Pacific NW Fertility

Before meeting with Dr. Marshall, we had two very disappointing IVF cycles at a previous clinic. I'm 36 years-old with diminished ovarian reserves and in the previous two cycles I had retrieve 4 eggs (1 fertilized) and 2 eggs (0 fertilized). I felt like a total failure after the 2nd IVF cycle so I decided to reach out for a second opinion and selected Dr. Marshall based on some of the Fertility IQ reviews about diminished ovarian reserve. We met with Dr. Marshall and it was night and day from our previous clinic. In our one-hour consultation she arrived with detailed notes on our medical history and jumped right in with new protocol recommendation. I mentioned to her that my previous clinic never technically categorized me as diminished ovarian reserve. Her response, "Really? Of course, you have diminished ovarian reserves and there are very successful treatment protocols that we've developed. We just need to adjust your treatment plan." This interaction made me feel so good just to know that there was a path forward. Dr. Marshall answered all our questions thoughtfully and backed up her suggestions with clinical research findings. My husband and I knew after that first meeting that we had to switch to Dr. Marshall and we were grateful that she would consider taking our case given the challenge and likelihood that it might lower the clinic's success statistics. Fast forward to our first IVF cycle with Dr. Marshall, she had me on an estrogen lead in protocol to suppress the lead follicles. I also Clomid for five days, immediately began to stimulate with 450IU Gonal F and mini-HCG after my day 3 suppression check. We went from retrieving 3 eggs in my last cycle, to getting 10 eggs! Of the 10 eggs, 4 fertilized and 2 grew to a blastocyst which is the farthest we had gotten. Unfortunately, both blastocysts were abnormal but upon reflection I'm so grateful to have used PGT-A to avoid wasting time and money on blastocyst that would not result in a viable egg. Overall, we're still a challenging case and I can't say we have a happy ending yet. However, Dr. Marshall has and continues to do everything she can to support patients like me who are really challenging. She hasn't forced donors eggs on us and she's supportive of going forward with additional IVF cycles.

If you have questions always ask Dr. Marshall, she really wants to make sure patients have all the information they need to understand the options.

2mg estrogen lead in. Day 3 stimulation with Clomid 100mg, Gonal F 450IU, mini-HCG 20 units. Stimulated for 12 days (which is 5 days longer than my previous cycle). Added in Cetrotide at some point, but I forget when.

Not sure because insurance hasn't billed us yet.

Before meeting with Dr. Marshall, we had two very disappointing IVF cycles at a previous clinic. I'm 36 years-old with diminished ovarian reserves and in the previous two cycles I had retrieved 4 eggs (1 fertilized) and 2 eggs (0 fertilized). I felt like a total failure after the 2nd IVF cycle so I decided to reach out for a second opinion and selected Dr. Marshall based on some of the FertilityIQ reviews about diminished ovarian reserve. We met with Dr. Marshall and it was night and day from our previous clinic. In our one-hour consultation she arrived with detailed notes on our medical history and jumped right in with new protocol recommendations. I mentioned to her that my previous clinic never technically categorized me as diminished ovarian reserve. Her response, "Really? Of course, you have diminished ovarian reserves and there are very successful treatment protocols that we've developed. We just need to adjust your treatment plan." This interaction made me feel so good just to know that there was a path forward. Dr. Marshall answered all our questions thoughtfully and backed up her suggestions with clinical research findings. My husband and I knew after that first meeting that we had to switch to Dr. Marshall and we were grateful that she would consider taking our case given the challenge and likelihood that it might lower the clinic's success statistics. Fast forward to our first IVF cycle with Dr. Marshall, she had me on an estrogen lead in protocol to suppress the lead follicles. I took Clomid for five days, immediately began stimulation with 450IU Gonal F and mini-HCG after my day 3 suppression check. We went from retrieving 3 eggs in my last cycle to getting 10 eggs! Of the 10 eggs, 4 fertilized and 2 grew to a blastocyst which is the farthest we had gotten. Unfortunately, both blastocysts were abnormal but upon reflection I'm so grateful to have used PGT-A to avoid wasting time and money on blastocyst that would not result in a viable pregnancy. Overall, we're still a challenging case and I can't say we have a happy ending yet. However, Dr. Marshall has and continues to do everything she can to support patients like me who are really challenging. She hasn't forced donors eggs on us and she's supportive of going forward with additional IVF cycles.

