Spring Fertility

After having an awkward time at Kaiser's IVF clinic, working with Dr. Minjarez was a pleasure. She is friendly and informative. She made me feel empowered which I believe contributed to the success of our transfer.

Ask questions, no matter how dumb. Don't be afraid to share your experience with her. She took us on with an intensity we needed to feel like IVF would work for us. Her confidence is infectious.

Due to my husband's infertility, we did ICSI and PGT.

Because we did the PGT we only transferred one egg. Very happy with that decision.

Dr. Fisher was very thorough & precise in his way of explaining things and setting expectations. He has been very upfront and fact-based, which is exactly how I wanted it. He might not be the most touchy feely type some people could prefer, but he is very patient, understanding, communicative and willing to listen to & address my concerns. We did two IUI as I was unsure how aggressive I wanted to go (and had lingering hope that things would just work out with min. treatment) but lost patience after two cycles and moved to IVF quickly; I have to say I moved a lot faster after learning all the facts (ex. IUI success rate is really not all that high) from Dr. Fisher. I was lucky that our first attempt at IVF was a success. The entire experience was very smooth overall (other than the daily hormone injections you would expect from the procedure no matter where you go), I felt very informed throughout and was able to plan ahead as much as possible. Looking back, I appreciate the fact that my doctor was cool headed and not feeding into my (inevitable) stress and emotion, but focus on the process one step at a time without over/under managing the expectation. I would definitely recommend Dr. Fisher.

He was pretty strong on single embryo transfer for the success rate, which is what we had in mind too so we didn't really push otherwise.

Dr.Fisher is an amazing human being and RE. I went in as a queer person with an idea in my head that the more "natural" approach I could take the better and from my first appointment which lasted over an hour Dr.Fisher never questioned my goals or opinions, even as they changed over the course on a year as I decided to go with IVF. My wife and I knew we wanted to start a family in about a year and we wanted to be as prepared as possible. I went in to get all the information I could and learn exactly what I should be doing to prepare my body for ttc. Dr. Fisher was with me each step of the way always being very informative, always being gentle, and always checking in on how I was and how my wife was. As I learned more about my insurance over the course of the first half of the year I discovered I had the option to have IVF covered in full. The thought of banking embryos now while my eggs are at their youngest started to become more appealing. Dr.Fisher again took time to meet and discuss all our options, how we could take the most relaxed approach and not overstimulate me which I had seen happen to my friends. I felt confident moving forward with IVF knowing Dr.Fisher would make sure things moved forward gracefully. My stimulation process was truly a breeze, I felt cared for and safe. When the day of retrieval came I was terrified but Dr.Fisher made sure I was okay. The retrieval went beautifully and recovery was quick! We PGT tested our embryos and I wanted to do one more retrieval to get to my goal number of normal high grade embryos for the potential of future children but then something unexpected came up our lives, a move to a new city in a new state. With only a few months left in the bay area we would be able to fit in one more retrieval cycle or a transfer, otherwise we would need to travel back to the bay for future transfers. We chatted with Dr.Fisher and decided to go for it and prep for one transfer before the move. Dr. Fisher decided on a modified natural cycle and I am SO glad he did. I have many friends who do fully medicated cycles and it takes such a toll on them taking so much medication sometimes for months beforehand and so many PIO shots. We allowed my body to do what it naturally does on its own. No progesterone needed, just a trigger shot at the time I ovulated to boost my natural hormone release and 5 days later my transfer. The transfer itself was amazing and once again Dr.Fisher was remarkably kind, informative, and genuine. Four days later I tested and got my positive, after 14 days I had 3 HCG bloodtests done all showing positive pregnancy, and finally 2 ultrasounds one at 7 weeks and one at 9 weeks showed growth exactly on schedule. Saying goodbye to Dr.Fisher was sad for both my wife and I. We had had such a wonderful year with him it was hard to imagine having a new doctor for the pregnancy stage. I am now 11wks and we are moved to our new home! My next appointment with out birth center is next week and I can't wait to send Dr.Fisher a ultrasound picture of how our little one is growing :)

You can feel comfortable with him. Whatever you are thinking, whatever questions you have he will take the time to listen and discuss with you all your options. Going into this can be scary, but with Dr.Fisher rest assured he is a friend as well as a brilliant RE.

