Why I Chose to Wait on Family - And the Tough Choice I Made

Australian Boxing Champion Takes Control of Her Future with Egg Freezing

Australian boxing champion Ruby Singh has taken a significant step in her personal life by deciding to freeze her eggs. This decision comes as she balances her career ambitions with her long-term goals of starting a family. At just over 30 years old and ranked among the world’s top 10 boxers, Singh is currently preparing for her next big challenge: chasing a world title in the United States.

Singh recently won the WBC Asia Championship belt in April, marking a major milestone in her career. However, she also made time to complete an egg-freezing cycle at Adora Fertility in Australia. This move was not only about securing her future but also about alleviating the pressure many women in their 30s feel regarding the biological clock.

"I always had it at the back of my mind," Singh shared. "In my early 30s, I started thinking about it but didn’t take action because I was traveling a lot."

The decision to freeze her eggs came after watching comedian Andrew Schultz's Netflix special Life, which discussed IVF and egg freezing. After finishing her recent fight, Singh realized she had a few months at home before heading back to the U.S. for training. She felt it was the perfect time to take this important step.

Singh chose to undergo the procedure in Australia rather than interrupt her training schedule overseas. "Australia is the best place to do it out of everywhere I've been in terms of affordability and support," she explained. "I knew I'd be deep into a training camp overseas, and once you get the momentum going, you can't pause for a few months to go egg freeze and then restart the process."

She emphasized that the timing was crucial for both her career and personal life. "It's a valuable time for me and my boxing career. I can't afford to just pause halfway. So I thought, before I even start that journey of training for a world title, I would freeze my eggs."

Singh dreams of one day having four or five children, and the decision has brought her peace of mind. "I don't have to think about my biological clock when I'm focused on fighting someone. It gives me a little more control," she said. "I'm egg banking right now, so I'm doing a few sessions so I have enough by the time I'm ready to have kids."

Raised in a traditional Indian-Australian family where marriage and children often define success, Singh’s choice to become a professional boxer was not always embraced. While her parents now cheer her on from the sidelines, they still ask when she will settle down. Initially, her mother questioned why she hadn’t just gotten married. Singh responded by explaining that finding a husband and having kids wasn’t as simple as picking them off a shelf.

Her message to other women considering egg freezing is straightforward: start planning. "You don't have to go ahead with it yet, but find a clinic and start thinking about it so you can write it on your to-do list," she advised. "Then you have an idea of the price and everything, and once you're ready to go and you have the funds, you don't have to spend months searching for a clinic or waiting on tests."

Egg-freezing is becoming increasingly common in Australia, with nearly 7,000 procedures carried out in 2022—nearly double the number recorded in 2020. Dr. Charley Zheng, a fertility specialist at Adora Fertility, noted a 20% increase in women freezing eggs over the past two to three years. He encourages women aged 35 to 37 or younger who have the opportunity to consider the procedure.

"Egg freezing is future-proofing," Dr. Zheng said. "It allows social circumstances, like dating and finding a compatible partner, to run its course."