If you have questions always ask Dr. Marshall, she really wants to make sure patients have all the information they need to understand their options.

Lead in with 2mg estrogen 2x daily. Day 3 stimulation with Clomid 100mg, Gonal F 450IU, mini-HCG 20 units. Stimulated for 12 days (which is 5 days longer than my previous cycle). Added in Cetrotide at some point, but I forget when.

IVF including meds, ICSI and PGS $22,000

We absolutely love Dr. Marshall. We came to her from SRM to get a second opinion because it felt like we were trying the same protocol over and over again with no results. When we walked out of that meeting, my husband looked at me and said 'I don't care if the results are different, she makes me feel calm and actually cared for." We switched immediately after. Dr. Marshall suggested a completely different protocol and the results were dramatically different compared to our previous 2 cycles (round 1: 4 embryos - all abnormal, round 2: 2 embryos - all abnormal, moved to Dr. Marshall, round 3: 11 embryos, 2 normal). (I have a genetic condition that results in a small % of normal embryos) Beyond the outcome, the experience felt different - from her proactive communication, to her kind and thorough bedside manner, to the fact that even though she didn't do the retrieval surgery, she popped in right after to check on us - it felt like she was on our side and we were on the same team throughout the entire process. We are doing a 4th round to get a few more embryos and I feel completely confident in Dr. Marshall. Finding her has been a game changer in reducing the anxiety and stress of this entire experience, while also giving us a better outcome.

Ask her for a second opinion if you are thinking of moving to her from another clinic. She had more thoroughly reviewed our file and had a more in depth conversation with us about our situation than our medical team at our previous clinic.

The stimulation portion of our IVF treatment plan included 450 IU of Gonal-F, 20 IU mini HCG, and 250 mcg Ganirelix. For the trigger, we used a dual trigger (Lupron and HCG). We have yet to do an embryo transfer since we'd like to bank a few more first.

We're fortunate to have insurance cover a large portion of the bill. Our coverage is capped, so we still have reason to keep costs down. The medical staff has been helpful in tailoring our plan to use leftover medications from previous cycles. The finance department is quick to answer with any questions (e.g. how much will this count towards our insurance cap?). They have proactively gotten pre-authorizations from our insurance company without us asking or being involved. At SRM, we had to call daily to ask them to submit the pre-auth and then follow up daily to make sure progress was being made, so this was a very welcome change.

We indicated our preference to transfer one embryo at a time and Dr. Marshall agreed.

She was very kind and helpful, from initial meeting she was looking out for our best interests and fully explained the process we were about to embark on. Her team always got back to me promptly and created safe plan of actions with her. I would recommend Dr Shahine to friends/ family.

Ask questions! Have a list of questions for your first appointment and don’t be afraid to follow up.

I initially did bloodwork and the HSG grate and then started with medicated cycles and IUI. I took letrezole in the beginning plus the HCG trigger shot before ovulation. after a few months and one anovulation cycle later we doubled the dose. The last month I did IUI, I was on letrezole beginning of my cycle, took the HCG trigger shot and also started progesterone after ovulation. I got a positive pregnancy test and then with blood work a few times after, my levels were declining. We did multiple blood draws over the next month to track this pregnancy to 0 HCG. This was the last IUI before IVF. Now with the clinics closed due to coronavirus, we wait 😌

Each appointment, procedure and test has a cost. For IUI, each ultrasound was $190 (usually 3 per cycle so $570) + blood work. Medication like letrezole was covered by insurance but HCG shots were $150 each month. Each IUI was $282 so each month it was ~ $1,050. Now as we prepare for IVF, there is blood work required, medications and we dont have the individual cost but were told its starts at $25k and to estimate more for things like genetic testing.

