Nichole Barker

She was compassionate and listened to me but was overly confident in the success of the treatment and gave me false hope. She did not test me for anything prior to treatment and I later found out my thyroid was low, but when asked about it she advised me to see another doctor about it. Not whole person care.

Once your protocol is determined you will not be able to speak to her or change it for 3 cycles. The initial visit is very brief so have your questions written down and take notes.

Letrozole 5mg CD3-7, Ovidrel approximately 24 hours prior to IUI, give or take some (ranged 21-30 hours). Unexplained infertility, no reason given for this protocol. Resulted in 1-4 follicles each cycle and no pregnancy.

$750 for each IUI with sperm wash. $300 for 30-minute consultation with Dr. Barker. Drugs through 3rd party pharmacy.

From my first visit, I knew she was the doctor for me because she took the concerns I had seriously. I had 3 back to back IUIs that failed and my previous doctor just expected me to continue doing more IUIs until one became successful. I wanted to be examined to figure out why they weren't working when my first IUI worked perfectly. Dr. Barker addressed the problem head on. She also said she doesn't continue something that isn't working, so instead of another IUI, she wanted to figure out what the issue was and look into other options. It felt so nice to be acknowledged and for my concerns to be heard and handled. The next time I met with her was to go over my egg retrieval results and come up with a transfer plan. She was very organized, covered a lot, provided her professional input to help us make the right decision and was just an exceptional all-around doctor. It helps she's done IVF herself to birth her children, so her understanding and compassion and overall knowledge and expertise provide that much support.

Trust her. Not only is she the professional but she's gone through IVF and fertility treatments herself, so she not only understands the clinical and healthcare side but also the personal side and everything that is involved regarding infertility.

My protocol started with a couple rounds of birth control before beginning the stim meds. I used gonal-f and menopur to start, then cetrotide and lupron to follow. I was on stim meds for 10 days before the egg retrieval. The doctor retrieved 22 eggs, 9 were mature and 5 were fertilized. I waited 5 days for the blastocyst report in which 4 embryos survived the 5 days post surgery. We chose the genetic testing, so my embryos were frozen until the transfer. Genetic results were amazing. 2 boys and 2 girls and all were graded high. One of the girls was graded the highest of the high, so we chose her for the FET. She is now almost 5 months old.

I had to take out a $25,000 loan and then paid several hundred dollars out of pocket for medications that weren't covered by the loan.

I did ask about that during my virtual visit to discuss my FET plan. She said she prefers a single approach because 1) my history of multiple miscarriages and 2) the complications that could occur. She was concerned about one fetus not surviving, which would obviously cause a lot of trauma. She pointed out why couples want a multiple embryo transfer (kill 2 birds with 1 stone kinda thing), but after hearing her input there was no second guessing. Again, I trusted her input.

Dr. Barker was direct with my questions in a manner that also showed compassion. When I took Clomid for my second IUI, she was blunt in telling me my body did not take well to it. In that same conversation, she gave me options for my next steps if the IUI didn't take, this made me feel better having a plan of action if we got negative IUI results. She always asked me if I had questions or concerns and never made me feel dumb for asking questions. I felt 100% comfortable asking her things that dealt with our sex life. My egg retrieval happened to be with a different doctor, which I was totally ok with. Dr. Barker messaged me shortly after letting me know that she heard my procedure went well and that she was thinking of us. Most of our meetings were done virtually because of covid, and when I finally got to meet her in person, she remembered details about my husband and also noticed that I had cut my hair. I know that seems minuscule, but it showed me that I wasn't just a number. I felt like she was truly rooting for me the whole time, because she cared about me as a human being.

Be open and honest, ask all the questions you need to. There are no dumb questions or concerns with Dr. barker.

