Kindbody

tl;dr The Kindbody staff and clinic director is very helpful, however, Dr. Cain is the absolute least professional doctor I have ever encountered and would tell anyone trying to learn about their fertility to steer clear. I went to Kindbody hoping to learn about the egg freezing process and potential surrogacy down the road. The staff and nurses that helped me were friendly and prompt and made the experience easy. Once I got in the room with Dr. Cain it was a completely different story. We sat down and I explained that I was looking to have my eggs frozen for surrogacy down the line as my husband and I were looking towards family planning several years out. The entire session she had her computer open and was looking at message notifications she was getting. She shared with me a little about what my options were, a very very high-level review of what egg freezing process was like, and made a few notes on a handout that summarized egg freezing. I then asked a question about insurance and coverage. (Some background, I had previously called my insurance company asking about coverage and they said that depending on the code the doctor inputs, my procedure may be covered.) With this knowledge, I asked Dr. Cain what code she might put me under. She then went on to tell me how she "wasn't going to lie" and that she doesn't handle anything with financing. I was immediately taken aback as I had made no mention of lying and was trying to understand more about insurance coverage. I understand that the doctor may not be the right person to speak to about financing or insurance, which she could have stated without accusing me of asking to lie. She then said she wanted to have me get some bloodwork done, I asked her what the cost of that was and she said "it is a standard lab test that insurance will cover". I got my blood taken and left with no next steps, no timeline, and not feeling good about my experience. I ended up speaking with the clinic director to share my negative experience and she was understanding and apologetic and offered to put me with the clinics other doctor. I called a week later asking about my results and a very nice nurse practitioner spoke with me for over an hour explaining the actual egg freezing process (the timeline, medications, what to expect from my body, pain level, etc) All of which Dr. Cain never even touched on. After that call, I felt a little better about the experience and was still considering moving forward with Kindbody. That is until I received a separate bill from the lab that did my bloodwork that Dr. Cain said "would be covered by insurance". When I called the clinic director to ask about this charge she said that Dr. Cain should not have said that and she apologized for the miscommunication but she was unable to remove the charge because the bill came from the lab. That ended up being my tipping point of not moving forward with Kindbody.

Do not consider Dr. Cain a viable option for your fertility care. She has no redeeming qualities as a medical professional.

I received no strategies or protocols from Dr. Cain as she did not follow up or show interest in treating me.

Dr. Brown is honest, at times it can be a lot of information to receive. Dr. Brown will take my lead, am I in a position today, emotionally, to dig into all the possibilities or do I need her to focus on the one path we are on right now? Once I learned to set my boundaries and advocate for what type of care I wanted, Dr. Brown has been amazing. First I had to get past the fear and anxiety of every conversation, but that was more with me that Dr. Brown. She has never been cold. She is warm and empathetic and might want me to have a baby even more that I do! She has been my partner in my journey before I had one and I now our coach as we navigate our fertility journey together.

Be clear is what you want and ask every question you have.

I have DOR, so we did multiple rounds of egg retrievals in an attempt to preserve my fertility. We did high dose cycles to try to stimulate multiple follicle growth but my body was not receptive and the high dose vs low dose protocol did not change the outcomes.

Cost isn't always clear and everything seems to be unsure if there is coverage. There are no clear answers and so much of that research has been on me as the patient to call my insurance company with the codes to determine cost and coverage.

She is a fast talker (I’m a fast talker, but wow) who speaks as if you are also a doctor and / or gone through this experience multiple times. She frequently stated contradictory things on callas and then messages. She did not feel like she was actively engaged in my specific case. She often called me and asked ME what medications she had prescribed me. She missed multiple phone call appts as well without acknowledging until I reached out.

Ask everything on the phone and follow up with a message to ensure she isn’t changing her mind. Take it upon yourself to check with the nursing staff on things as she often does not relay.

Clomid + injectable IUI due to PCOS

Roughly $4,000

I expected to retrieve more eggs since I had PCOS and 50-60 follicles. But probably better they took the more conservative approach to my treatment to avoid potential symptoms of OHSS and I literally felt my stomach was going to burst from being distended due to the stimulation (ha). She explained a minor complication when going in and why the retrieval took slightly longer than expected. Overall great and patient doctor. I would use them again if needed.

She is highly responsive. Contact her and message her through the portal anytime.