It’s very situational but from what i have learned a he believes in single embryo transfer for healthy women under 35. It’s situational but i have a few other friends who have seen her and she also recommended single embryo transfer. Doesn’t want to risk multiple embryos if you only have a few good ones.

Dr. Shahine has always made us feel cared for and that she is personally invested in our care. When we were not successful after our first transfer, she mourned our loss with us. She has provided additional resources to work alongside our treatments. She has met with us in person multiple times to make sure that we were comfortable with the plan moving forward and that our mental health was well taken care of as well. She has made sure that we feel heard and that our opinions are validated.

Be honest and ask all the questions you have. She is happy to answer questions and values your thoughts and opinions.

Dr. Shahine used several different protocols throughout our cycles. We have used injections, pills, suppositories and patches. With each cycle, dosages have been adjusted or type of delivery has been changed to increase effectiveness. For example, the estrogen patches did not produce the levels that we wanted so for the next cycles, we were switched to injections. They were much more effective and yielded better results than the patches.

The total cost was approximately $33,000 for one full IVF cycle, including egg retrieval, one embryo transfer, medications, blood work, monitoring appointments.

We only wanted to transfer one single embryo at one time, which Dr. Shahine agreed with was the best approach.

Dr. Shahine is warm and open, but also very honest and direct. She took time to get to know my husband and I, and what our goals are for our family. I feel that she’s done everything she can to help us bring home a baby, and we have always felt like she was on our side. After each failed cycle, she’s suggested different medications for the next round based off of our previous results. She cites current research to back up her decisions, and collaborates with the entire team of doctors to discuss patient cases, so you really have a team of 5 doctors working for you. She’s made sure that we’re aware of the different fertility methods available, and what our odds are of conceiving with each approach. She gave us a very honest opinion, and has suggested using donor eggs, but she’s been completely supportive of our decision to keep trying with my eggs for now.

If you’re thinking of scheduling with her, call and get on her calendar since she’s often booked a few months out. Once you’re an established patient it’s easier to get an appointment.

1/2018 IVF 1: BCP for two weeks, then Follistim 450 IU, Mini HCG 20 units, Ganirelix around day 7. Retrieved 9 eggs/7 mature/5 fertilized, sent 2 for PGS testing and both had multiple abnormalities 10/2018, 4 IUI cycles: used Letrozole to produce more eggs, pregnant on 4th cycle, embryo had not progressed at 6 week ultrasound and miscarried. 1/2020 IVF 2: No BCP, luteal phase start, same meds as cycle 1. 6 mature eggs, 3 fertilized, all arrested 3/2020 IVF 3: No BCP, luteal phase start, planned to add progesterone after ovulation but ovulated late. Added Clomid to first 5 days of stims, and seemed to have more follicles but only half of the follicles produced eggs. IVF 4 planned 5/2020: planning luteal phase start, adding growth hormone to increase quality/quantity of eggs. progesterone, Clomid 150 mg, Omnitrope 2.9 mg, Follistim 450 IU, Mini HCG 20 units

IUI around $600/cycle IVF retrieval: about $14000 (includes monitoring, ultrasounds, blood draws, retrieval, anesthesia, ICSI, and embryology, 6 mos embryo storage) FET: $4600 PGS testing: $1625 for 1-5 embryos plus $1950 for biopsy

Dr Shahine prefers to transfer 1 embryo, but is open to discussing other options for specific cases

I spoke of this before. However, she is a great physician and advocate. I appreciate all of her compassion and direction. She is compassionate and gracious. Every time, we start with where we are in life. Checking in on how we are doing. While is sounds simple, she has a knack for disarming your nerves to feel comfortable with the most difficult decision of your life.

