Psycho-emotional acceptance in couple and single women who choose to undergo IVF treatment with donor eggs.

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New family configurations are emerging concurrently with improved assisted reproduction techniques, including the use of donated gametes. Most indications for treatment when using donated eggs are caused by an age-related decrease in reproductive capacity. We evaluated the emotional state regarding accepting egg donation in participants who chose this option for in vitro fertilization cycles. This is a retrospective, Brazilian cohort study, based on data collected from sixty psychological counseling sessions with participants that opted to be enrolled in an egg donation program. A single professional conducted semi-structured psychological counselling sessions. The data were analyzed using a thematic analysis as the qualitative methodology. Two years after the psychological counseling sessions, participants were contacted to obtain information about their outcomes. Of 60 sessions, 19 (32%) were classified as involving participants with positive emotional state (group 1), 14 (23%) with unfavorable emotional state (group 2), and 27 (45%) without evident classification (group 3). Three couples did not undergo treatment until two years after the psychological counselling session and the other couples underwent treatment in a period ranging from 1-8 months after the session. This is the first study in the Brazilian population regarding the acceptance of egg donation. The process of acceptance of infertility and the impossibility to have a biological child is fundamental to gradually accepting a new way of becoming a parent. Psychological counseling can contribute to reflecting on the use of donated eggs, exploring its emotional implications and identifying the need for psychotherapeutic work to address conflict and suffering.