Deborah Wachs

Dr. Wachs really took the time to get to know my medical history and what is causing me to have infertility issues. I feel like she hasn’t skipped any steps with my medical care and she has tried to get to the roots of my issues. As a patient, I have really felt cared for by her and her team. She has gone above and beyond and answers every question I have and explains thing with great detail. Dr. Wach’s is very sympathetic with what I have gone through in the past and I did not feel like just another patient with her. I would definitely recommend her to anyone going through fertility issues.

I would tell them that I trust Dr. Wach’s 100% and she will do everything she can to help you.

In my case, Dr. Wachs suggested 3 months of Letrozole to stimulate ovulation with a Trigger shot of Ovidrel. She also suggested timed intercourse for my husband and I. She set up a specific calendar for us so that I knew when to take the medication, inject the trigger shot and what days to have intercourse. She suggested that if I do not get pregnant within the next 3 cycles that we would move on to something else like IUI or IVF.

I believe the first appointment was around $400 for consultation and and an ultrasound. We also came back for genetic testing which was a blood test for both me and my husband which was close to $50 each to draw blood.

I have not spoken to my doctor about this.

She was very warm and welcoming. She seemed to be very empathetic about our situation, and always had a smile on her face. She explained everything thoroughly, and seemed optimistic about our treatments.

If you want a kind, warm doctor, she is the one to go to.

My first and second IUI's had exactly the same protocol. My lining thinned out for the third one, so they added Estrace into the mix. It was explained to me that it helped thicken the lining, but then the lining was never rechecked. The 4th IUI I used progesterone suppositories but I never knew why. I understand it was to aid in implantation, but they never drew my progesterone levels to see if that was necessary. None of my IUI's resulted in any kind of pregnancy.

None of our treatments were covered by insurance so it was rather expensive. Every IUI was $1200 out of pocket. Our IVF quote was quite high as well, but that could also be the Bay Area.

I really loved working with Dr. Wachs. The only issue is since she was out of the Los Gatos office, there were times my iui fell on a day where she wasn’t there to do the procedure or with IVF, I had to wait an extra week for transfer for her to be in the San Ramon office if I wanted her to be the one to do it (which I did). I trusted her implicitly and believe she had our best interest at heart and was rooting for us and wanted it as much as we did. She was always smiling and always encouraging and there if needed. She paid attention to our emotions and feelings, and made sure we always had all the information to make the best decisions and that we were okay with our course of treatment. She empowered us to know that we were in control of our treatment and we could change course at any time if we felt we wanted to do anything different.

Trust her. She knows what she is doing and she will lay out every option for you and what it means. Don’t be afraid to ask questions to understand the process. She is wonderful at being patient and explaining things so that you know what you are going through and what to expect.

For our iui cycles, I took letrozole days 3-7 and then started going in for ultrasounds around day 12. Once the follicles were appropriate size, I was instructed to give myself the ovidrel shot to trigger ovulation, and iui was performed 36 hours later. My husband would go in 2 hours before the procedure to give his sample and then we would go together for the IuI. After, I would lay on the table for 10 min or so then leave and go about my day. 2 weeks later I was given a blood test to determine if we were successful. We attempted this 3 months in a row with no success. We decided at this point to take a break, then switch to IVF. I took gonal-F and menopur, then added cetrotide 5 days later. I also started monitoring appointments on day 5 and went every other day. At my third appointment I was found to have 24 follicles growing and my dr sat me down and explained that while this is a great response, it increased my risk of OHSS and I wasn’t a good candid for a fresh transfer anymore. Afterthat appointment I switched to daily monitoring for a day or two and then triggered with Lupron on a Saturday night for a Monday morning egg retrieval. 15 eggs were retrieved, 13 were mature, 9 fertilized with icsi. We chose icsi since we had secondary unexplained infertility and were unsure what was causing this - so wanted the best option for fertilization to occur. Of the 9, we ended up with 3 day 5 blastocysts and 3 day 6 to go into the freezer. We opted out of pgs testing as we’ve had a previous successful pregnancy and no known genetic issues. We performed one 5 day FET the following month. I took estrace 2mg 3x/day starting on day 2 or 3 of my cycle, and then started progesterone shots and vaginal progesterone 2x/day 6 days before transfer. I had my blood test 9 days later which revealed we were unsuccessful and the transfer failed. Dr wachs then believed we had a timing issue, so we did ERA testing the following month - medication all the same as the previous month. The test found I was more receptive for transfer on day 7. The following month we did everything the same except I started progesterone 7 days before transfer. We opted to transfer two embryos this time to give ourselves a higher chance at success. We had multiple conversations with dr wachs about the pros and cons of a dual embryo transfer and she agreed to go ahead with it once she knew we had thoughtfully considered the outcomes. We found out 8 days after transfer that we were successful (hcg 71) then another blood test 11dpt (hcg 314) and was told it was probably only one embryo that took. We just had our first ultrasound at 6 weeks 3 days and saw one perfect embryo with a flickering heartbeat. I am continuing all my medication until my next appointment 2 weeks later (at 8 weeks, 3 days) at which point I hope to be able to stop the injections and wean off all other meds and “graduate” back to my normal OB for the duration of my pregnancy.