As our second doctor, I was so scared to try to build a relationship again. The doctor and staff become part of your family. You share your hopes and dreams with them. She instantly make you feel like you had a team that you could count on.

The cost were very straighforward. She is not the most economical nor the most expensive. We appreciate the breakdown of finances.

She isn’t a bulls$&77er about what’s happening or treatment which I really appreciate. Infertility can lead you down some dark places and through many rabbit holes of things people swear worked for them and their miracle babies. Dr. Rothenberg patiently listens and then gives you science. She helps keep you rational.

Research, ask questions, be your own advocate, but listen to your doctor. She gives great information and feedback but you have to ask the questions. Dr. Rothenberg entertained every question I could possibly think of and for every scenario.

Initially everything was on the table for us because our labs came back fine. We elected to do IUI with Letrozole and the HcG trigger shot. We could have started with IVF but decided why use dynamite when a sparkler might work? We were successful, but miscarried.

IUIs are, in total, about $900, and meds are $140.

Dr Broughton has been very understanding and very caring about our situation and what we have went through. She is finding answers for us. She is very knowledgeable and very educated. I love that she has a very extensive background with the female body. I trust her completely. She takes the time to let me talk and answers al my questions.

You are in good hands! Trust the process and the journey.

Dr Broughton took the time to go through our whole history with us and each round we went through step by step. We did a round with her and she kept track of my body and how it was reacting. She noticed my lining was thick so she suggested we do a sis procedure and sure enough we found a polyp that was keeping my lining so thick. So we did a hysteroscopy and now we are waiting for Aunt Flo to show up so we can start another round of iui with trigger Letrozole and follistim. She also adjusted the meds and amounts daily. We are very hopeful.

They do there best to help with billing insurance for things that are infertility and not infertility related. My insurance covers nothing with infertility so when we do my hsg or my sis procedure or my hysteroscopy all of those things get covered by insurance because they are not infertility and labs. So every little thing helps!

Dr Shahine was always prepared for our meetings. What sets her apart from other physicians, is that she engaged both my husband and I in the conversation. This helped her to gauge our individual personalities, emotions, and learning styles in order to know how to best present information to us which often meant in 2 various styles - 1 that worked better for my husband, and one that worked better for me. Dr Shahine quickly read that I needed to process information in an evidence based method. She presented me with the most incredible resource (a book she authored on miscarriage and repeat pregnancy loss) and was able to factually support her decision making process. I have had repeat pregnancy loses and was seen by more provider than I can count. Other providers would dance around my questions regarding miscarriage whereas Dr Shahine was genuinely empathetic but provided me with evidence based research for what things may be linked to miscarriage. This helped my brain process information and felt like I had some control. The control to me was knowledge. I am the person that needs to know the "but why", and she always delivered the answers.

Write down all your questions in advance of your meeting with her. She will notice your list of questions and allow you time to ask every question you have.

Dr Lora Shahine took over my care after other physicians left the practice thus I was already on a regimented protocol that she agreed with so we did not need to make any adjustments. At that time I was taking Femera on days 3-7 of my cycle, with ultrasound monitoring appointments to ensure the mature eggs where on the side in which my Fallopian tube was not blocked to ensure best change at success, when the follicle measured the correct size I would have a trigger injection with IUI within 36 hours. Due to DOR, age, family goals, and history of repeat pregnancy loses she gave us timeline of ~6 months to try this intervention if we had the energy for it and then suggested we move onto IVF. IVF would allow us best chance of success and also allow us to test for chromosomal abnormalities to dec risk of repeat miscarriage.

My insurance does cover some expenses however many things, especially medications are cash pay only despite insurance saying they cover fertility benefits.

We have not yet fully discussed this with MD thus can not provide information on this at this time.

