Methodist for Women

From the start of receiving my PCOS diagnosis in 2018, Dr. Delaney has been informative, re-assuring, and compassionate. In 2019, we transferred our first embryo which unfortunately did not stick around. Dr. Delaney felt this was primarily due to thin uterine lining. When I was ready to try again, Dr. Delaney wanted me to gain 10-15 pounds to increase estrogen levels and build a more robust uterine lining. I finally achieved my goal weight, although my second transfer was canceled on two occasions. One transfer was canceled due to thin uterine lining and the second was for OHSS complications leading to a short hospitalization. It should be noted that I was being monitored by other REs when my OHSS peaked, as Dr. Delaney was not available. It was Dr. Delaney, however, who determined my labs were critical and that I needed IV hydration. During my hospitalization, Dr. Delaney admitted my case was more complicated than she initially anticipated. She shared with me that she closely communicates with her colleagues to determine the best and safest protocol to achieve our desired results. This was reassuring to know she cared enough to reach out to other specialists to help us achieve the results we've been praying for. Unfortunately, we have yet to see a positive pregnancy test after two transfers.

Take notes and advocate for yourself like you would with any other doctor. Remember that you are the customer and your RE is providing a service. Your questions and concerns are valid, as you're the one putting your body, emotions, and finances on the line. Don't be afraid to ask "stupid" questions.

For my egg retrieval, I remember stimulating with Follistim. I also used Ganirelix and a Lupron trigger to prevent OHSS. As I prepared for my first transfer, I was using oral/vaginal/transdermal estrogen (unsure of dose), baby Aspirin, and progesterone in oil. I may have been taking something else, although it’s been so long I can’t remember. In preparing for my second transfer, Dr. Delaney's goal was to increase circulation to my uterus. Therefore, I was on the following medications: vaginal estrace 2x/daily, 1/2 tab vaginal Cialis, L-arginine, baby Aspirin, Del-Estrogen every third day, and progesterone in oil.

Monitoring appointments were first come first serve. Depending on the day, there could be a lengthy line down the hall. Knowing this, I always showed up at the time the clinic opened or even a bit earlier so I could commute to work. It has never been a problem with my schedule. I do, however, wish they allowed more time for questions/concerns following the monitoring appointment. I felt rushed sometimes and felt privacy to ask these questions was limited, as you are sometimes exposed to other patients due to the work space.

At the time, my egg retrieval expense was approximately $7,100. PGS testing for up to 8 embryos was $1,200. Cryopreservation of embryos was $1,000. Frozen embryo transfer was about $4,400. Medication expenses varied depending on the pharmacy for us. I would say we typically spent anywhere from $400-$1,000 on medications for egg retrieval and each transfer prep. This is a rough estimate!

Dr. Delaney wasn't opposed to doing an embryo transfer with two embryos, as we discussed this to increase chances for success. Although she did not recommend doing a multiple embryo transfer at this time, as we have PGS tested embryos.

I trust Dr. Doherty, and truly believes she knows what she is doing, even if I don't fully understand the course of action. When my first retrieval didn't go as well as either of us hoped, she was honest about the fact that my treatment would be an uphill battle. I like that she doesn't sugar coat things or be misleading about how the next time will be amazing. For the second retrieval, she didn't change my protocol as much as I hoped she would, but I'm currently stimming right now and have seen a big improvement in my response so far, so I'm happy I continued my treatment with her. It's hard to stay positive and trust, but it's worth it in the end. I would always like more communication, but any direct question I've asked has been answered so it has not been an issue.

Take the opportunity to ask questions. It can be hard to ask questions during your appointment, but make sure you have your list ready for when the nurse calls in the afternoon. They have always been patient and more than happy to answer my specific questions. If they need to consult with Dr. Doherty, they will and call me back as soon as possible.

IUI #1: Started stimming on 100 iu of Follistim for six days, then did Pregnyl as my trigger shot. Following the procedure, I did a Progesterone suppository. This procedure did not result in a pregnancy. Rationale was to start low. I think I produced two big follicles. IUI #2: Started stimming on 200iu of Follistim for five days, moving to 300iu for the next six days when I wasn't responding well. I responded much better with nine follicles, but the procedure still did not result in a pregnancy. I was put on Progesterone in Oil instead of the suppository as my period came early with the first IUI. Due to two failures, and my endometriosis diagnosis, Dr. Doherty gave me the option between a third IUI or IVF. I moved on to IVF. Retrieval #1: I stimmed with 300iu of Follistim for five days before moving up to 450iu of Follistim for the next six days. I took Ganirelix for the last three of these days. While we saw 12 follicles, Dr. Doherty was only able to retrieve 5 egg, 4 of which were mature. This was partly due to my left ovary being too high and possible scarred from endometriosis to get much from. I ended up with 1 pgs normal embryo from that round. I'm currently stimming for my second retrieval. 225iu of Follistim in the morning, and 225iu of Follistim in the evening. I'm on my twelfth day and am responding better than for the first retrieval. They are seeing four follicles on the left and thirteen on the right so far. Possible retrieval on Friday.