Dr. Barker gave us a few options since my female reproductive organs looked good, and my husband's sperm motility/mobility was on the lower end but not terrible. She told us we could continue to try naturally (my husband was on TRT and was taking HCG to get his sperm count back and it seemed his sperm was gradually getting better). Or she gave us the option of trying IUI for a couple cycles since it was the least expensive and least intrusive. Then she gave us the option of IVF if we wanted to be agressive and have a baby now. We decided to go with two IUI cycles, using Clomid. The first time, Clomid gave me two large follicles, however my husband's sperm count was low because we had sex the day before. That was bad on our part. The first IUI was unsuccessful, when we had the second IUI the Clomid didn't work and I only had one large follicle. My husband's sperm count looked really good and however. Unfortunately that IUI didn't work either. We met again with Dr Barker and we all decided that IVF was the next step. They put me on birth control pills to suppress my ovaries. It took about 3 weeks for my ovaries to suppress. Then I took injections for 10 days before I was able to trigger with an HCG shot. On the 12th day I had my egg retrieval. They pulled out seven eggs, and all were mature and all fertilized. On the day of my 5-day embryo transfer, only one started to hatch so they picked that one embryo to transfer. they went with one egg because I was under 35 and all my reproductive organs look good. Five of my other embryos began to hatch the next day, so they froze those. 8 days later I went in for blood work and my HCG levels were high showing that I was pregnant. I went in again for blood work three days later and my HCG levels increased showing a viable pregnancy. I had an ultrasound at 7 weeks, the heartbeat was on the lower end so they asked to see me again. I had my last ultrasound at 7 weeks 5 days with Dr Barker and the heartbeat looked good. I no longer need SRM, and my next prenatal appointment will be with my regular OBGYN.

We were fortunate that our insurance covered infertility treatments. My hormone injections were not covered and those cost about $3500. The anesthesia was also not covered for my egg retrieval and that was $400.

Dr. Barker was referred to me by my brother and sister-in-law. From the beginning, she was intent on learning about me and my husband, and how she could help us get to our ultimate goal of a family. Her empathy was true, and I have no doubt that she has my and my husband's best interests at heart through this entire process.

Dr. Barker can be trusted, so let her take on some of that pressure you've been putting on yourself.

Initial - I will be beginning a regimen of clomid, injections, and IUI, starting this week. We will attempt this for 2-3 cycles, and then revisit out plan. 6 months in - Now we are at Clomid, Gonal F injections, trigger injection, IUI, and Progesterone. We have discussed IVF. But still hopeful an IUI will work soon.

Roughly $1000/month for all medications and procedures.

We have only briefly touched on this subject. If the current plan doesn't work, we will discuss this further and in more detail.

She was always available if I needed to talk to her or had any questions. During our consultation she was very up front, made my husband and I feel comfortable even when talking about certain things. She never made anything awkward. She was truthful and told us like it is. She never made me once doubt her professional opinions. I respect that a dr can be so upfront about situations. You could tell she really cared for her patients, she knows what their going through because she went through it as well. So he compassion and truthfulness made every appointment a positive appt.

Go in there with all the questions you want to ask. She will answer all truthfully and she will take as much time with you as needed!

I would take clomid in cycle days 3-7, I would start opk’s. On cycle day 10, every month I would schedule a cycle day 12 ultrasound to see how my follicles were looking. If on the 12th cycle day follicles and lining looked good I would trigger that night and scehedule an iui 24-48 hrs later. Most of the time I had about 2 follicles ranging from 18mm-23mm. Day of iui, my husband would go in and give his sample, hour and a half later they would perform the iui.

$650 for each iui, $26 for clomid each month, and $55 for ovidrel shot each month. Hsg cost me about $230 since my insurance covered most of that. My insurance did cover each ultra sound.

Although we didn't have too many interactions with Dr. Barker, she was wonderful when we did. My husband and I felt very comfortable with her. All appointments were on time and everything was explained in detail and in a way that we understood the terminology. We felt she was compassionate and truly cared about helping to try to make our dream of having children come true.

Come in with a list of questions you have. A lot of information is covered, but it's really good to do your research and ask questions!

If insurance covers infertility, that will greatly reduce out of pocket costs. BUT, be aware that most insurance does not cover the cost of the medication associated. We were fortunate that insurance covered the treatment, but we still had probably at least $5,000 out of pocket for medication (we did 2 IVF cycles and 2 frozen embryo transfers).

For our situation, Dr. Barker did not recommend transferring more than one embryo. And once we had success with our daughter, we went through pretty much the same exact protocol again and were successful (currently early on in pregnancy).

She always answered my questions and always honestly and with compassion. She always helped 7s cope with our situation and was always reassuring. We always felt welcomed in her presence. I always felt like Dr. Barker had a personal connection with her patients. She always reached out to us after any loss personally and even now she has reached out with our little victory !