Dr. Shahine was so kind throughout the process. My initial meeting with her was great, she quickly coordinated the care that I needed to receive. When she sensed my hesitancy when we were discussing surgery, she assured me she wouldn’t do anything that she didn’t need to to, and that’s she wasn’t a surgical cowboy. This meant a lot to me because I’ve had anxiety regarding recovery time. When my surgery had to be cancelled last minute (day of surgery), she personally called me to discuss why and apologize, and offered to write a letter for work and got me rescheduled ASAP.

I would simply tell them to pick Dr. Shahine.

Dr. Shahine recommenced a 3D ultrasound to evaluate the shape of my uterus and check for a septum. When the results came back inconclusive she recommended a hysteroscopy to get a direct look and to diagnose/treat any abnormalities that may be causing my recurrent pregnancy loss.

All of my care was covered under my insurance as pre-conception screening or screening for abnormalities. I did not have any “infertility” related billing. The clinic was upfront with costs associated with things if you didn’t have insurance coverage and provided cost sheets when requested for hysteroscopy, IVF, IUI, etc.

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From our initial meeting through our IVF treatments, Dr. Shahine was kind, informative, and compassionate, all traits that my husband and I valued while going through an emotional time in our fertility journey. I felt very listened to, and any concerns or topics I asked about were addressed and discussed with respect and honesty. I liked that we saw her every visit and that she always made time to ask how I was feeling. She coordinated the care that I needed to receive very smoothly.

Ask any question that you may have around any and all parts of your treatment. No question is too big, or too small, and Doctor Shahine was very receptive, open, and honest to any questions we brought forward.

My initial protocol involved testing to properly diagnose the reasoning for infertility, including a Hysterosalpingography, Saline sonogram, bloodwork to check such levels as FsH, estradiol, TSH, Anti mullerian hormone level, and progesterone. When my husband and I decided to do IVF, Dr. Shahine set up a FET protocol for my IVF cycle, due to the potential of ovarian overstimulation. This included birth control pills, Ganirelix, Gonal F, minced dose HCG, and Progesterone in Oil injections.

Monitoring was scheduled when convenient with my schedule during the week. The appts on the weekend are scheduled in time order, which makes it less convenient, but not beyond reason.

Costs were given upfront and conveyed very clearly. There were no hidden costs.

Dr Shahine recommended a single embryo transfer, which we agreed with. We also appreciated her recommendation to do PGS testing on our day 5 embryos to essentially up our odds of success with the single embryo transfer approach.

Dr Shahine had read through my chart thoroughly before our consult. She was aware of my entire case, and my chart is a thick one. She went over extra details she had questions about and we discussed those. She then made her recommendations based on research and sited those studies. She stressed that we had done nothing to cause our many miscarriages, failed transfers and were doing everything we could. However, she did make two changes and suggestions for our doctor here in town. I can say that I am now pregnant after our third transfer, and I truly feel that it's Dr. Shahine's suggestions made all the difference. I would highly recommend her to anyone. Especially those who have had recurrent miscarriage. We need more providers with the care and compassion that she has!

She is incredibly thoughtful, knows all the current studies, is humble and is just all around an incredible doctor. Highly recommend.

She recommended trying metformin starting before our next transfer. I am lean PCOS and have never had issues with my blood glucose so I hadn't ever tried it. She cited the study by Dr. Zev Williams suggesting benefits in PCOS with metformin. I have felt incredible since taking it. She also recommended lovenox as an immunmodulator. I did this as well a low dose of 40 mg. So far my pregnancy has been on the right track. So thankful for these suggestions.

It was a second opinion consult so it was not much. I am thankful for that!

She strongly encouraged us to only transfer one embryo. We took her advice and continued with only one.

Julie was smart, capable, and super caring from our very first meeting. She was like a breath of fresh air after a few bad experiences with previous doctors. We just loved her and felt so special and taken care of under her care.

Go for it, no hesitation.

