Montreal woman speaks out after 'dehumanizing' egg retrieval with the MUHC

A woman who froze her eggs with the MUHC Reproductive Centre is speaking out about her experience, describing it as 'a nightmare that just doesn't end.'

In 2021, Esther Viragh made a big life decision.

"At the time, I was turning 36, and I was beginning to worry that I wasn't going to find a partner I could settle down with and have a family with," Viragh, now 38, told CTV News. "Being as pragmatic as I am, I decided to just go for it and freeze my eggs and to buy myself a couple of more years."

Viragh made the arrangements through the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) Reproductive Centre.

On paper, the procedure was a success. But Viragh describes her experience at the clinic as "dehumanizing," "excruciating," and "baffling."

Three years and $13,000 later, she's calling on the MUHC to improve its communication with patients and its sensitivity training for practitioners, hoping to ignite a conversation about women's health, compassionate care, and vaginal pain.

Six years ago, Viragh was diagnosed with primary vaginismus and provoked vulvodynia. The former causes intense pain during vaginal penetration, while the latter causes pain at the entrance of the vagina, i.e. the vulva.

Viragh knew her conditions might make the egg-retrieval procedure, which is performed vaginally, more uncomfortable.