Retrieval Prep Protocol: I stimulated for 11 days, began my antagonist on day 7, and triggered on day 11. These are my starting doses and they went down as my cycle continued. We wanted to stimulate what I naturally had, and not try to create more follicles than I naturally do. This kept me from overstimulating and I had a pretty relaxed stim process. Results: 13 retrieved, 11 mature, 10 fertilized, 8 at day three, 5 top quality at day 5/6 frozen Stimulation: Gonal-F 150IU, Menopur 250IU Antagonist: Cetrotide 250mcg (prefilled) Trigger: Novarel 5000IU, Leuprolide Acetate 1 prefilled vial Transfer Protocol: We went with a modified natural cycle. This allowed my body to have its own natural cycle and we supplemented a little to boost my natural hormones. Letrozole helped me to grow 2 large follicles when I normally grow one, so double the boost of natural hormone. We then added a trigger with my natural ovulation so I dropped both of those eggs again boosting what my body was already naturally doing. My transfer was exactly five days later! Results: Positive home pregnancy test at 4 days past 5 day transfer. HCG tests at 9 days past and 11 days past and 14 days past all showed positive pregnancy. Currently 11 weeks pregnant. Transfer (5 appointments including bloodwork, monitoring, and tranfer): Letrozole 2.5mg x2 for 5 days Ovidrel 250mcg (trigger at time of ovulation) Medrol 16 mg for 5 days up to transfer

My services were fully covered by insurance, I really couldn't say.

We knew from the start we would only transfer one embryo. Dr.Fisher never pressured in any direction but was clear that multiples are a risk for mother and baby.

We used Seattle Sperm Bank and were very happy with our experience, they went above and beyond to make sure we had everything we needed. When it was time to have the sperm vials sent to Spring Fertility they let us know Tuesday was the best day for delivery, we simply let SSB know and they schedule the shipment to arrive the next Tuesday morning.

Dr. Fisher is great! He understands how difficult the process can be and is very empathetic. He monitored all aspects of my progress and frequently adjusted things to make sure that we were making the best choices at every step. At our initial consultation, he explained that our chances weren't great, but we ended up conceiving after one cycle and I'm due to give birth in three weeks.

Feel free to be honest and candid. He really listens.

I've mostly tried to forget, but we did an extra week of hormone injections in the beginning before the transfer to let the eggs grow. Then, we postponed the transfer for one cycle and I did suppositories because my progesterone levels were too low. We made all these decisions together.

A little under $30,000 for the whole thing. Around $18,000 for the first part (extraction), $4000 for all pre-extraction meds (unlimited meds, rather than paying per Rx - ended up saving us money) , then another maybe $5000 for the embryo transfer, genetic testing was a few thousand, I had to take progesterone, which was a few hundred, and some ultrasounds.

We only had one good embryo.

Dr. Fisher has incredible bedside manner, which is very much needed in this profession since fertility is a very sensitive matter. He also explained everything thoroughly and I trusted him completely.

As all the questions you need. Dr. Fisher is very patient and understanding and he will explain everything to you thoroughly.

I underwent 3 cycles of the mid-luteal treatment protocol.

I had no issues going to any of my monitoring appointments. If my doctor was not available, another doctor performed the ultrasound and I did not have any problems with that.

I don't recall because I only paid $2500 (the full amount of my deductible) for my first cycle and my insurance covered the remainder of that cycle, plus the 2 other subsequent cycles.

I always felt like I was in great hands with Dr. Dovey. It was clear that she wouldn't make any final decisions about my plan/treatment until she had all the information she needed to make an educated decision. She never gave me any reason to be anything but confident in our plan and everything has worked out very well so far! Looking back, I never thought to ask Dr. Dovey what she expected my outcome to be given my numbers and that also wasn't something she proactively discussed with me. In my experience, it was definitely "I don't know what I don't know" and it might have been more helpful for Dr. Dovey to tell me what other questions I should be asking. But on the other hand, she probably knows too much information is not always a good thing. At the end of the day, I know she had my best interest at heart and did everything she could to be successful. And we were successful!

Ask Dr. Dovey what results/outcomes you should predict based on your diagnosis and treatment plan. It will help to set expectations, especially if IVF is very new to you.

Right off the bat we decided to do ICSI for the best chances of fertilization and do a frozen transfer as I wanted to do PGT-A testing. For my protocol, Dr. Dovey decided to have me do a mid-luteal start because I had just gotten my J&J vaccine and was worried about enhanced blood clot risks of taking birth control to prep for stims. With a mid-luteal start, I did not have to take birth control so I was very happy with that decision. Given my diagnosis of PCOS and high follicle count, we did a relatively low dose of medications and had frequent monitoring appointments. We stimmed for 14 days total because we wanted as many eggs to mature as possible. The night I triggered I also started Caborgoline as a preventative measure against OHSS. For the FET, we did a modified natural cycle (which I was surprised she recommended because I don't ovulate on my own, though I respond well to Letrozole). She explained the benefits of this protocol but offered to do a fully medicated/controlled cycle if I felt more comfortable. I decided to do the modified natural because she felt confident. I did not respond to the Letrozole as well as we hoped, so she added 75 units of Gonal F for 5 nights (with monitoring appointments to track progress) to help my dominate follicle grow and to thicken my lining. After I triggered, I took progesterone suppositories before the transfer and all the way up t0 my second positive Beta. We did the 1st Beta 12 days after transfer as I had vacation plans (otherwise it would have been 14 days)