I am advanced maternal age (38) and we used a sperm donor because my husband has azoospermia, so Julie was very thoughtful and had a clear strategy from the beginning. We didn’t really weigh many options and decided to go with her recommendation, which was to do IVF. We did all testing recommended. I even had a hysteroscopy done to make sure everything was clear and healthy. At our retrieval we were thrilled to get 22 eggs, but unfortunately only one healthy embryo. Thank goodness for that miracle embryo that is now a 4.5 mo baby in my belly. We feel truly lucky and appreciative of the direction Julie took with our situation.

Our insurance didn’t cover any of it and it was very expensive, approx $40,000

We only had the option of a single transfer because we only ended up having one.

I have only met with Dr. Shahine for an initial IVF consult. In the time I spent with her I found her to be very kind and compassionate. She was equally concerned about my emotional well being as getting to the end result of having a healthy pregnancy/baby. She was very informative and provided many resources. I felt that she wasn't just trying to get me to do IVF, she wanted to explore other options first and make sure my health was in good shape before moving forward. I appreciate her honesty and care in discussing such sensitive topics.

Have an open mind and be ready that IVF isn't the first coarse of action to take.

She currently has me working with a nutritionist who specializes in fertility and PCOS. Additionally she is having me lose weight and continue trying naturally at home until my weight is at a safer space for IVF treatment.

Just the initial consult was covered by insurance

We met for a consult and updated testing. When we arrived for the results, she had thought the office had provided us the results and what the results met prior to meeting. When she quickly realized the proper information was not yet conveyed to us, she took the time to explain what the number meant, drew visuals so the results made more sense. She presented the options and her recommendations. Dr. Marshall answered all of our questions. It definitely is not the news you want to get as a patient trying to conceive. She was honest and allowed us the space to show emotions. I appreciated her candid honesty. She gave us the opportunity to ask more follow-up questions and responded in a timely manner. She offered follow-up resources to assist us in processing.

Dr. Marshall is very experienced and has knowledge to share that is truly valuable. Be candid with you concerns . I was very impressed with her!

Consult and testing only

Initial Appointment-$386.00 Testing - AMH-$88.00 E2-$85.00 FSH-$80.00 Follicular Monitoring-$190.00 Venipuncture-$26.00 Follow-up Appointment-$196.00

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Dr Lamb has a very sunshiny demeanor. She is very intelligent and treated me with respect, taking the time to explain everything. She let me direct things and helped guide decisions that were right for me. She was the perfect blend of candid and caring. She made a scary process almost fun. She even held my hand before each egg retrieval as I went to sleep.

Schedule in advance because she books up fast!

I ended up with a very low AMH so she said to plan for 3-4 IVF cycles which was more than I had originally anticipated. I wanted to freeze some embryos and some eggs. First round went better than expected with 8 eggs and 4 embryos but only one passed the genetic screening. Next round we kept the same plan and I got one more healthy embryo. We decided to do a couple more rounds for eggs - I was using a friend sperm donor and didn’t know if I would have a husband in the future. I froze 11 eggs. We decided to try a FET for one embryo and if it didn’t work I would do another round of IVF but it worked and I got my Christmas miracle. She even came out to the waiting room to give me a hug when I was there for the blood test to confirm pregnancy.

I paid about $15000 per round

I knew I only wanted her to put one in. I had already genetically tested them. She recommended the same so it wasn’t even much of a discussion.

We initially chose to see Dr Lamb (as opposed to the another clinic provider) because her bio on the clinic website seemed like the best initial fit. As a lesbian couple who (initially) was “only needing IUI,” we were worried about feeling like “less of a priority” because we weren’t seeking IVF or something else complicated. But from our very first visit with Dr Lamb, it felt very clear that she was going to dedicate whatever time and attention our treatment plan required. We really felt like to only patients in the clinic when she was sitting in front of us—she was never rushing off to another clinic appointment, never seemed annoyed by our questions—even when we had a half dozen of them! She has always been very compassionate in her demeanor and is easy to talk to about very intimate details of our lives.