Around $1200 per iui $14,100 for IVF with icsi $4062 per frozen transfer $2000 ish for ERA testing (half to clinic, half to lab where testing was sent)

So for the first transfer, my doctor only ever transfers one - especially in my case of secondary unexplained infertility as she was confident the transfer would work. After the first didn’t take, and we did the ERA testing, we had a conversation where I brought up the prospect of transferring two as I read it increases your odds of success. My doctor stated she usually didn’t go to multiple until she was doing the same treatment that hadn’t worked prior, but if we wanted it and were ok with the possibility of having twins , and if having twins was better to us than having zero, she was okay with us transferring two. I appreciated her honesty and candor and I felt like she really listened to us and heard our perspective and agreed

Dr Wachs is a god-send angel for me. I wouldn't have known my conditions if it would not have been via Dr Wachs explanation. She has been with me in all the stages. Checking-up on me emotionally & medically. It's rare to find a good doctor.

Be patient. Not everything is under medical/Doctor's control. It can take a while before you get what you are looking for. You are in good hands. Dr. Wachs will take good care of you.

After our first consultation visit with Dr. Wachs. We had a strategic plan to proceed further. - Reviewed my situation - Did some labs (MRI SCAN, Ultrasounds) - Discusses all the labs with us - We had to do Hysterectomy to remove uterus fibroids. Then she purposed all the possible treatments for us IUI, IVF So far our journey is been hopeful & we are looking forward for the day to be blessed with a baby. It will be only possible because of Dr. Wachs & her team.

Well the fertility treatment is expensive. But the clinic finance-counselor Monica provided us all the details about the cost for our treatment. Also, wish that our medical insurance could cover majority of the labs & treatment fees but unfortunately that's not the case.

Absolutely Dr Wachs clearly defined the singleton transfer & multiple transfer differences to us. She strongly put her views about it.

As a patient of Deborah Wachs, I feel we came to a better understanding of each other after the devastation of not having any embryos to transfer after gone through the first cycle. The only part I was a little frustrated with was that the multi cycle plan was not given to me as an option in the initial consultation, however I also understand that with my age and my blood work, I was considered a slam dunk to walk out with a baby through IVF. I think Dr. Wachs is a great Dr. and she is doing the best she can with the information she has.

Make sure you ask every question you can think of even if it sounds silly.

I was on menepur and folistim for the first 4 days or so and then ganerelix for the next 4 days. These are all injectables (excuse me for the spelling of them, they may not be correct) The menepur and folistim was a shot of each every night and then a shot of the ganerelix making it a total of 3 shots a night for approx 8-10 days. It was uncomfortable starting after day 4. The egg retrieval was very painful for me a few days after. Some people are fine but I experienced major discomfort and had to take it easy for a couple weeks afterward. I did have good results with the medication and responded well. My overall egg quality could be better so for the next cycle, the Dr. wants to put me on a growth hormone.

$14,000 for the IVF cycle, $2500 for PGS testing, $3710 for transfer, $4000 for medication

My Dr. strongly recommended only doing a single embryo transfer because I am still young and will be able to have multiple children. She also did give me the risks for multiple embryo transfer and advised against it for the first cycle.