There were 3 main buckets of costs: 1)Egg Retrieval and ICSI (approx $18k which included PGT-A), 2)Frozen Embryo Transfer (approx $4.5k), and 3) medications (approx $5k) I wish cost of medication was included with the retrieval and FET - it seems a little misleading not to as they are so expensive

N/A- I only wanted to transfer one embryo and we were aligned on that

Dr. Fisher was warm and caring. He shared his families personal experience with infertility and IVF, and would take the little bit of extra time to get to know me, ask me how my weekend went, etc. When we decided to find out our babies gender, Dr. Fisher wanted to be the one to call us personally which I thought was just so kind and one of many examples of how I was treated like a human not a number.

1st Retrieval: Mid-luteal protocol, Menopur/Gonal-F plus Cetrotide injections for ~14 days, yielded 2 PGS-normal embryos. 2nd Retrieval: Standard protocol, Prepped with birth control, Menopur/Gonal-F plus Cetrotide injections for ~14 days (same dosages as 1st retrieval). I also did acupuncture, which Dr. F confirmed has shown to be effective in some studies. Cycle yielded 7 PGS-normal embryos. 1st Transfer: Natural cycle, was given hcg trigger, and medrol leading up to transfer. Valium for transfer procedure. Frozen embryo transfer with Day 6 5AA embryo. Supplemented with 2-weeks endometrin suppositories post-transfer. Now 27-weeks pregnant with my first babe :)

My employer provides fertility benefits, so my total out of pocket cost was <$2k for procedure, appointment, and prescription co-pays.

Dr Fisher strongly advised against multiple embryo transfer for my specific case, due to potential risks.

Debra was very smart and methodical in her approach to medication amounts and brands to use. She looked at results from previous sessions and adjusted the next round. She was funny, and easy to talk to. She also had no judgement of us as a couple or how we got to that point. She was also very clear with her directions to her staff and in explaining things to us.

Have us lay and relax longer after injection of IUI. The successful procedure I had was the only one that I laid in the room for 15 min after the injection with my legs still up in the stands. One of the nurses did that injection and did it differently than Debra had done the previous two unsuccessful injections.

only have one ovary on right side, with short Luteal phase, age 35 when got pregnant and 36 when delivered 1st attempt: Clomid FSH, 1 follicle formed 1st time, good thick lining, want more follicles, however, many were close and trying, did not lay on back for 15min after IUI procedure 2nd attempt: Letrozal FSH, only developed 2 follicles that were mature and lining wasn't as thick as hoped, and less follicles were trying, did not lay on back for 15min after IUI procedure 3rd successful pregnancy: Clomid FSH with booster FSH shot. Did Clomid first, then follow with shot, 4 doses gonal, 2 menopur, then added progesterone to support lengthen time for egg to implant, laid for 15 min on back with legs up in stirrups after IUI procedure

I did an egg freezing procedure as well which there is a payment plan for $295/month and $600/year storage fee ($5000 for meds for the procedure) My IUI cycles were $1500/cycle

As mentioned previously, it is clear Dr. Dovey is exceptional at what she does. I think the most remarkable part for me was that I had virtually no pain after both retrievals which I attribute to her skills as a surgeon.

Always feel free to ask questions!

For each retrieval cycle I was on approx. two weeks of injectables at decreasing amounts over the two week period, then trigger shot and retrieval. I had monitoring appointments every other day to two days.

$50K

N/A

Dr. Harris was relatable and easy to talk to; in the few visits where my husband joined me, he provided a place that was comfortable for a man going through this process. He was very clear on his thoughts on IUI vs. IVF up front but mentally, I wasn't ready to go straight to IVF w/o trying IUI. He respected my decision and supported me. He is very optimistic and always tells me everything "looks great" which is ironic because I feel like I'd be pregnant already if everything was truly "great". As I experienced set backs, one being a lab error (scheduled for the wrong day for my FET), Dr. Harris accepted accountability but was pretty dismissive of my emotional state and just kept saying he has faith I will eventually be a mom despite acknowledging the IVF fatigue I was experiencing. He also provided a "pregnancy guarantee" which never came into fruition under his care so it felt a bit like an empty promise.