It was a very efficient process. I've rarely had to wait any longer than 20 minutes. It works well with my schedule, and I get seen and out of the office quickly.

My insurance does not cover most costs, so I pay out of pocket for everything. Including medications, my first IUI cost $2,200.45, my second IUI cost $3,805.32, my first retrieval with a freeze all cycle cost $13,482.83. This does not include the laparoscopy surgery I had due to endometriosis.

As I'm a poor responder, I'm choosing to bank embryos at this time and have not done an embryo transfer yet.

Dr Abigail Delaney is one of a kind, she puts her heart into her job and it shows day in and day out. The fertility world is full of ups and downs and i never felt alone throughout my journey. She was always very transparent with me allowing me to process the info and make informed decisions for what was best for me and my family. I had a very complicated and somewhat rare diagnosis and i don’t feel that i would’ve had the successes that I’ve had in becoming a mother if it weren’t for Dr Delaney and her persistence and hopefulness in the process. She’s passionate and determined and she isn’t afraid to ask for help if she needs it. She consulted with other doctors to ensure she was on track with our plan of care and as a patient that reassurance is nice too. Having complete faith and trust in Dr Delaney was easy for me, she made it that way and I’ll be visiting her again soon when we’re ready to try again.

Have faith and trust in the process, it takes time and it’s not easy and it’s not always going to be the outcome you want on the first try but know the Dr Delaney is going to do everything she can to give you the outcome you’re hoping for

We elected to do single embryo transfer as that was the safest option for me and baby due to my cervical issues being able to safely carry if it were to be successful (which was the right choice because with both pregnancies i had to get a cerclage placed to carry to term).

I would describe Dr. Delaney as kind, smart and confident. She clearly outlined our treatment path and how that could change based on how my body responded. She took time to ask if I had any questions at each appointment and answer them clearly. During my first treatment cycle, I took 5mg letrozole CD3-7, and at my first monitoring ultrasound, Dr. Delaney calmly told me, pending blood work, it appeared I had already ovulated literally hours prior, and we'd likely need to cancel the IUI. It was disappointing, obviously, but she handled the situation in a way that prevented me from spiraling. She personally called with the blood work results to tell me I had ovulated and what we would do differently next cycle.

Come to your appointments with questions ready, since on the phone you primarily dealt with nurses.

My husband had a normal and in fact strong sperm analysis, save low morphology. My tests (CD3 blood work, a saline sono, and ultrasound) came back normal, apart from subclinical hypothyroidism. She explained that if I weren't TTC, my TSH level would be fine but since I'm planning a pregnancy, she wanted me on a low dose of levothyroxine to lower that number below 2.5. During our first treatment cycle, I was instructed to call on CD1 and come in on CD3 for a baseline ultrasound. During that CD3 appointment, I saw a different doctor who told me to come back on CD14 for my first monitoring appointment. (I typically ovulated between CD16-19.) Dr. Delaney had prescribed 5 mg of letrozole on cycle days three through seven to "strengthen" ovulation and potentially recruit more than one follicle so the sperm would have multiple targets. When I came to my monitoring appointment, Dr. Delaney did my ultrasound and determined I had already ovulated from two follicles. She told me we'd follow the same treatment path, but I would come in on CD11 instead for my first monitoring appointment. We did that during our second treatment cycle. I used 10,000 units of Pregnyl to trigger ovulation the night of my monitoring appointment and returned ~36 hours later for our IUI. My husband had an abnormally low post-wash count of 4 million. The clinic will do IUI with counts as low as 2 million – they did not explain why they were willing to go that low. The IUI was not successful.

My insurance covered diagnostic care but not treatment. The following prices are for those without insurance. Consult: $400 CD3 lab panel: $326 Sono hysterosalpingogram: $1,000 IUI: $800 Ultrasound (1): $225 Ultrasound + blood work for monitoring appointment (1): $327 Letrozole: ~$10 Trigger shot: $100 Progesterone supplements: ~$10 Total for one IUI: $1,472 Clinic's listed cost of a handful of other treatment we have not needed yet: Egg retrieval: $7,100 Fresh transfer: $3,200 Embryo freezing: $1,000 Frozen transfer: $4,400

Dr Oakes is very personal and is great at explaining things in a non medical way so that I can understand it all. She is very honest with results or how your cycle is going and if she thinks things are going good or bad. I love her honesty even if it’s news you don’t want to hear. She always has a plan though for the good or the bad!