Dr. Wach's was everything I wanted in my fertility doctor. She was patient, kind, caring, compassionate and knowledgeable. She never gave up on me and always had more ideas of new techniques to try and tweak. As a patient I would always come in emotional and frantic and she would always manage to calm me down and keep my goals realistic, while comforting me in the fact that we still had several options. I would do my own research and bring her pages of notes and questions and she was knowledgeable on each of the studies I had found and explained why or why not each one would or would not work for my case. She was always put together well and her love for her job showed always, even through the holidays where you would expect her to be taking time off to spend with family, she was in the office, taking care of me. I have and will continue to recommend her to anyone who is going through infertility and I will definitely use her again for baby number two!

Be positive and don't give up!

My first cycle we used gonal and menopur and triggered 72 hours before my transfer. My second cycle we added Lupron in hopes of growing more eggs to be fully mature. I had an endometrial receptivity test which showed us we were doing our transfer after my personal window so we adjusted my transfers after that. She ended up putting me on progesterone and the blood thinner injections in order to increase my chances of implantation. Finally on our fourth try we combined everything and had success!

We used the attain package which I believe was about 25k, we used a company called capex md to finance it. Our medications and other procedures totaled around 18k so in total we spent around 43k

In the beginning while we were still learning how my body would react she encouraged a single embryo transfer and showed us that the reason they encourage that is it is lower risk than carrying multiples. Once we realized I wasn't a fertile mertile, she was more open to us transferring two embryo's at a time, which we tried for one cycle and were not successful.

My experience with Dr. Wachs has been good so far. Like I said before, she's a straight shooter and will be there if you need her. I have had only 1 IVF cycle and though she didn't perform the retrieval I understand these clinics "share" patients. I am still hopeful IVF with RSC will work for me.

Be patient and don't expect to be coddled, she will give it to you straight. She's not cold or has a poor bedside manner but she is a person and I can tell she does want to help!

I used BCP, Gonal, Menopur and Cetrotide for first IVF cycle. No eggs passed PGS. This time I used BCP again but Dr. Wachs changed the allocation of Gonal and Menopur, and added Omnitrope. Hopefully this will be the one that works!

I have help with insurance so it wasn't too bad. They paid about 50% of treatment and part of the medications.

No comments bc I'm doing PGS.

In my experience Dr. Wachs is kind, compassionate, and very knowlegable. After the consultation with Dr. Wachs, we were able to get started with the process of IVF very soon after which is for me at age 42 very important. First round we had 2 eggs tested for chromosomal abnormalities, sadly neither came back normal. When Dr. Wachs called to convey the bad news her compassion really came through along with leaving me with a feeling of hope for success with future treatment. We are seeking further treatment with Dr. Wachs who will be adjusting accordingly.

Start preparing your body for IVF in at least 3 months in advance. You can do this by eating a well balanced diet consisting of healthy foods, exercising regularly, and taking a prenatal vitamin along with CO - Q10.

I was put on the Agonist protocol, 11 days of stimulation meds, we also used ICSI to fertilize the eggs. I was on the following medications: Micro-dose Lupron 10 units subcutaneously twice daily, once in AM and once in PM. FSH (Gonal F) 300 units subcutaneously in the AM. Please continue Menopur 150 units subcutaneously in the PM. and Prenatal vitamin daily. We sent the two embryos off for PGS testing and sadly both were abnormal. The treatment up to that point was going well and it would have been nice to have more then two embryos make it to PGS testing. The doctor will adjust treatment for the next round in hopes to have more embryos to be tested.

Total of $24,000.00 $17,450.00 IVF Cycle, ICSI, Retrieval, Biopsy, and Implantation. $2,200.00 PGS genetic testing $4,000.00 Medications

We have not made it to a transfer yet, but we were told by Dr. Wachs at the initial visit that the goal is to transfer one healthy PGS tested embryo.