Take advantage of the time you have with him and ask a lot of questions. During each treatment I would ask him the questions I had instead of trying to schedule calls thru the clinic. But if I needed to do calls through the clinic, I'd do that. Do not always depend on the nurse being your "middle man". He's a great doctor but I cannot recommend the clinic in good faith. They don't care about their patients in the way you deserve to be cared for.

I have "unexplained infertility", before trying I visited him to get the full work up to ensure my reproductive system was working as expected. However, I never had a HSG which I feel like is odd for someone who was doing IUI. I came to Dr. Harris for my first IUI, which I did during a Letrozole cycle. He was supportive but said I'd have better success with IVF. After the second failed IUI (chemical pregnancy), I begun IVF, so in a way I feel like he was right all along but it took me awhile to get there emotionally/mentally. IVF hasn't been as much of a "sure bet" as he explained it would be.

Spring is a Fertility Factory, sometimes they get it right and thats sheer luck but mostly they don't.

100% covered by Progyny insurance after meeting my insurance deductible

I wouldn't mind twins but Dr. Harris said he would only transfer one embryo at my age.

I absolutely enjoyed working with Dr. Harris! From the first time we met (he came out to the waiting room to greet me himself and even behind the mask, I could tell he had the biggest smile) I felt like he was just as excited for my journey as I was. He also put me to ease with some of my initial questions and concerns. During my initial ultrasound, Dr. Harris expressed his expectations clearly and was more than willing to explain things further when I asked. All in all, we were able to retrieve and freeze exactly the number of eggs he anticipated and on the timeline I had aimed for.

Dr. Harris has a wealth of knowledge - I recommend you come to each appointment with your questions ahead of time so you make sure they're all covered!

I had told Dr. Harris about my timeline to complete the egg freezing cycle - which was short - and he was very willing to be flexible with me. I really appreciated that he spent the time to make sure I understood the pros and cons of working within my timeline, which helped me make an informed decision about next steps.

Dr. Harris is super nice. He is also very experienced and sharp. He has a compassionate nature and a good sense of humor. He also helped someone else I know and she said he was amazing with her as well through a long IVF journey.

I think choosing a doctor is personal so you might want to do a consultation with a couple of doctors and then choose which one you felt best with. If you work with Dr. Harris or any doctor I'd say make sure to do some research on IVF so that you can know what questions to ask. Write down your questions and don't hesitate to ask them to your doctor and nurses.

First cycle we did a follicular protocol with Aygestin and ten days of Gonal and Menopur with great results. Second cycle we did a midluteal protocol where you start 5 days after ovulation and twelve days of Gonal and Menopur with even better results. The doctor said he wished he could take credit but there is some randomness in how many follicles your body has each month so unclear how much the protocol helped but I was very happy he could make adjustments based on my first cycle to create a better second cycle and that he was humble about it and how well it worked.

Dr. Harris has been a perfect blend of being very skilled at what he does and also being great with patients. It's not enough to know what you're doing if you can't communicate it, and he does this well. At my former clinic I often left more confused, but here I leave every conversation feeling more confident. The protocols seem more in line with current research and are more data-driven from beginning to end. Dr. Harris feels personally invested in the outcome and takes his time to make sure we're on the same page.

Consider the cost of repeated rounds vs getting the best possible results the first time. We flew in from out of state just to work with Dr. Harris. We paid more than if we had stayed local (plus the travel costs) and I only wish we made that decision sooner. We had 2 failed rounds at a local clinic. Dr. Harris got far better results with a single round, meaning we would have saved money to just start with him.

Ovulation predictor kits to identify ovulation. Menopur and Gonal-F with decreased dosage the last few days of stimulation. Cetrotide starting day 8 of stim. Leuprolide and Novarel to trigger on Day 11. Retrieval on Day 13 under anesthesia (didn't feel a thing). 21 eggs retrieved and 19 were mature. All 19 fertilized successfully using ICSI. By day 3, 15 embryos were growing and considered good quality. By Day 6, we had 7 blastocysts that were biopsied. PGT testing found 4 to be euploid/normal. We haven't transferred any of these yet.

$18-19K for monitoring, egg retrieval, embryo creation, genetic testing. $4-5K for stimulation meds. $2-3K for initial consultation and screening. (Haven't paid for embryo transfer yet.)

He strongly encouraged single embryo transfer in our case, which matched what we wanted, and what our gestational carrier preferred as well. He was very willing to review the risks and discuss the underlying reasoning with us.