Don’t be afraid to ask the “hard questions” that you really want answers to or are wondering about — it might be scary to hear the answer, but hearing it from Dr Lamb really does make it a little easier!

We started with a very basic protocol because all labs, u/s, and hysterosalpingogram were normal. For our first 5 cycles, I took letrozole days 3-7, had a day 12 u/s, then timed ovulation trigger based on u/s results. For the 6th cycle, we tried a ten-day course of letrozole, but because of thin ing of the uterine lining, we didn’t continue that in cycle 7. Cycle 7 we did letrozole days 3-7 + injectables, with day 12 u/s. We used letrozole instead of clinic per Dr Lamb’s recommendation to lower the risk of multiples.

We were provided with a price sheet at the very first appointment, and while we did not expect our insurance to cover any of our fertility-related care, the clinic agreed to bill insurance prior to collecting payment from us. Our insurance ended up covering some components of the care, and it was super convenient to us that hey had been willing to bill.

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She does her homework about you prior so you don’t have to explain your story over and over. She is competent in her job, kind, compassionate, and direct. She really was amazing. She is willing to do what you want to do, or get you to the right people that you need. She works with outside facilities if you live outside the Seattle area.

You will love her. She is so kind, so caring. She is educated, direct and compassionate. She is prepared for your visit and treats you with respect and explains everything fully.

She gave us the option of trying to do IVF with our own eggs but our chances of having a quality egg would be very low. If our end game was a healthy child she suggested we use donor eggs. But she wanted to make sure whatever choice we made she would go 100% toward that choice and do everything she could to make our dream come true

We got quotes for both and outside monitor IVF with and with PGS and quotes for outside monitoring donor cycles. Costs ranged from 22,000ish to 40,000 ish with and without medications

I understand the single versus multiple egg transfer. Dr Shahine’s clinic promoted single egg high quality transfer. The thought of multiples scared us so that eased our minds.

Dr. Shahine has a sweet demeanor, has great bedside manor and is very to the point. She is great at listening and answering every question I present. I began seeing her after my previous RE retired within the practice. The transition was seemless and I am so pleased with the attention to detail and protocol she has put in place for me.

Initially starting with a fertility consult can be very scary and intimidating and although she wasn’t my initial Dr on this journey I had to start over with a new protocol with her and I was immediately heard and cared for. She is relatable and incredibly knowledgeable. She is every active in the community, an author and advocate. Overall a great physician!

Dr. Shahine has set up a FET protocol for my which included birth control pills, a saline sonogram, Lupron, Estrogen patches and Progesterone in Oil injections. Lupron was part of my protocol due to the suspicion of endometriosis.

I did get a sheet with the 2018 FET cost estimate. I don’t have the specifics on hand but with meds it was around $6,000 per transfer.

All of the physicians with in the clinic agree that 1 healthy pregnancy at a time is best. Best for Mom and baby as a pregnancy with multiples run a higher chance of encountering risks. However, they will consider transferring 2 on a case by case basis.

Doctor Shahine is really good at giving you all the options and staying neutral to allow you to make the best decision for you. However if you ask her “what would you do if you were in my situation?” She will give you an honest answer and list the reasons why. Which I appreciate. Doctor Shahine is really good at explaining treatment procedures and keeping you informed of what needs to happen.

You can never ask too many questions. Do some research on each treatment beforehand and come in with some questions written down.

In my case I have a “balanced translocation” a condition with my chromosomes that can be passed down to my eggs that lead to miscarriages. Since a large number of my eggs would not result in a viable pregnancy, Doctor Shahine told me we would be more aggressive with the egg retrieval medication. That way we’d have better odds of getting a “good egg.” The results were effective as we ended up with one embryo to transfer.

A large portion of our treatment was covered by insurance. Treatment costs included egg retrieval, kearotype testing, fertility medication, PGD and PGS testing.