Don’t be afraid to take a list of questions in to her. She will answer them all very honestly and don’t be afraid to open up to her about anything!

For my egg retrieval my body was responding slowly to my injections because I have PCOS. She saw this and upped my doses and lengthened my cycle so that we got the best results and the most eggs retrieved so that I hopefully will never need another retrieval.

For medications, egg retrieval and 2 transfers we spent roughly. $25,000

I do wish we would have transferred 2 embryos the first round instead of 1. She advised against it but I believe it might have worked. My 2nd transfer worked and we transferred 2.

I honestly don’t have enough good things to say about Dr. Delaney. Coming from a doctor who I felt somewhat gave up on our case, she got me through one of the hardest times of my life. And although it wasn’t an easy road, she handled the bumps in a way that kept me comfortable throughout the entire grueling process. I never doubted that she would get us a family and she made sure that I didn’t.

Sometimes the process takes time and a LOT of effort on you and the doctors part, but if you can, give it that time! It’s not always a quick fix, but If you let her, Dr. Delaney will put her entire heart into getting you your desired family!

Gonal F for stimulation for retrieval and also for stimulated transfers because my lining wouldn’t thicken for transfers with estrogen. I only had one retrieval with her, but had 27 eggs retrieved, 15 day 5 embryos and 6 viable after PGS.

We appreciated her candor and her assessment of the situation as well as plan to move forward. We felt that the clinic could have given us more information but we understand everything depends on personal cycles. They did a great job with medication and injection teaching. Unfortunately, we were unable to proceed due to Coronavirus canceling all elective procedures but the office contacted us.

Do not expect her to be super sensitive to you. If you need someone who is very empathetic and will listen to your every worry she probably is not your person. If you want someone who is just really good at what she does then I would highly recommend her.

We were just about to start that before the Covid-19 outbreak.

The consultation was just our copay. Insurance has covered a few expenses and the clinic has reduced other costs based on cash payment. Overall they gave us the costs up front so we knew what to expect.

Do not know enough yet to comment

I felt like she really rushed and pushed us to pursue IVF. She said it was our only option to get pregnant. I felt like there maybe should have been new blood work tests done for me since she was looking at some from my OB office and all the results were good on those. I also feel like I should have had a ultrasound or scan done to make sure everything was good for me on the inside. There was no talk on things that could be done to help my husbands SA. He later went to a urologist and received help there, but that was never mentioned as an option at the time. We were two 25 year old, newlyweds with student debt and had no way to afford IVF. I just felt like more could have been checked/discussed before jumping right into that option. We decided to make some lifestyle changes, get healthy, and take time off from doctors. We will see a second one later this year.

If you feel like something was off or not right about your appointment, get a second opinion

She treated me with respect at the consultation and made note that I knew what I was talking about and had medical background. During follicle ultrasounds she explained things well, made small talk to make me comfortable, answered any questions I had but seemed just a little rushed. I can’t really complain though, because she really did a great job at letting me know her exact thoughts and expectations.

I would tell them she’s nice but maybe a little rough around the edges. Her sense of humor is just like mine so we clicked really well, but to others it might be taken wrongly. Infertility sucks, but having some humor throughout the process is a necessity to stay sane and I like that she can joke around and make the appointments less daunting.

I was directed to take 75 IU of Follistim injections once daily starting cycle day 3. We started at this lower dose because I ovulate naturally already and I’ve also responded easily to Clomid and Femara in the past. I went in for blood draws and follicle ultrasounds when directed and on Day 5 of injections (cycle day 8) I had my follicle ultrasound showing I was ready for the trigger shot the next evening and then for the insemination that weekend. I had a different specialist go my actual IUI as it was a weekend and a holiday but it all went smoothly. I start progesterone 100 mg twice daily 3 days past insemination. 2 weeks later I got a negative test. I stopped taking progesterone that day and my period started within 5-8 hours.

My consult was priced at $400 and I paid approx $200. I don’t remember what my blood work cost. My ultrasounds were prices at $250 each and I paid approx $50 each. My husbands portion of IUI was originally $500 but with insurance we paid approx. $300. My portion of IUI was to be $300 and we paid approx $150. Injections were to cost $1,200 and I paid approx $380 with insurance. Unfortunately though my lifetime max on my insurance is about to be met, so these savings won’t last long.