Because of his behavior, I would not recommend anyone to see Dr. Tran. He is easily annoyed and agitated. I would not feel safe having him as my doctor - his language, tone, and attitude were all unpleasant. He is very detached, judgemental, and a bully.

If you plan on seeing him, stand up for yourself, do not let him push you around. He will try to make you feel less than human.

Consultation $450

When I first met Dr. Harris at the consultation, he was very warm and optimistic. I had several cycles at another facility that did not go well, but Dr. Harris was positive that we could do better at Spring Fertility. When I had trouble with being seen in his clinic during the retrieval cycle, he would try to reassure me and told me to contact him directly, but he never gave me any way to contact him directly. He would say "just email me" but never gave me his email address. After transferring the only embryo fro that cycle, he contacted me once (2 weeks after the transfer) to say "congratulations" on rising betas but "still long way to go" and never contacted me again. That was it. No further contact. He never sought out the results of the transfer. I ended up having a successful pregnancy. The next time I heard from his clinic was 6 months postpartum. I asked to speak to Dr. Harris to let him know I was disappointed the clinic didn't seem to care to find out the results of the transfer. Dr. Harris suggested that I didn't check my email or reply to them (at which point they stopped contacting patients after 2 tries) -- none of which is true.

He is friendly but don't explain why the protocol, and I felt is a default protocol to everyone. Even sent medication by nurse per email without any explanation why should I take the pills. During the ultrasound never said anything I need ask all the time about the sizes and is the medicine was working well.

He is friendly, but very busy

He just does single embryo transfer

Dr. Harris is a wonderful, knowledgeable doctor. He knows what he's doing, and you're in good hands with him. IVF, as a whole, is risky and success is not guaranteed. I thought Dr. Harris did a great job of navigating that with me while giving me confidence that we were doing the best we could.

Be sure to ask him any questions you have and be proactive about your own care.

Covered by Progyny

I chose Dr. Vaughn because of her experience with PCOS. It was clear from our first meeting that she knew what she was talking about and didn't just have experience but sincere expertise. I appreciated that fact that she had understanding of PCOS and was really willing to listen to my specific situation and journey. I had been working with more holistic care professionals up until meeting her and was looking for a second opinion mostly when I set my appointment. She was able to set me up with some more detailed procedures to make sure that all was working as needed and wasn't the cause of my fertility issues so far. While she ignored a lot of what I shared with her from my work with my Functional Medicine Fertility Specialist, she suggested that I have a saline sonogram and hysteroscopy which my FMD hadn't suggested. These procedures ultimately led to as close as we could get to real answers and a better larger picture understanding of how my system was functioning. I don't that this is necessarily a red flag or an issue it's just how she was trained and I appreciated her accepting and working in parallel to the holistic work I was doing without negating it or actively trying to contradict. The only other thing I would add for others trying to learn if Dr. Vaughn is a good fit is that one of the first things she looked at when I mentioned PCOS was my weight, I did not appreciate this and she eventually worked through that my weight was not the issue but as most main stream medicine professionals have a focus on weight as a first answer, especially with PCOS, Dr. Vaughn does seem to be right in line with that.

Be ready with questions, she will take the time to explain everything but knowing the questions to ask to get the answers and explanations you need is useful. If you are someone like me and wants all the information as deep as it will go then do your research ahead of time. If you are happy to let your doctors be your fully trusted guide I don't think you can go wrong with Dr. Vaughn either, though.

We did some testing so she could confirm my PCOS. The issue that seemed to present itself was that my endometrial lining was thin. I had an inkling this was the case as my periods were not full periods, they were very light (practically just spotting) and not fresh red blood. She first suggested a saline sonogram which she performed in order to make sure there were no blockages. She mentioned that sometimes the cervix can become blocked and simply performing the sonogram would clear that blockage in the most simplest of cases, otherwise it would give us more insight into my uterine lining and opening. After the sonogram, my flow did not improve by my cervical mucus did, I was seeing more fertile mucus than I had been seeing before so I saw this as an improvement. She also thought that there maybe there was something blocking the uterine opening and mentioned that the saline sonogram couldn't tell us much more then there was something there and suggested a hysteroscopy to get more information. My endometrial lining was still seeming thin but it was hard to tell based on the timing in my cycle. Dr. Vaughn sent me to a wonderful OB to do the hysteroscopy due to my insurance requirements. The hysteroscopy clarified that I had some polyp like tissue in my uterus as well as other fluffy tissue. Non of this was of a real concern but they cleaned up my uterus anyway. I believe this was a significant part of us being able to conceive naturally in the end.