Nothing, other than you have chose the right provider for your care.

I do not ovulate and I have a metobolic issue. I took letrozole, metformin and ovidrel with timed intercourse. I was able to get pregnant with this treatment...but had miscarriages. We never felt pressured to go another route...particularly a more expensive route. This was important to us. IVF is not covered by my insurance and $25000 is quite a bit of money.

My insurance didnt cover much. I mostly paid for my injections monthly and my follicle ultrasounds.

Very thorough. Explained all of my options, causes and treatment processes, as well as risks. Always treated like a human and a friend, not a number. She went over my HSG tests thoroughly and explained every picture and diagram, as well as what it should look like and the possibility of why I have blocked tubes. She was in depth about what could go wrong and how long the process would be if I chose surgery. She was not pushy and left the choice completely up to me, and was not pushy about IVF even though she knows it may be my only option if my tubes cannot be unblocked. She reassured me that the doctor who may be performing my surgery is exceptionally good at what he does and would choose him in a heartbeat to do her own. A very warm and thorough doctor. Extremely compassionate and relatable.

She is amazing. You will feel like you are in the company of a close friend. She answers every question or concern you may have and never rushes you. She is excellent!

We performed an HSG which determined that I have bilateral tubes blockage. All of my hormone levels had come back normal, including prolactin. I had been diagnosed with unexplained infertility prior, but the HSG test proved otherwise. She then referred me to a surgeon to undergo my laperascopy.

Insurance covered my first visit with a copay as well as diagnostic procedures. IVF and any other treatment is not covered. The cost for IVF is roughly 15000 dollars with and additional 2 to 5 thousand for prescriptions

Dr. Barker is warm and caring the moment you meet her. I was very nervous and discouraged before our first appointment with her, and I left that first appointment with a new excitement and hope for starting more fertility treatments! Dr. Barker is very knowledgeable and I felt that she really listened and cared about our unique situation and wanted to work with us to make a plan that made us all comfortable. After first IUI with her I got pregnant and it later ended in a miscarriage. She was very compassionate, caring, and extended a personal message to me saying she was sorry for our loss. I trust her and the plan she has made for us in the future and I am hopeful that I will be able to have a healthy baby under her care. I would highly recommend Dr. Barker to anyone I know struggling with fertility related issues.

I would tell a prospective patient to feel comfortable asking lots of questions and discussing all of your ideas and fears. In the past I had felt dumb asking my fertility doctors so many questions, but Dr. Barker answered every question my husband and I had in full detail. She never made us feel dumb for our uninformed questions. I would also tell a prospective patient to not loose hope and to trust the process. I really believe and trust Dr. Barkers treatment plan!

I had worked with a different fertility doctor for over a year and did 7 IUI's with no success. When we first met with Dr. Barker I explained my frustration of the past and she quickly looked over my chart and we planned to try two more IUI's with more aggressive treatment. So far with Dr. Barker we have done two IUI cycles with clomid and gonal -F I got pregnant after my first IUI, but I had a miscarriage at about 7.5 weeks and my second IUI was not successful.

Meeting with Dr. Barker -$175 a visit Ultrasounds-$175 each IUI-$500 Medications for IUI- $160 ish a month

As we talk about doing IVF as my next course of treatment for my specific situation (I have Factor IV) She explained that she would feel most comfortable with doing a single embryo transfer to keep me safe. I agree with her!

I thought she was wonderful she was always positive. My first IUI was kind of traumatic because the nurse my cervix was being difficult Dr. Barker came in and made me feel better and get the procedure done. For our next one they made sure I saw my dr. And I was much more relaxed because of it.

Be 100% open and give as much detail as you can because that helps her care for you.

Oct - consultation Nov - hysteroscopy surgery to remove uterine Septum Dec - recover and office hysteroscopy to check uterus Jan- letrozol with timed intercourse Feb- letrozol with timed intercourse March - letrozol with timed intercourse April -letrozol with IUI #1 May - break June - letrozol and gonal f with IUI #2 resulting in pregnancy

After insurance I estimate we spend under 5k for treatment

Both my partner and myself felt like cattle, being run through the clinic with no individualized attention and part of a cog in a wheel for the clinic to make money. While Dr. Barker met with us upon our intial meeting, I never saw her after that. And while did respond to one of my emails that I sent to my nurse, she never individualized my treatment, like I requested. She also never explained to me how my immune issues might effect my fertility. I researched this on my own and since have gotten a second option from a doctor who has explained this to me and is in the process of putting me on a treatment program that is specific to my medical issues.