Dr. Doherty is very blunt and to the point. She is most interested in finding the problem and determining the correct solution. You need to be prepared with your questions and make sure that you don't leave until you're satisfied that your questions are answered. If you prefer a doctor who will grieve your losses with you, Dr. Doherty probably isn't the right fit for you as she doesn't come across as a warm person. She is sarcastic and to the point. She also places a lot of emphasis on patients' weight and advises patients gain weight and don't eat healthfully, in attempts to increase fat cells and, therefore, estrogen production.

Ask yourself if it's more important that your doctor comforts you when treatment fails or for your doctor to blunt about your treatment and options going forward. If the former is more important to you, Dr. Doherty probably isn't the right fit for you. Also, make sure you're prepared with questions to ask and don't leave the office until you feel your questions have been adequately answered.

$400 for initial consultation; $300 for ultrasounds & blood work; $800 for IUI procedures ($300 associated with male services; $500 for female services)

She has a great bedside manner and while she does not sugar coat things, she is warm in her approach to discussing options and what her thoughts are. She always communicates what she is about to do during any check-up or procedure and she performs all of her own procedures. Even passing her in the hall for blood work she greets you and asks how things are going. I highly recommend her.

My advice for seeing any doctor is always advocate for yourself.

Fairly normal/common cycle of menopur and Ganirelix with a lupron trigger. Estradiol and progesterone oil leading up to the transfer.

Seemed to be well oiled machine I was in and out every time in less than 30 mins from walking in and almost always giving blood within first 10 mins of arriving. Way better than my previous experience with a clinic that worked on appointments only.

I'm lucky that insurance is covering 100% of treatment once I hit my deductible but each visit I am given a form outlining the costs that will be submitted to insurance.

She has been good to work with. She is quite forward about her concerns regarding our fertility. We have had no success with her but was open to us trying despite our age. Our only issue is when treatment has failed to achieve a successful pregnancy (I.e miscarriage), they often make suggestions to changing treatment after the fact even after they had previous knowledge of our history. Would like to have seen them be more proactive and less reactive.

Ask a lot of questions and advocate for yourself, even if they don’t agree with you.

We were placed on birth control for three weeks prior to Gonal F injections for egg growth and stimulation. We had to administer Cetrotide prior to maturation to prevent ovulation and administered Trigger prior to retrieval.

It was a cattle call and usually the waiting room is moderately full

4-5000 for IUI with monitoring. 20,000 for IVF with PGS testing.

Meghan Oakes explained all possibilities and treatment options at our initial consultation and met with us to discuss the next options and adjusted treatment as needed. She was compassionate and kept expectations realistic.

Ask questions often and ask to speak with Dr. Oakes if that is what is needed.

IUI #1 and #2: tracking cycle at home IUI#3: low dose of injectable hormones to increase number of eggs and egg quality IVF #1: typical protocol, 12 fertilized eggs, none made it to blast stage IVF #2: different stimulating medication (Menopure) due to low estrogen during IVF #1, different trigger (Lupron) because estrogen was too high; retrieval was stopped because Lupron trigger did not work and eggs were not mature; triggered with HCG, retrieval next day produced some mature eggs; 2 eggs made it to blast, one was PGS tested normal; transfer resulted in chemical pregnancy IVF #3: Menopure for stimulation, HCG for trigger, do not remember # retrieved or fertilized, two made it to blast, PGS testing resulted in no normal embryos for transfer Waiting on IVF with donor eggs

The clinic was an hour away, so the drive to get there during monitoring hours was frustrating, but that is not the clinic's fault. I live in a rural state, so there are few options. Based on the number of patients that day, the wait can feel long. It is efficient though.

Through Dr. Oakes's office, I paid for blood tests, ultrasounds, consultations, retrievals, transfers, sperm analysis, anethesia, and any other costs associated. I purchased medications through a pharmacy and genetic analysis through another company. In all, we have spent at least $60,000 for all treatments.

Dr. Oakes is recommending eSET due to concern about early labor if two transferred and I became pregnant with twins or multiples; she has discussed this from the beginning and was upfront and I understand and agree with her recommendation

I absolutely love Dr. Delaney. I don’t have any complaints about her. I always feel cared for and she always seems invested in my success. Throughout this whole process I have always felt that she has been rooting for us and truly hopes she helps us to become parents.

Be honest with her and don’t be afraid to ask questions.

