Egg donation is an incredible, life-changing gift. So what makes a woman decide to undergo treatment and give her eggs to a stranger? And what's it like to have a baby thanks to a donor? SALLY CHURCHWARD finds out.

LORRAINE Clarke was inspired by her close friend's family to sign up as an egg donor.

It wasn't something the mother of two had even thought about before she saw the joy that an anonymous egg donor had brought to her friend Louise Elkins.

"She told me about the process and I just thought 'it's such a small thing for me to do and it could make a couple happy and give them their ultimate wish'," she says.

"I thought 'I've completed my family, so why not?'," she adds, matter-of-factly.

"I started thinking about it after Louise had her first child and thought I'd consider it in the future.

"Then, after I'd had my second child, I 'd completed my family, so I thought 'I might as well make use of something that's just getting flushed down the toilet each month!'"

Lorraine, a nanny from Romsey, says she never had any reservations about donating her eggs, but that her husband did voice concerns.

The law changed in 2005, meaning a child born via egg or sperm donation can access detailed information about their biological parent at the age of 18.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, although the number of donor didn't collapse after this change, as feared, the number of new donors registering did drop.

But this didn't put Lorraine off.

"My husband was a bit worried about what would happen if the child came to find me in 18 years time," she says.

"He wondered what sort of relationship I would want. But it takes a lot more to be a mother than to supply an egg. To be a mum, you have to raise that child.

"I just kept thinking about how happy it's made my friend and how complete her life is now."

She adds: "I had to convince my husband but the rest of my family were really supportive from the outset.

"I have people in my family who haven't been able to have children due to unexplained infertility, so when I told them what I was doing, they said they wished that option had been available for them when they had wanted children."

Lorraine felt it was important to explain what she was doing to her children, so that there are no surprises for anyone in the future.

"I told my children in very simple terms that 'Mummy is going to try to help another lady to have a baby and it may or may not work'.

"My daughter said 'is it your seed, Mummy?' She was mostly interested in going to Paulton's Park after they'd done some of the scans!

"My youngest is almost three, so he doesn't quite understand.

"If a successful pregnancy does come out of it and they did find me, I wouldn't try to hide it. If I've helped someone, why should it be a secret?"

Lorraine adds that although she hasn't thought much about a donor egg child contacting her, she wouldn't mind if they did.

"I'd be more than happy if they wanted to find me, because a lot of people want to know where they've stemmed from," she says.

"I think a child has every right to find out who their biological parents are.

"I wouldn't see myself as their mother - I'm just a donor. But if a child turned up, we could have a relationship if they wanted it and it felt right."

Unlike sperm donation, egg donation is a significant physical commitment for women.

Donors can't be paid in this country, but can receive £750 in expenses.

Lorraine had a range of medical tests including a scan to ensure that she had enough eggs in case she decided she did want more children in future.

She then began injecting daily hormones to stop her ovulating but keep her eggs, followed by a trigger injection to release them before she was sedated for egg removal.

Eight eggs were extracted, four of which became fertilised.

She will be told if they a if a child is born, although she has not heard anything yet.

She can also be told roughly when it was born and its sex.

"I want to be told because I'd like to let my children know, so that one day, if there is a knock at the door, it won't be a surprise.

"I want to to be able to say them that they have a half-brother or sister out there somewhere. I think it's important to remain honest with them. I wouldn't want them to resent me in years to come for something I'd done that I'd thought was special."

She agrees that it was a significant commitment, but adds that it was one that she was more than happy to make.

"It's a small price to pay for the chance to make someone happy," she says.

"I think 'what would I have done if I couldn't have had my two children?' They mean the world to me, so why not give someone else that chance?"

Lorraine says she would definitely consider donating her eggs again, particularly if the couple who received her eggs previously had a successful pregnancy and wanted another child.

She adds that generally tries to be generous and help people out.

"It didn't cost me anything to do this. Yes you can give to charity and help people, but ultimately, giving a potential mummy a chance is something which I hope someone else would have done for me, if I'd needed it.

"I'm 100 per cent glad I did it."

Louise Elkins knew since she was a teenager that she wouldn't be able to conceive naturally.

Having started her periods at the age of 14, she began going through the menopause at 15.

"I was told that I'd only be able to have a baby through egg donation but I was very young so I didn't really care," says the 42-year-old from Shirley.

"It never really got me down because I knew from when I was so young.

She met her partner, John Everett, when she was 35 and she was keen to try egg donation when they wanted to have a child.

"I knew my womb was fit and healthy," she says.

"We would have considered adopting otherwise but I wanted to carry my babies - they still grew inside me - and to have newborns.

"I definitely think carrying them helped me to bond - you can feel them growing inside you and it's your body that's nourishing them."

Louise and John have had two children thanks to egg donation - Zachary, 5, and Libby, who is 19 months old.

Louise says she would be happy if her children decided to meet their egg donors in the future and has been honest about their backgrounds.

"I tried telling Zac where he came from but he wasn't interested," she says.

"He's more interested in having a biscuit or the toy he's playing with. I've got some books to help explain it.

"I've always been open and told people about using egg donation and people have been very supportive.

"The children look like their dad but they're like me and they're definitely my children," she adds.

"My message to any donors is 'thanks so much'.

"I was so grateful to be able to carry my children - it was an amazing thing to be able to do."