoes into some slippers, they had for visitors. I kept my bag on the table and followed her. We passed by another door and reached the spot. The Laboratory !

Yeah man, that was a Laboratory ! I put one step in the room and a strong odor hit my head within milliseconds, following my nose. If you could see the aroma, it was very dense and strong. I was like, how are you even working here. She said, what ? I said nothing. That was the smell of collection of ‘semen’. It was very strong ! Then she takes me through the tour of the Lab.

There was a computer, a centrifugal machine, few other equipment which were used for calibration, reading, lot of samples, beakers, petri-dish, isolators and many other things. It was fully flawless room. I wanted to understand it very clearly, but I was nausea and the odour numbed my sense. I was listening to her as she told me the entire process and explained me how they carried out the operation and the entire task of test-tube baby. She also told me lot of achievements, they had on their walls and also how international customers visit them. I was just listening. I asked couple of questions and then I told, let’s go out. It is suffocating in here.

We went downstairs. We discussed about school, her college life, her perseverance and her job. How she had changed from a simple, silent girl to a bold, amazing, dominating and confident doctor. We had some juice. I thanked her for the tour and left for home.

So – IVF is test tube baby center. What they do is an amazing job. No one knows the difficulties of working in a closed chamber surrounded by the smell of semen, strong enough to make you faint.

They bless couples who suffer with medical issues. ( I recalled this episode after I blogged about Social Dilemma – A Man whose Wife Can’t Conceive

What do you think of it ? Is IVF a blessing or curse ?

My Visit to Another Friend – Part 1 and Part 2