We tried one round of iui with Femara and it was cancelled so we have always done injectable medication. After trying three iui’s, our doctor said she would do one more if we wanted but we didn’t want to waste the money on something that wasn’t working. With the egg retrieval cycle, she adjusted my meds whenever necessary and tried to find the sweet spot between getting a lot of eggs and overstimulation me.

It was first come first serve hours. The only complaint I have about this is that the building opened at 6am and the office opened at 6:30 am and we all had to wait outside the door in the hallway. It always bothers me that they never have chairs out in the hallway for us. We pay a lot of money to sit on the floor. I also wish there was some way for us to know how many people are supposed to be coming in the morning. Some days the line outside the door is 3 people and sometimes it’s 15.

Monitoring ultrasounds were $225 each, bloodwork $94 each time. Iui was $800. Egg retrieval was $7,100. Biopsy of up to 8 embryos $1,200. Cryopreservation of embryos $1,000. Frozen transfer $4,398.

From the moment that I had my initial consultation I had a renewed sense of hope for a course of treatment. My wife and I had been trying for a year already with donor sperm at home. I had a chemical pregnancy and a missed miscarriage in that time. Dr. Delaney was very kind and hopeful that with some additional testing and treatment, I may be able to have a successful pregnancy. She answers my questions and seems to genuinely care about me as her patient.

I would tell a prospective patient that Dr. Delaney is very kind and to try to be patient because all of this fertility treatment takes a long time.

I had baseline testing and an ultrasound for one monitoring cycle. I was then put on 75 iu of Follistim injections for the first 5 days of a new cycle and after an ultrasound I was bumped up to 150 iu of Follistim for 4 more days. I had 2 follicles that were over 18mm and so I gave myself a shot of Pregnyl and 36 hours later I got my IUI. It was not successful and for the next cycle I will start at 150 iu of Follistim. I have lower estrogen levels and so they want to start getting those numbers higher right from the start.

Each cycle including bloodwork, medications, ultrasound, donor sperm and IUI is $2800

She is very blunt when answering questions. She does not go into detail about results and doesn’t seem concerned about changing protocol after failed transfers. She also would not make any recommendations for us for our second retrieval which had a worse outcome than the first.

Really press for the answers you want. Be your own advocate!

Our first retrieval I was on too low of a dose of Gonal F. We had to extend the amount of time before retrieval could be done. The second round I was on too high of a dose and had OHSS. The first time resulted in only 3 embryos being viable after PGS testing. The second retrieval only resulted in 2 embryos after PGS testing. Both transfers have failed. Both times we asked what could have been done differently and we were told “nothing”. We were told that the numbers of embryos available was low but for no certain reason. They also didn’t do any blood testing before frozen embryo transfers which resulted in my progesterone being low both times and they upped it after the transfer. I wish they were more in depth with our results and how that compares with where we should be expected to be.

First come, first served. You do need to line up outside of the office about 30 minutes earlier than they open if you want to be the first seen. Times were convenient.

I believe an IVF Freeze All was around $12,000 and a Frozen Embryo Transfer was around $3,000 including all the monitoring appointments.

Dr. Maud is a straight shooter. She is going to be direct and realistic. I went to her overweight and not fully taking one of my medications (metformin) for my PCOS and Insulin Resistance. She was direct with me telling me I needed to be on the full dose of metformin and lose weight with a specific diet before we start the medications. My previous physicians (not associated to Dr. Maud) were really soft on the topic and let me continue to waste my time. She gave me the push and "tough love" to do better. It gave me more confidence in her ability to help me vs. the 2 other doctors before her. She knows her stuff and I trust her completely.

If you want someone who is really delicate and will tell you what you want to hear rather than the facts of your infertility situation, this is not the doctor for you. She is kind and friendly, but direct. She knows her stuff and and is incredibly knowledgeable. I would recommend her above and beyond to any friend or family member. In fact, I drive 5 hours each way (10 total) to see her and regret nothing.

I have PCOS w/ IR. Dr. Maud made sure I was on a consistent/daily, full dose of Metformin without side effects which in turn helped me FINALLY start losing weight. She recommended a low carb diet like Atkins to help with any side effects. Once I had achieved this, She prescribed a lower dose of FSH shots. She did baseline monitoring. At my first appointment for monitoring on shots she reviewed my results and adjusted my dose.

Average to the normal cost of Fertility treatment.

Dr. Oakes provided me with honest answers and expectations. She is kind and caring. She makes me feel completely comfortable and is so optimistic that it provides me with hope that this will work one day.