Dr. Lamb has always been a candid and proactive part of my treatment. My partner and I came to the clinic with some complicated issues, so we are still undergoing treatment and discussing potential future treatments. I appreciated Dr. Lamb's personalized approach to my care, and I know that she truly wants us to leave the clinic with a baby. It's just a matter of finding the right path to get there. Dr. Lamb has been patient with my severe anxiety, and I appreciate her direct and scientific answers to my questions. I am very happy with my experience as a patient.

Don't be afraid to ask questions and ask for more explanations. I shared my ideas for potential protocol changes, and Dr. Lamb always explained to me why those changes would be good or bad with evidence to back up her answers. Don't be afraid to play an active role in your care and approach IVF as a team process.

We used a higher dose of Follistim during cycling and triggered with HCG. All of my eggs produced were mature, but we didn't get as many healthy embryos as expected. We used IVF + ICSI. We are in the process of troubleshooting our approach for our next cycle since we are dealing with severe male factor infertility and less eggs making it to blast.

The cost for a full cycle was approximately $18,000. This doesn't include medications and optional PGS testing.

Dr. Lamb prefers eSET/pursuing one healthy singleton pregnancy at a time.

Dr. Lamb has been very compassionate and really clearly explained every step of the procedure, as well as the studies behind certain options that make her recommend or not recommend them. She seems incredibly up to date on the latest science.

Her schedule books quickly, and I did not see her on the majority of my visits or my egg retrieval, so you might want to plan that out ahead of time. However, all of the doctors or NPs I saw were great.

I'm 37 and had one prior egg retrieval that only resulted in 5 eggs, so we did BCP agonist, a higher dose of Gonal-F with the addition of mini HCG, and a HCG trigger. I generally have a high amount of follicles but my eggs need more to mature, and this seemed to do the trick.

We went through insurance, so we were only out of pocket about $3000 for genetic testing. I believe the total billed to insurance was something like $18k.

This clinic has a rule that for PGS embryos, they will only transfer one single. I'm not sure of the policy on non-tested embryos, since we did not go that route.

She is very straight forward but not too blunt. When talking about my chances being lower than others because of low egg count she talked us through specific number examples and let us throw in hypothetical questions. She set the expectations really well in our very first appointment so we have felt like we've been "on track" because it's working out to match what she set us up for - it's not ideal (of course I wish it was way easier) but she's been really good about knowing what we can expect.

Don't be afraid to ask your questions. She is so smart and it could be intimidating to ask what might feel like a dumb question but she's actually very patient with the crazy things I've asked her. It's ok to keep asking why - she'll answer when she can and be honest when there is no explanation for a specific result.

My first IVF cycle was with hcg (20 units) and folistim (450 units). The folistim is at the highest dose because I have very few eggs for someone my age. We started a day earlier than planned and retrieved a day earlier than predicted. I stayed at those dosages the whole cycle and the trigger was planned when the largest follicle was at about 19 mm. Early on she let me know it would be best to do retrievals now if I want to plan for more than one child because my egg count is so low so we are starting a second cycle now.

Lora Shahine is a caring individual. She always has a smile on her face and cares for her patients deeply. She has been a light in our darkest hours and I am grateful for her. Even in the hard times she shows hope for us.

Know that you aren't just working with a doctor. You will be working with a friend.

We used estrogen patches and Lupron first cycle but it affected my lining negatively so we went with estrogen and estrace and no Lupron and it helped! Once we transferred I was on estrogen, progesterone, estrace and aspirin. This ended in a Chemical pregnancy

Monitoring appointments were great for us. We live over an hour and a half a way and we had back to back appointments during the winter and they always would either see us earlier or get us in right on time because they understood our travel.

So far for our whole experience we have spent a grand total of 30,000.00 including retrieval and transfer. Meds we have spent around 15,000.00 through our pharmacy.

I trust our doctor and what she says will be best for my body.