How was your experience with Mary Bray (retired) at NYU Langone Reproductive Specialists of New York?
Dr. Bray is a very experienced and passionate doctor. She has been around the fertility scene for a long time and knows a lot about...well everything from insurance to OBGYNs. She does have a very distinctive mannerism (which for me worked great) - she is blunt, likes to talk about statistics/studies/insurance and does not give a "oh, you'll have a baby!" talk. What she does really well is give you facts and science and then makes an educated guess about what will statistically happen. After all my diagnostic testing was done as well as the SA on my husband she looked at everything and told us our next steps, how likely they were to be successful, etc. She was also attentive to my needs outside of fertility (such as a running injury that was making PIO injections really painful -she found an alternative). Overall, I have really appreciated Dr. Bray's honesty and outlook. Also, because it is an outshoot office of the main Long Island (Mineola) clinic, there is a smaller and more family feel. Any time during my IVF monitoring that I wanted to see Dr. Bray I did. That means a lot to me.
What's one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Mary Bray (retired) at NYU Langone Reproductive Specialists of New York?
Don't worry if she seems to get distracted by insurance policies - she has your back and knows your case. She'll also complain a LOT about the computer system but in the end she is kind, caring, and very good.
During treatment, were you treated like a number or a human with Mary Bray (retired) at NYU Langone Reproductive Specialists of New York?
Dr. Bray knows me. I walk in and she is ready to talk about me, my questions, my stats, my possibilities. She is blunt - which I so appreciate. I cannot handle false hope. Instead she says, "here are the stats about where you are and where you might go". She is willing to schedule around my work (I'm a teacher), my husband (who travels a lot), and saw me as many times as I requested during my IVF monitoring.
Describe the protocols Mary Bray (retired) used in your cycles at NYU Langone Reproductive Specialists of New York and their degree of success.
First we did a diagnostic testing cycle. Then three cycles of clomid/timing. Since our biggest problem is male factor, her rationale for clomid/timing was if we have 2-3 eggs rather than 1 there is a better chance of a sperm getting to something. Then we did three IUIs with clomid. Then we moved onto IVF with ICSI. We had to do a freeze all cycle because our embryos were sluggish and not ready by day 5. In the end this was good because I was close to OHSS and it allowed my hormones and ovaries a chance to cool off a bit. We did a FET in my next cycle (I had some uterine lining trouble so she switched my estradiol from oral to vaginal and that did the trick!). I was also having a lot of pain with my PIO injections due to a running injury. That FET turned out unsuccessful. We took a two month break and went into our next FET. She allowed me to do a natural cycle (I really wanted to try to go with my body's natural rhythm). I ran back into the uterine lining problems so she easily switched me post-ovulation to doing medicine. She switched my progesterone to vaginal suppositories to avoid the pain of the PIO on my injured hip and that helped a lot! She had be do Estradiol vaginally again and that with the progesterone got my lining nice and thick. We transferred one embryo (our last) and we got pregnant. It split into identical twins but very late (around 6 weeks) and something must have gone wrong with the split because both babies stopped growing and we miscarried. Dr. Bray was so kind and supportive and gave me a choice about going into a new cycle or taking a break. I decided to take a break and just try naturally. So, 6 months later I'm back with her and ready for a new IVF round.
Describe your experience with your nurse at NYU Langone Reproductive Specialists of New York. (Assigned nurse: Elena)
Elena is GOOD at her job. She is sort of the team captain on the ground and is in charge of all medication ordering, patient coordinating, calls, etc. She is really blunt and can sometimes seem cold but when you need her to be there and supportive for you she shows up emotionally. She has calmed me down and encouraged me on numerous occasions when I needed a little extra attention. But usually it's business as usual (which has a nice predictability).
Describe your experience with NYU Langone Reproductive Specialists of New York.
This clinic is a smaller office of the main office in Mineola, Long Island. They do most things here (IUI, ultrasounds, sonogram, saline sonogram, uterine biopsy, sperm analysis, blood work). They do not do IVF egg retrieval or frozen embryo transfer. Because it's a smaller office you see the same folks each time you visit and they know you and remember you. You feel like a human not a number. Every once in a while, you can have to wait a long time (because it is a smaller office) but usually it is in and out for monitoring.
Describe the costs associated with your care under Mary Bray (retired) at NYU Langone Reproductive Specialists of New York.
I have insurance coverage so I have a 30$ copay for all monitoring/doctor's appointments. Dr. Bray also knew about some frustrating aspects of my coverage and helped me work it out ahead of time to take the most of my coverage. Without her knowing about these things I would have lost a lot of coverage.
Describe Mary Bray (retired)'s approach to eSET (elective single embryo transfer) vs. multiple embryo transfer at NYU Langone Reproductive Specialists of New York.
She is totally in support of eSET for women under 35 who have good egg quality and who either have funds to pay for multiple transfers or who have insurance. She is not against doing two embryos (although she makes it clear she prefers one) and allows the couple to choose a single or double embryo transfer. She goes through all the statistics of a single embryo vs. double embryo getting you pregnant, getting you a singleton or a twin pregnancy.