I would just tell them to go to her. My sister also saw Dr. Oakes and had exceptional care that resulted in her now almost 2 year old daughter. If anyone is struggling with fertility we highly recommend Dr. Oakes.

My first three IUI’s were all natural and unmedicated. I have one ovary but my counts and labs were all completely normal so we were hopeful that we would be able to get pregnant from one of them. Unfortunately we were unsuccessful and I am currently in the TWW for the 4th. This cycle has been medicated for 5 days with 75iu FOLLISTIM and a 10000iu Pregnyl shot. With each cycle, three days post IUI I have been given Progesterone suppositories to use twice a day.

My insurance does not pay for any procedures so it has been completely out of pocket. Going to the clinic has provided me with a significant discount as opposed to a hospital setting.

She is knowledgeable, compassionate but seems overworked and stretched too thin. Some conversations seemed rushed. I was told we could take treatments as slow as we want but then we’re pressured to move forward with more advanced treatment options before we were ready.

Do research, advocate for yourself, don’t be afraid to ask questions. She is a great doctor but time with her is limited. Many times the nurses try to intercept any issues you have when you want to talk to Oakes.

We did several rounds of Femara and Clomid, 1 IUI and so far one round of IVF with ICSI and PGS testing. Took Gonal F and Cetrotide for retrieval and estrogen and progesterone shots for transfer.

Generally a long wait, especially Monday and fridays. I drove several hours for appointments and waited longer than my appointment was.

I spent a $3800 for IUI with meds and about $12k for 1st round IVF wth meds and some insurance coverage.

Elected for one do to uterine abnormality.

Dr. Oakes is genuinely a very kind and caring person, I know she wants all her patients to have good results and be able to have a family. Some people like things told to them gently, but I am a person that would rather just be told things more bluntly, even when the truth hurts my feelings. With the last round of IVF we attempted in late December of 2017, I knew I had ovulated even though I was getting the Ganirelix injections. As a patient (who works in healthcare sometimes you know too much) I was very emotional and didn't want to proceed with harvesting my eggs because I felt like it would not be successful and would waste our hard earned money we had worked so hard to save up for this round of IVF. Dr. Oakes encouraged me that my follicles were good and I should at least try to harvest them, and at this point my husband really wanted me to proceed with harvesting as well. They successfully harvested 7 embryos, and 3 made it to day 5 but due to the fact that I had already ovulated I could not have a fresh implant and only 1 embryo met the criteria for freezing. We had that embryo implanted the following month but unfortunately it was not successful. Although my story is not normal and this truly only happens to less than 1% of women, I did take away some valuable lessons. God has a plan sometimes we have a hard time understanding, physicians that specialize in fertility know more than we do about fertility but we should always listen to our own body, and have faith because good things will happen.....you just never know when it will be!

At the Methodist for Women Reproductive Health it is good to know up front that you don't always see your same physician. There are three physicians in their clinic and depending on the day you could see any of the three, this fact does bother some people. I really like all three physicians so it is not a problem for me at all, but it's something I make sure to include when informing any prospective patients I refer to Dr. Oakes.