Advocate for yourself. Do your own research and insist on individual treatment protocol.

I did 3 rounds of IUI with Dr. Barker. The first round was using letrozole with Ovidreal injection. The next two times, using estrogen injections, Ovidreal trigger injection with 200 mg of progesterone vaginally daily.

In total, our out of pocket costs were approx $2,500

None

Dr. Barker is very caring and passionate about her work and patients. She is extremely through in her explanation and available to talk things through if further explanation is needed. I ended up having some bleeding a few days after my initial ultrasound after our successful transfer and she had me come in to have a ultrasound to see if there was a cause for the bleeding which there was a SCH. She helped reassure and put my mind at ease will also being realistic.

Be fully open with her about your expectations and hope for your fertility journey.

We did some blood tests to rule out any blood based factors, sperm analysis, scans of my insides to check for fibroids or anything else that may be contributing to my loss and difficulty becoming pregnant. HSG and saline sonogram as well which is where we discovered I had a polyp/ fibroid where they would implant the embryo so our plan of attack was surgical removal and push my IVF cycle back a month. Ended up being the best course of approach for us as that coupled with acupuncture, abdominal massage and the lupron protocol resulted in a successful sustained pregnancy.

I want to say it was roughly $12,000 for our IVF cycle however insurance covered about 90% of it.

I did not meed Dr. Barker in person. All visits with Dr. Barker were done via zoom. Appts were easy to get and she took time to go over details and allow opportunity for questions. We went over pros and cons and all possibilities outcomes.

You should be prepared to ask questions. She will do her best to give you an idea of treatments and possible outcomes. But, every person is different and she may not cover things that people often don't think about.

We started off all natural then added medication to help future treatments. Increased dosage, added medication and changed medication when each cycle failed.

I had multiple tests and 5IUI treatment. I believe it is close to $5000

NA

She is very sweet, patient, understanding and takes time to listen to the needs and wants of the patients and finds treatment that best fits their needs. She helped me successfully have a twin pregnancy and currently 10 weeks. I asked for the ReceptivaDx test and she agreed with the ERA test and gave me great treatment options prior to my FET which let to a successful outcome. She is fantastic !

Make sure you do all necessary tests to get answers prior to transferring your embryos and PGS, ReceptivaDx, ERA, AMH, thyroid, immune etc

Did a FET with both vaginal progesterone and PIO, estrogen, lovenox, steroids, antibiotics, baby aspirin and PGS tested embryos. Also did the ReceptivaDx which came back positive so treated 2 months of Letrozole 5mg & 1 month of Lupron prior to FET.

My insurance covered TRIWEST praise God!

Dr. Barker was very informative and open to helping us in any treatment we wanted to pursue. She made herself available for questions or concerns. When our sperm collection for our first IUI had very low counts, she offered for us to move forward with the procedure and she would take care of the cost. We were overwhelmed by her generosity and greatly appreciated her knowledge that we were paying for these procedures out of pocket.

Be open with your thoughts and feelings, as Dr. Barker likely knows how you feel; going through her own infertility journey.

Dr. Barker left it open for us to decide what treatment we wanted to pursue. After we decided on IUI, she suggested I go on Femara to increase my chances of a positive IUI.

The costs were out of pocket for us, since our insurance benefits were used to cover our testing. We paid for the consultation and two of our three IUI treatments, Femara and trigger shots.

After my initial consultation, Dr. Barker already had a plan of action in place. I really appreciated her urgency rather than dragging it on any longer. She was decisive and thoughtful. When the plan of treatment didn’t work as anticipated, she altered our course of action immediately to better support our needs. I really appreciate her quick communication and humanity. She is a fantastic doctor and shows compassion that is so necessary in this delicate field.

Be grateful! You are working with a doctor with her heart in the right place, with equal drive to help you reach your goals.

Stayed neutral when needed and was empathetic at times it called for it. Took the time to spell out the steps and expressed hopes of success but was also prepared to adjust as need to optimize it. You can tell the she cares about doing the best she can for her patients.

Ask a lot of questions to make sure you are fully aware of what is happening.