Everything we did there was covered with our benefits. We were lucky in the respect. If I had done my hysteroscopy with Dr. Vaughn and not the OB/GYN I visited then it would have been upwards of $400.00 if I remember correctly.

It was a pleasure working with Dr. Harris. I feel so fortunate to have been under his care. He really took the time to explain the process and make sure I understood what was going on. He was always so warm, friendly, fun and made me feel at ease during the whole process.

You are in good hands. I have seen other fertility doctors, but none have made me feel as comfortable as Dr. Harris.

Since I have anovulation and PCOS, my body was sometimes slow to respond to the IVF medications. Dr. Harris was careful to monitor my progress along the way and make appropriate tweaks when necessary. I was grateful he was giving me such close attention and care, and not treating me like just another patient.

I believe the total costs were around $30,000.

We did not discuss multiple embryo transfer.

We couldn't be happier as patients of Dr Tran. We saw him at Spring in 2018 when the clinic was still growing and again at the end of 2019 when the clinic had grown exponentially but we experienced the same level of care from Dr Tran. What we appreciated the most was Dr Tran's direct, confident and no fluff demeanor. Often times, he was more confident in a positive outcome than we were which is what I would want with my fertility doctor. We did experience 1 miscarriage with an IUI cycle which Dr Tran showed a nice balance of compassion and yet still a focus on the path forward.

If you want a fertility doctor who is going to hold your hand, provide some fluffiness to your consults and consultations with a pair of rosy glasses on, this is not the doctor for you. If you want a personalized, down to business, direct and a results driven outcome, then Dr Tran is who you'd want to see.

Walking into the clinic, I thought for sure we would be doing IVF but after our consultation, ultrasound and fertility vitals, Dr Tran recommended that we start with IUI first since the more %s of increase in chances of being pregnant with IVF vs IUI wasn't worth the exponential extra cost of IVF. For our first treatment cycle, we did two rounds of IUIs. The first round resulted in a miscarriage at 5.5 weeks and the second round results in my now healthy toddler. For our second treatment cycle which was 10 months after giving birth, we did two rounds of IUI. The first round didn't take and the second round resulted in twins which I am currently in the third trimester of.

The initial consult was out of pocket which was reasonable. My first two IUI cycles were covered by work and we paid out of pocket for the 2nd two IUI cycles which we found was reasonable as well.

My experience with Dr. Klatsky in 2018 for the egg retrieval was flawless. He kept me updated and educated on why he was doing particular procedures or prescribing medications and was very empathetic to all of the side effects throughout the process. When I came back in for the embryo transfer in 2020, I felt more disconnected. He relies heavily on his IVF nurse lead (who was great) to keep track of medications and cycle stages. There was one appointment i particular that he wasn't aware of what medications I was currently taking and he made recommendations to change medication and move up the cycle. I then received an email from his nurse later that day stating to not make the changes the Dr. had recommended, because he was not aware of exactly what meds I was on and to keep things as originally scheduled. Dr. Klatsky did follow up after our failed embryo transfer, answered all of our questions and was very empathetic and apologetic about the miscommunication that had occured throughout the FET cycle. He discussed in depth the plan for our next FET and why we would take that approach and it has been scheduled to happen within the next two months.

The advice that I would give to a prospective patient of Peter Klatsky is to make sure you ask a lot of questions and don't hesitate to request for a follow up phone call if more information is needed or questions need to be answered after an appointment or consultation.

My husband and I had been trying for over a year to get pregnant before we came into the clinic. Dr. Klatsky preformed a saline sonogram, and HSG, an ultrasound and ordered blood work for both my husband and I. He then diagnosed me with Unexplained Infertility saying that all of the tests came out clear. He also took into account the results of my husbands sperm sample that we had previously had done. He recommended IVF, stating that IUI has less chances of working to get us pregnant. We went with his recommendation and started IVF asap. We did a retrieval under his care and did pgs testing at his recommendation to prevent miscarriage or failed FETs. We then did a medicated FET that was not successful. Dr. Klatsky recommended a medicated FET (with intramuscular progesterone shots and estrogen patches), because during the retrieval he stated that my lining was pretty thin and that the medicated protocol would rule out the lining being a factor. Dr. Klatsky, as well as my husband and I were all pretty surprised when the first round didn't work, since everything went well, lining looked good and the embryo was a "perfect" 5AA. After following up after the transfer, Dr. Klatsky has changed his approach for our next FET to a natural transfer, as I reminded him of my history of pelvic tension issues, interstitial cystitis and spotting. He wants to make sure that endometriosis isn't a factor, although I don't have many of the symptoms and he has done the majority of non- invasive tests to rule it out. Just in case I do have it he does not want to give me estrogen for the next cycle, which causes endo to flare. It will be a risk because there is a chance my lining may not be thick enough on transfer day, but he thinks it is best to try something different than last time to rule out endometriosis or any other factors that may be preventing us from getting pregnant.