Due to my PCOS, conservative dosages Follistim (75 then 50 iud), Menopur (one vial), Ganirelix the week toward the end , both a Lupron and Pregnyl trigger shot (I messed up the dosage of my Pregnyl and called the clinic who saw me for a last minute appointment - all worked out in the end )

Generally runs on time. They have early morning appointments which you can also schedule online.

There was a discount code at the time I enrolled. Very affordable compared to other clinics. Believe $5500 for treatment $2500 for meds

Dr. Browne performed my first round of egg freezing when I was 29. My AMH was quite high, around 9, which put me at risk for OHSS. Dr. Browne explained how my treatment would be tailored so that I would be at a minimal risk of OHSS while still getting many high quality eggs. She was extremely kind and patient during our visits, answering all of my questions and making sure I understood what the next steps were. I was able to text Dr. Browne one evening late on Friday night when I had an injection issue, which I felt like was above and beyond. I was super happy with my results and would totally recommend Dr. Browne to my friends and family!!

Take advantage of Dr. Browne's experience and ask her a million questions. She is super patient!

I started on 150 IU of Menopur, which was increased to 225 IU of Menopur on day 5 of stimulation since my estrogen was not rising as quickly as expected. I then started 250 IU of Ganirelix on day 9 of stimulation. I did my trigger shot on day 15.

One egg freezing cycle was $5000. This did not include medications or anesthesia.

Dr. Aimee did our initial consultation where we discussed and outlined our plan. Following that, we spoke virtually and I went in for cycle visits with the nurses at the office. Dr. Aimee was also very accessible to answer any questions in the Portal and always responded to any messages. Any requests we made, Dr. Aimee made sure they happened. Dr. Aimee also performed my Hysteroscopy as well.

If you are a prospective patient, please do not be upset if you don’t see your doctor at every visit. Dr. Aimee is still accessible and will schedule time to speak with you.

Our first cycle we did 25mg of Clomid and I went in for a few cycle visits, used a trigger shot and did the IUI two days after. The second cycle I used 50mg of Clomid, I had more cycle visits than the last visit, did the trigger shot and did the IUI 36 hours later.

IUI with donor sperm is around $1900. Clomid was $10 with insurance. Shipping the sample was 375 through Fairfax cryobank.

Dr. Browne is concise, gentle and compassionate. She takes time to listen to and answer all questions. In three separate visits I was guided through the processes I will face and was given information about all of my options for planning a family at this current stage of my life.

Don't hesitate to ask all questions and be sure to communicate all of your concerns because she is extremely knowledgeable.

I have not yet gone beyond the consultation and testing phase of the treatment process. Dr. Browne has suggested a course of treatment that includes taking estrogen at first and then following that with a full course of IVF hormones. My test results indicated that it is likely to expect 3-5 eggs can be retrieved and Dr. Browne explained that best chances for a pregnancy could be expected by choosing to fertilize with donor sperm at or just after the time of retrieval rather than to just freeze the eggs for fertilization at a later time.

Projected costs: $21,000-$25,000

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Dr. Browne is smart. I mean that in the most sincere way. She doesn't sugar coat things, however, she was optimistic and was thorough in testing for any obstacles (my previous RE neglected to do a saline sonogram which she did and found polyps) to maximize chances of success.

She talks a little fast, so pay attention. You can almost see her thinking, analyzing.

I'm over 40, with diminished ovarian reserve. My previous cycle (day 3 fresh transfer with high doses of Menopur and Follistim) failed. Rather than upping the dose of injections, she went the opposite direction and did mini-IVF with only Follistim and Letrozole. I wasn't going to make a lot of eggs so she believed overstimming would fry the eggs. Results were the same as the first cycle with a different RE. 4 eggs retrieved, 3 fertilized, two made it to day 3, however, they both arrested before day 5.

prices are transparent on their website, but my cycle was covered by insurance.

She only does single embryo transfers.

Never saw or spoke to her. She blindly prescribed my medication protocol and I was given vague, cookie-cutter instructions by "care navigators" and nurses. I felt very unsafe with this lack of physician interaction so I decided to seek a second opinion at a more reputable clinic.

Good luck trying to get in touch with her or any other physician at Kindbody.

egg freezing costs $6500 per cycle (not including meds). Since I didn't proceed with my cycle, but got some bloodwork and ultrasounds done at the clinic, I'm not sure yet what I will be charged....

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