We were to watch the cycle and take our perspective medications until time for the ultrasound. Once determined that it was time for the procedure she would have my spouse take the shot and go in for the IUI, most of the time the following day.

collectively around $750 per cycle and we did 3.

We love Dr. Barker. She is kind, explains things clearly, listens to what we want to do and we trust her in deciding what the beat next step is for us. Sometimes I wish that she was more involved in the work up appointments for IUI’s such as the ultrasounds. Not just available for consults when things don’t end up working out. Other than that she is wonderful

To not give your hopes up. While she does everything to help you it doesn’t always work

Approximately $400 per IUI. $200 for sperm collection and prep and $200 for IUI.

We have not prceeded with IVF yet but she did tell me that she doesn’t transfer more than 2 or maybe it was 3 embryos at a time.

Candid, understanding, great bedside manner. She is professional from the first time you meet her and does not disappointment. My husband and I were unable to get pregnant because he had had a vasectomy almost 15 years ago. We discussed options, and decided on using donor sperm and IUI. She did not pressure us, it provided the information we needed to reach our own decision—and then she drew up a treatment plan that supported it.

Be honest, be patient, ask questions.

IUI with insurance - $350 per try Donor sperm - $800 per try Monthly sperm storage fee - $50

She was very brief - in and out. When I raised concerns she continued to tell me I needed to follow the standard protocol for pcos. The care was not individualized. Her bedside manner is, however, pretty good.

Don't cave to pressure. Advocate for yourself.

Several timed intercourse cycles, then IUI, then IVF (which we did not pursue).

Dr Barker is absolutely amazing. She listens to what I have to say, she’s compassionate and wants us to be able to have a successful pregnancy. Answers all my questions very knowledgeable and up to date with treatments

Listen to her.

Clomid cycle day 3-7 100 mg’s letrozole 5 mg’s cycle day 3-7 Clomid 100 mg’s cycle day 3-7 gonal f 75 iu days 7-11 Follistim 75 iu cycle day 3-11 Trigger shot usually cycle day 10-12 To produce more follicles to get one good egg. I’m 42. Trigger shot to have me ovulate 24-36 hours after taking the shot

We have zero fertility insurance coverage. We pay out of pocket for EVERYTHING. The costs are expensive but well worth it in the end. Somewhat cheaper than other fertility clinics in the area

As previously stated, Dr Barker answered every question I had, and I had a lot. She really cared about us as people and our journey. She related to our journey with her own, but only when asked. She knew we had struggled at a previous clinic and did everything to ensure that didn't happen again.

Schedule time to talk with her, she really will go over everything and anything you need or want to discuss.

We added icsi as that was not used in a prior cycle. We changed dosing on injectables as I appeared to have been previously overstimulated. She took everything from my prior treatments at another clinic and reviewed them at a regular meeting with colleagues to make the best, most informed plan. After the fresh transfer failed, we set up a frozen transfer with low dose medication to regulate my cycle but not go overboard to ensure my body was well prepared.

Reasonable and average. Excellent care for the cost comparably

Dr Barker was very informative and laid everything out very clear for me. There was also everything sent over in writing as well so if it was a little to much to process I had something to refer back too

Trust the process, and the staff!

We did letrozole and ovridrel injector. The first round of letrozole didn’t work so we imminently did a higher dosage which worked but wasn’t successful for pregnancy. The second round we started at the higher dosage, 7.5 mg letrozole I believe, and the injector again. I am currently 8 weeks and 1 day pregnant!

I think all in all we ended up paying about $1200 out of pocket

She is very personable. She herself has experienced fertility issues so she is relatable and genuinely concerned. I always felt like she cared. She was patient and thorough. I always felt well cared for.

Be open minded to multiple options and stay strong in your want to become parents.

Most of the costs were covered by my insurance. If I were to continue with further care I would need quite a bit of cash that we currently don’t have.

She is very positive. Had a good attitude and listened to my concerns. She did my IUI and was very gentle with an excellent bedside manner. The clinic staff were always nice and answered my questions. The ultrasound tech was also very nice and explained everything to me.

Go in with an open heart

We did an IUI with my husband fresh sperm. We used letrazole and FSH. It is called a blended cycle. I am 40 years old so we needed to be a bit more aggressive with my treatments. My IUI was a success on our first round!