What happens to a woman's eggs after she has her tubes tied?

What Actually Happens to Your Eggs After Tubal Ligation?

Getting your tubes tied—known medically as tubal ligation—is a permanent form of contraception, but it often leads to a common misconception: what happens to the eggs your body continues to produce?

The short answer is that your ovaries keep working normally. Having your tubes tied blocks or seals the fallopian tubes, which prevents sperm from meeting an egg. However, it does not alter your hormonal balance or stop your monthly cycle. Unless you are entering menopause or have an underlying reproductive issue, you will continue to ovulate every single month.

Each month, an egg matures and is released by an ovary just like before. Since the path through the fallopian tube is blocked, the released egg simply dissolves and is harmlessly absorbed by your body within a day or two. The process is completely natural and goes entirely unnoticed.

Because tubal ligation does not damage egg quality or ovarian function, your eggs remain perfectly healthy. In fact, women who have had their tubes tied can often still donate their eggs or undergo IVF procedures, as doctors retrieve the eggs directly from the ovaries prior to ovulation.