I believe the IVF retrieval was around 12,000-15,000. The FET with consultation, tests, monitoring and transfer was 5,100.

Dr. Klatsky recommended against putting in multiple embryos at my age (33) and with my diagnosis (unexplained infertility) as it could cause a high risk pregnancy (multiples). I don't even think the clinic allows people to ask for multiple transfers at my age or with my diagnosis, but I am sure there are certain exceptions that they may do so. We allowed the clinic to pick the best out of our 3 pgs tested embryos and asked for the gender to be confidential and not shared with us.

After 6 unsuccessful vaginal inseminations and 5 unsuccessful IUIs with fresh known donor sperm at home with a midwife, my partner and I went to Dr Minjarez because I'd heard that she was very experienced after having worked at CCRM for ~20 years. At our initial consult, she seemed warm and matter of fact, going through the usual statistics for someone my age, etc. She seemed very queer friendly. My partner and I made a point to tell her we did not want to do IVF (we were nervous she was going to push it on us so went in a little defensive) and she said "let's do 3 medicated/monitored IUIs and see..." At each monitoring appointment, she briskly relayed my follicle count in a neutral tone, without embellishing any details. I was never given a diagnosis although my understanding is that I have diminished ovarian reserve since at 39 years old, I only got 4-5 follicles per cycle and my AMH was around 1. I also have multiple autoimmune conditions, including Hashimoto's but she didn't seem concerned about that and said as long as my TSH was under 2 there wasn't anything to worry about. It felt like she was just going through the motions but that we weren't developing a relationship or a game plan. I guess I would have liked my doctor to be more responsive and engaged- telling me what they thought would be the best course of action and changing course as new information was revealed. I sensed that the doctors at Spring are very systematic and just assign people to their place in the rubric without concern for individual factors. The staff seemed pretty organized as far as email and phone follow ups, although I did have a concerning interaction regarding viability of fresh, washed sperm in IUI. The medical assistant told me over the phone it was viable for 3-5 days in the uterus which I disagreed with so she transferred me to someone in andrology, who backed her up. When I shared this with Dr Minjarez, she said that they were both wrong and she'd follow up. After my third unsuccessful medicated and monitored IUI, they emailed me to ask the result of my pregnancy test. I felt too demoralized (after 15 total unsuccessful tries) to reply and I never heard from them again- to discuss next steps or anything. I feel like they dropped the ball by not reaching out again, but it has only been 2 weeks since their last email so I'll see... I don't think I'll continue at Spring because it just doesn't seem personalized enough. It may be a great place for egg freezing or maybe male factor is where they really shine, but as a 40 year old queer woman with DOR and autoimmune issues, I didn't feel like they offered the individualized support that I need.

Write down your questions in advance of your appointments because they go by in a flash and it's hard to think when you're in stirrups. Also take notes during the appointment so you don't forget your follicle count, etc (again- hard to remember things you heard while you were in stirrups).

I was given 7.5mg letrozole day 2-6 and trigger shot (ovidrel) for 3 cycles. The monitoring appointments were on day 2 and then around day 14 (because I typically ovulate on day 17). I didn't sense that I had much response to the letrozole, but who's to say because I wasn't monitoring before I started taking it. I did vaginal inseminations at home and IUIs at home with a midwife, based on the timing recommended by Dr Minjarez. Although the timing seemed just right, I did not become pregnant.

The initial consult and each monitoring appointment cost $450. I don't believe they accept insurance.

Dr. Harris was relatable and easy to talk to; in the few visits where my husband joined me, he provided a place that was comfortable for a man going through this process. He was very clear on his thoughts on IUI vs. IVF up front but mentally, I wasn't ready to go straight to IVF w/o trying IUI. He respected my decision and supported me. He is very optimistic and always tells me everything "looks great" which is ironic because I feel like I'd be pregnant already if everything was truly "great". As I experienced set backs, one being a lab error (scheduled for the wrong day for my FET), Dr. Harris accepted accountability but was pretty dismissive of my emotional state and just kept saying he has faith I will eventually be a mom despite acknowledging the IVF fatigue I was experiencing.

Take advantage of the time you have with him and ask a lot of questions. During each treatment I would ask him the questions I had instead of trying to schedule calls thru the clinic. But if I needed to do calls through the clinic, I'd do that. Do not always depend on the nurse being your "middle man".