Prior to being referred to Dr. Oakes I saw my regular OB/GYN who did seven rounds of Clomid with me and six of the rounds we did IUI in his office. So by the time I went to Reproductive Health I was very used to getting my lab drawn and having vaginal US were a normal thing, this is something I thought I would never say. I think for anyone who starts seeing a fertility specialist the most frustrating part at the beginning is the fact that they want to re-run a bunch of tests. My husband didn't think anyone else could possibly need to look at his sperm, although it was a little hard to feel sorry for him when they want to inject dye to see if your tubes are open again (the cramping is terrible even if you only have one tube, I had an ectopic pregnancy six years ago and lost my right tube from a natural pregnancy). Eventually we get down to starting my first cycle of IUI with Dr. Oakes and I call her office with my first day of my period. This starts the process of arriving and getting baseline labs and vaginal US to make sure I don't have any cysts on my ovaries so I can start injections. Dr. Oakes starts me on Follistim SQ, the side effects from the shots to me weren't any worse than the increased hormones similar to that of Clomid. They checked my ovaries via vaginal US every 3 days or so and adjusted the dosage accordingly. I always produced good follicles and once the follicles were ready to release, but prior to ovulation they would have me get an IM injection of hCG and then the following day my husband gave a sperm sample and IUI occurred. I always had some cramping and discomfort after IUI, but not worse than that of menstrual cramps. Then it was the dreaded waiting 14 days to find out if you were pregnant, I always would pray I wouldn't get my period but in evidently it came like clock work. Since we had already tried IUI so many times previously Dr. Oakes suggested that we really should just go straight to the IVF, so my husband and I did our best to save as much as we possibly could and we called her office to proceed with IVF. They started me on birth control the month prior and then the same process as IUI, I called her office on the first day of my period and we got started. A few days later I was getting my baseline labs and vaginal US, then the injections started this time I was getting Menopur IM daily, and going every 2-3 days for a vaginal US so they could adjust my dose as needed. I was producing follicles but not like Dr. Oakes had hoped, she discussed with us that we could proceed and still harvest the 4 follicles I had or I could attempt IUI again and try IVF at a later date. Dr Oakes told us she really felt like the birth control slowed down my follicle production so she didn't want me to do the birth control the following time. My husband and I decided to try the IUI again to save money and hopefully that way when we attempted the IVF again I would make more follicles and it would be more successful. I still got an IM injection of hCG the night before IUI. Unfortunately another failed attempt only this time I was more hormonal and for the 14 days after the IUI the Dr had ordered IM progesterone injections, which made my hips and upper part of my butt very sore! Finally we were trying IVF a second time, of course the last time I was sure it was going to work so this time I had a little more reservations about it but I was excited. My husband and I have dreamed of having a family for 6+ years, and overall I was sure this time was going to be it. They did what they called a cold start, no pre-birth control. I did the Menopur IM injections again, but this time they increased the dose. I felt very aware of what was going on inside me, every little pain or twinge in my belly felt amplified. I was still getting the vaginal US every 2-3 days, by the 9th-10th day or so I was also getting the Ganirelix shots to make sure I didn't ovulate. The next morning I was scheduled to see my Dr. and this was the day I typically ovulated, but the night before I was sure I was ovulating even though I was getting the Ganirelix injections. The next morning we were in Dr. Oakes office bright and early, I went in first to my vaginal US with my husband and the US tech and I told her I thought I had ovulated. She told me she hasn't seen anyone in 30 years ovulate on Ganirelix, she states it happens than less than 1% of women and says I'm sure your fine. She does the exam and is very quiet, takes twice as many pictures as normal and just acts different. I ask her if she sees something, she tells me she will have Dr. Oakes talk to me but I may know my body pretty well. As a patient (who works in healthcare sometimes you know too much) I was very emotional and didn't want to proceed with harvesting my eggs because I felt like it would not be successful and would waste our hard earned money we had worked so hard to save up for this round of IVF. Dr. Oakes encouraged me that my follicles were good and I should at least try to harvest them, and at this point my husband really wanted me to proceed with harvesting as well. They went ahead and still had me get an IM hCG injection that night and come back the next day. They successfully harvested 7 embryos, and 3 made it to day 5 but due to the fact that I had already ovulated I could not have a fresh implant and only 1 embryo met the criteria for freezing. We had that embryo implanted the following month but unfortunately it was not successful. Overall I felt the fertility medications definitely caused me to have some weight gain and the Progesterone in Oil injections just hurt, but if I would have been able to get pregnant it all would have been worth it.

The clinic was very well organized. For routine labs and US you are required to report between 7:00-9:00 am and sign in, then they just go first come first serve basis. Typically we never waited more than 30 minutes, many times they had us in a room in less than 15 minutes.

Medications $2000-4000 Ultrasound $225 (times 5-8) Labs $86-225 (times 5-8) Egg Harvest $7850 Frozen Embryo Transfer $4100

Dr. Oakes told us that she would only transfer up to two embryos, although this is something we never had to make a decision about she did give us all the pros and cons of single embryo transfer vs. multiple embryo transfer.

My experiences with Dr. Delaney have been wonderful. From our consultation to our 3 failed IUI's, I always felt Dr. Delaney had our best interests at heart. During every stage of our treatment she reassured us and helped explain the process as much as we needed. She is always timely on calling us and giving us answers. What I could use more from Dr. Delaney is her bluntness. She is so sweet and comforting that sometimes I think it is difficult for her to be blunt with patients. I already recommend Dr. Delaney to my friends and family who are on their own infertility journeys, so I am very pleased with our experience as a patient!

One piece of advice I would give to a prospective patient is to try not to get discouraged. Sometimes when the answer and results aren't what we want, it is easy to blame the doctor or treatment for not working. But remember, she always has her patients best interest at heart and she too is hopeful each and every round of treatment. My confidence in her skills and knowledge help me from becoming easily discouraged.