She’s smart, to the point, but kind and caring. Perfect blend of compassion and professionalism. I would gladly work with her again, she made our whole process seem logical and never forced us or pushed us. We had a lot of say in our care

Recognize that it’s impossible not to be emotional but that Dr Wachs is doing everything she can to help you conceive

The one issue I had was I became hyper stimulated in prep for my egg retrieval and was unable to do a live transfer. This prompted us to have to freeze all the embryos instead. One thing I would have preferred in this situation was some discussion prior to ensimination of my retrieves eggs. I had a LOT of good eggs retrieved, and in hindsight, would have preferred we not ensiminate all of them. I would have liked some eggs alone in case we chose to donate them or use other sperm. Having 28 embryos didn’t help me too much... I mean, it was a good problem to have but I would have liked to discuss options. Nonetheless, Dr Wachs shifted us to the FET process and did a good job explaining it and also gave us an opportunity to do PGS. This turned out to be a big benifif for us due to a tight time line I was on to get pregnant. Overall i was really happy with this medical advice. Also- Dr Wachs was pretty blunt when she discovered that I had PCOS that IUI was probably not going to work. Making the choice to switch to IVF early (after 3 IUI) was good for us, also with our dwindling sperm supply. I was very happy with her candid advice and direction but I never felt pressured to do anything.

About 13,000

Super happy we did eSET. My eggs/embryos were high quality and I was young (28) so her advice for eSET was best for us. I’m glad the clinic was very clear on this policy because I think the desire to get pregnant immediately can cloud people’s judgement on the risk/burden of twins.

I can't think of any weaknesses. I'd recommend her to anyone. She seemed very thoughtful and thorough while being very easy to relate to. I felt like she really cared about the outcome of our trial - and not just b/c good numbers make her look good but because she cared about us as wanna-be-parents!

Tell her all of your fears and all of your questions because she will take time to answer and explain everything.

I believe a bit above 15K

She was ok at explaining the medical stuff and answering my questions but I still felt like a number. She failed to ask certain questions or pay attention to details I mentioned that may have suggested a different course of action.

Don't use her.

At my first appointment, Dr Wachs performed a resting follicle test and reviewed my blood work and told me I needed to use donor eggs. She was compassionate about the fact that I would need to get closure on using my own eggs and said she supported me to do whatever I needed to get that closure--however she would not do an IVF cycle even if I had wanted to. At my request we tried a clomid and letrazole cycle. She failed to mention that Clomid was notorious for thinning one's lining and did not pay attention to notes in my file about having a thin lining, light periods etc. Next we moved to Letrazole and the techs mistakenly said I had a follicle maturing in two different ultrasounds that turned out to be a cyst. Finally, they gave me incorrect pregnancy results of another person, telling me I was pregnant even though many of the numbers in the labs would have been inconsistent with pregnancy.

About $300 for each surge sono --$3000 for medicated IUI $18000 for a frozen egg procedure

A wonderful, knowledgable doctor who truly cares for her patients. Dr. Wachs is very empathetic and available when needed. Dr. Wachs is honest and open with her patients, so you know she is doing everything she can to help you conceive a child.

I would push to get extra tests done. Ask her to turn over every rock until we find the answer. Sometimes, fertility clinics and doctors wait to do something after a few tries. I want answers after first miscarriage, not after 2 or 3.

Antagonist approach based off of ERA testing we did. Changing protocol for next round. Will had a hormone to improve egg quality.

Exceptional doctor. Took time out of her day to personally call you and see how the cycle was going. What to expect and answer questions. I will definitely go back to her for my next cycle. The whole way through I felt like my journey mattered and she wouldn’t stop till we had a positive pregnancy

She is an awesome doctor

High dosage to get maximum number of eggs.

Although it was not covered by my insurance the cost was doable and Soo worth it after the birth of my baby girl.

Single for better outcomes and less chances of problems arising with multiple pregnancies

Great clinic that helped me to achieve my results after 3 years of trying at another clinic. She laid out the options and the methods used. I did start with her but worked with many of her associates since my timing and hers didn't match my cycle

Do your research but know that you are at the best place

I had and egg and sperm donor. They have a in house egg donor program that was nice. I went through one cycle and it was successful.

Not willing to change protocols, despite poor results. Testing to just continue the same practices. Worried about continued treatments with her. Not wanting to confer with partners about my case, even though it’s been quite unusual. Does seem very confident and genuinely honest. Is not clear about likelyhood of success.

Great doctor is tubes are gone or if you have a straight forward case. Had an easy recovery, is very kind and professional. If you have an hard an unusual case maybe a different doctor.

She used Gonal F and menopur after estrace priming then testosterone patch. Omnitrope added.

Usually quick, no doctors seen here.

16100 per cycle retrieval 4500 to transfer.

Only issues are the protocol never made it to transfer.