I have "unexplained infertility", before trying I visited him to get the full work up to ensure my reproductive system was working as expected. However, I never had a HSG which I feel like is odd for someone who was doing IUI. I came to Dr. Harris for my first IUI, which I did during a Letrozole cycle. He was supportive but said I'd have better success with IVF. After the second failed IUI (chemical pregnancy), I begun IVF, so in a way I feel like he was right all along but it took me awhile to get there emotionally/mentally. IVF hasn't been as much of a "sure bet" as he explained it would be but I am maneuvering through the process in hopes of his optimism turning into a baby.

100% covered by Progyny insurance after meeting my insurance deductible

I wouldn't mind twins but Dr. Harris said he would only transfer one embryo at my age.

When we first met with Dr. Tran for a consultation, he was very efficient but thorough. He explained our options in a straightforward manner. We received a lot of information that first visit, but we had a fairly clear sense of our path forward, though the question of timing was still a little hard to grasp. We were able to proceed with treatment relatively quickly, and I always felt like I was in good hands with Dr. Tran. I appreciated that I saw him on most visits and that he handled my procedures himself. We had one minor confusion when he told us he thought we could do a transfer before the end of the year, when really January was the actual outcome because of holiday closures, but while that felt frustrating at the time, I'm glad we did the transfer at a time when we could have full access to Dr. Tran and the clinic. On the day of the retrieval, he did a great job putting me at ease, joking about the music playing in the procedure room. We got some bad news after my retrieval - only 2 embryos made it to day 6 out of the original 18 - and Dr. Tran explained that it might be due to the quality of my eggs over the phone. I think that information would have been a little easier to take in person, but I appreciate that he was able to take the time to talk to us about it. While things sometimes felt like they moved quickly with Dr. Tran, I know he's a very experienced doctor with a great track record, so I feel grateful we were able to work with him.

Don't be afraid to ask questions if you have any. Dr. Tran will make time to answer them if he knows you have them.

My partner was diagnosed with male factor infertility before coming to Dr. Tran. We were told IVF with ICSI was our best option by the reproductive endocrinologist we had gotten testing with at Kaiser. Dr. Tran reviewed our results and agreed that IVF with ICSI was our best path forward. Because my results were all within standard range, he said our chances were relatively high, comparatively -- about 60% chance of conception per cycle. I was put on Menopur and Gonal-F to prepare for the retrieval, and we were able to stay the course without making changes to the protocol as the eggs were progressing as expected. I did the trigger injections 36 hours before the procedure, and came in for the retrieval, which resulted in 19 eggs, 18 of which made it to the embryo state. We used ICSI and they grew the embryos to day 6. Only two made it to day 6, both of which we chose to send for PGS testing. One came back as normal, the other was "inconclusive." We would have been allowed to either re-test the inconclusive embryo or transfer it without further testing. When the clinic reopened after the holidays, I went on birth control for about two weeks before starting medication (Letrozole then Medrol) to prepare for the transfer. I was not put on progesterone after bloodwork showed I had appropriate levels. I was given Valium to take the day of the transfer, and no further medication after that. I got a positive HCG result about two and half weeks after the transfer and am currently 14 weeks pregnant.

Dr. Tran strongly recommended single embryo transfer, and given my age and the risks, I was happy with this approach.

Dr. Tran was always honest about our odds of conceiving. He was hopeful that it could work, but didn't offer false hope which I appreciated. He was good at explaining what he was doing and why. He seemed to have a good balance between using evidence-based methods and a willingness to try something else when that didn't work. He is fairly technical and clinical, but I think that's what you want: someone precise and exacting. In the end, we trusted him and when he was optimistic that a second round could yield better results than our first, we agreed. And he was right! Our second round was successful.

Don't expect someone who is touchy-feely. Ask good questions, he's happy to explain things. Trust that his number one goal is to help you conceive and he'll do what he can to make that happen.

Round one: started with lupron then was on 150 menopur, 225 gonal f for 4 days, then 150 of each for 4 days, then 75 menopur/150 gonal f for 1 day. Produced 14 follicles, 9 embryos, all poor quality by day 3. Transferred the best 3 on day 3, resulted in a chemical pregnancy with nothing left to freeze. Round 2: started on Aygestin then was on 150 each menopur and gonal f for 8 days, then 75 menopur/150 gonal f for 3 days, then 75 of each for last day. Also took HGH throughout. Began cetrotide last 4 days. This time he also cultured our embryos differently. This time retrieved 10, had 9 embryos. 3 very good ones and a handful of ok ones. None made it to freeze. Transferred 3 on day three resulted in twins.

Dr. Tran felt strongly that we should transfer 3 based on my age and egg quality.