I came to Dr. Delaney with what we thought was a blocked fallopian tube. After further testing, Dr. Delaney was able to confirm I did not have a blocked fallopian tube. After establishing that, came the diagnosis. My husbands sperm results came back normal and my diagnostic testing came back normal also. She diagnosed us with unexplained infertility, which means without the help from medicine we would have a 5% chance on conceiving on our own. Because of this diagnosis, Dr. Delaney decided the next treatment option should be an IUI. We started with 75ml subq of Follistem every day. Every few days we had an ultrasound to check the size of the follicles and I had a lab draw to check my hormone levels. Once the follicles were at the optimal size around 2.0, I received the "trigger" injection, HCG, in the upper botocks. Roughly 24-48 hours later I had the IUI procedure. I started on progesterone suppositories 3 days after the IUI. A few days after our first IUI I had dark red spotting which is not normal. Dr. Delaney said that was due to a lack of progesterone. That IUI round failed. Dr. Delaney was pleased with the number of follicles I produced with that dosage so we performed another IUI with the exact procedure as above. But this time instead of using suppository progesterone, I use the progesterone in oil injection in my upper botock, due to spotting from previous IUI. This is a higher dose and more direct way for the body to get progesterone. That also resulted in a failed IUI. I was still producing quality follicles so we tried a 3rd IUI, which resulted in another failed IUI, same treatment as 2nd IUI. After this, Dr. Delaney recommended we try IVF. She stated the chances of a positive pregnancy are higher with IVF then IUI and with 3 failed IUI's this would be our best next step for treatment.

An ultrasound was $225 and an ultrasound and lab work was $317. Specimen test was $550. The IUI was $800. Medicine from the Pharmacy was around $700 a cycle.

We were very pleased with Dr. Delaney, I the initial testing it was discovered that I had a polyp and she worked quickly to schedule and complete the removal so that it would not prolong our IVF process. As we went through treatment she took the time to answer all our questions and personally called us when we had the first round of embryos PGS tested and didn't have any that were able to be used. On the second round she took the time to work with us on our concerns about PGS and supported our decision to not have it done. She diligently worked to track and make sure that we would have successful outcomes with the medicines because I only have one ovary.

Be very open and share anything that you can even if you think it might not matter or have impact, because she will address your concerns and research them if needed.

On our first cycle I wasn't responding the way she had thougt so my medicine was increased after our first visit, this did result increase the outcome. However we did not end up with any viable embryos for implantation due to the outcome of PGS testing. On the second round she chose to begin on a slightly higher dose from the start which produced one more embryo from the first round. With only having one ovary she was very realistic with is on the number of embryos that we wouldn't likely achieve.

There was a window for these appointments every morning for several hours and you could go at your convenience. If the clinic wasn't close to your home you could have them at your regular OB and they would assist in getting those setup.

We discussed this at great lengths. With PGS we were told that with our circumstances she would do eSET and without PGS she was open to multiple embryo transfer but it was ultimately up to us.

A friend referred me to Dr.Oakes, and I absolutely agree that she is amazing. The first time we met her she sat and talked with us about our history and truly listened to what we wanted. She allowed us to determine what we were comfortable doing for our next treatment. When our second IVF cycle results didn’t go as planned, she called me personally. She was straight forward, but stayed positive for us for future options.

She is not scared it give her honest opinion, so she may tell you something you don’t want to hear. However, she does what is in the best interest of the patient.

Our first IVF cycle was at a different clinic. When Dr.Oakes reviewed the protocol, she made a few changes. I switched from 75 of menopur and 150 of gonal f to only 300 of gonal f. She also watched my estradiol very close before egg retrieval because I had very high levels the first cycle. I was told to use a lupron trigger, and we gave my body an extra day to let smaller follicles catch up. I ended up with double the amount of eggs retrieved from my first cycle. She also had us freeze our embryo rather than do a fresh transfer because of the high estradiol levels.

Monitoring appointments were all done in the morning between 6:30- 9:30. Since I had to commute, I liked that I didn’t have to be there at an exact time. Plus I think it is nice for people that don’t want to take time off of work to be able to go early in the morning. Most of my ultrasounds were done by one of the doctors, and then they would talk with me after about how everything looked and what the next step was. I loved that I saw a doctor every time I went.

Our initial consult visit was $400. Typical monitoring appointments included an ultrasound for $225 and blood work $80-100. I had 3 monitoring appointments and 1 additional blood draw prior to retrieval. The day of retrieval we paid $9,300 which included biopsy for PGS testing. We have not done our transfer yet, but I believe it is between $4,500-5,000. All of these costs were in addition to medications which range widely in cost.

We did not discuss this, and only ended up with one embryo, so it was not an issue.