Shawn Gurtcheff

Dr. Gurtcheff is a godsend. My husband and I transferred to UFC, coming from a different doctor (in a different clinic/company) who was abrasive and as impersonal as one can be. During our initial consultation, Dr. Gurtcheff gave us hope in our personal circumstances (MFI and PCOS) as well as during the COVID-19 Pandemic. We met with her via Skype and she listened to our full story. She asked purposeful questions, took notes, and made every effort to understand our situation from her professional lens. From day one, she explained that she is based in Pleasant Grove and Murray and that she would be present at all major appointments (IUI, IVF if it came to it). She explained that my nurse would be in touch and that any data, results, and other information would be passed by her even if I didn't see her at routine appointments. We started with IUI in 2021 and along the way (we did 7 IUI cycles with Gurtcheff), she was always just a phone call or email away. When we decided to move forward with IVF, she was our biggest cheerleader. My body is an overachiever (not a shocker if you know me) and she was able to retrieve 50 follicles. Out of those, 21 eggs were fertilized and 14 made it to blast and were frozen. I experienced severe OHSS and once I recovered, the next month (August 2022), we had our first Frozen Embryo Transfer. It went beautifully! I got a positive pregnancy test, heard our little baby's heartbeat at two ultrasounds, and then, unfortunately, miscarried at 7w5d due to a sub-chorionic hemorrhage. Once my HCG was in the negative, we prepped for another transfer. In November, baseline scans revealed I had a Uterine polyp and I had that removed (by Dr. Gurtcheff) in December. In February 2023, we had another seamless embryo transfer and in March, we found out it was successful! We heard our baby's heartbeat, which was a little slow for 7w1d, but within an acceptable range. A few days later, 7w6d, I miscarried again. During a phone call with Dr. Gurtcheff to talk about the next steps, she was very sympathetic and kind as we discussed what our options were. We decided that we needed to get our remaining embryos tested for any genetic abnormalities before attempting another embryo transfer.

If you are closer to the Ogden clinic, know that you won't see Dr. Gurtcheff at every appointment. Be prepared to travel to Pleasant Grove for any major procedures or surgeries.

For IUI, our insurance covered everything but the cost of injections, which was anywhere from $270-$450. Our insurance covered $10,000 of our IVF cycle. This covered everything *except* injections/medications and genetic testing. We paid approximately $2,400 toward genetic testing for myself and my spouse. We took a loan through Lending Club for just over $3,300 for our injections (Follistim, menopur, and another I can't remember the name of). The payment is $163/monthly. We paid approximately $1,000 more toward freezing our embryos, other non-injection medications and testing/appointments not covered by the $10k number. We also paid $550 for anesthesia three times for my two hysteroscopies and my egg retrieval. UFC partnered with CryoVault to manage the payments for our frozen embryos. We pay $62.50 monthly. We need to pay just over $5,860 to cover the PGS/PGT for our remaining 12 embryos.

When asked if we would be allowed to transfer 2 embryos at one time, Dr. Gurtcheff talked to us in depth about all the possible outcomes. Because of my recurrent pregnancy loss, it was ill-advised because there is a higher likelihood of miscarriage with multiples.

Dr. Gurtcheff is very understanding, compassionate and caring. As her patient I truly feel that she has my best interest at heart and she is doing her absolute best to find the treatments and procedures that will work for us. She is always willing to take time to answer my questions and to make sure that I'm well-informed. She shows compassion when the results didn't turn out like we expected and thoroughly talks me through our next options and her recommendations. I've never felt that she's pushed me into anything, she always gives me the info and the facts and I usually ask for her recommendation, which she gives, and then she leaves all decisions about treatment up to myself and my husband and she is willing to go whichever direction we want to go with treatment. She is very knowledgeable and she does a great job at explaining things to us. I moved out of state while still working with her and didn't want to change clinics because I've been very happy with Dr. Gurtcheff and we have frozen embryos at the clinic and she has been incredibly helpful with our move, making sure that we know our options and working with us over the phone to set up more treatments. She normally doesn't schedule transfers as far in advance as I needed one but I was trying to buy plane tickets to come back and I needed a date so she went ahead and scheduled the transfer a few months out, which was incredibly helpful to me! She is a sweet person that genuinely cares about her patients. I have felt very well taken care of with her.

Get ready for an emotional roller coaster. There are a lot of ups and downs with fertility treatment but Dr. Gurtcheff does her best to keep you well-informed and to help you expand your family.

I used Follistim, Ganirelix and Menopur in preparation for my egg retrieval and ended up stopping a day early because the ultrasound showed that I had a lot of follicles. We did the egg retrieval a day early and got 40 eggs, which was great. I was really bloated and my ovaries were huge from releasing so many eggs and I was at risk for OHSS so Dr. Gurtcheff told me to take it easy and eat a high protein, low am carb, low sugar diet and drink electrolytes and I never got OHSS. The bloating went down within a few days and I felt better. We did Progesterone in Oil injections and suppositories leading up to both Frozen Embryo Transfers and got a positive pregnancy test with both (one ending in a chemical pregnancy and one in a miscarriage at 9 weeks).

$1,000 per cycle of IUI. $12,000 for an Egg Retrieval/Fresh Embryo Transfer cycle. $3,000 per Frozen Embryo Transfer. $750 initial cost to freeze embryos and $250 per year after that.

She built our protocol for us. Thought outside the box, was compassionate and empathetic. I cannot say enough good things about Dr. Shawn Gurtcheff. She truly individualized my care plan and thought outside the box to meet my needs. Before delivering the embryo results, she texted me to ensure I wasn’t at work, which showed her compassion and understanding. Her reassurance throughout the process was invaluable, especially when I felt ready to give up on my dream of being a parent. Thanks to her emotional support and guidance, we pushed through our last cycle, and now we’re blessed with boy/girl twins. I’m incredibly grateful for her dedication and expertise!

My one piece of advice for a prospective patient of Dr. Gurtcheff is to be open and honest about your concerns and feelings. She values communication and truly listens, which helps her tailor your care to fit your unique needs. Don’t hesitate to ask questions or express any worries; her supportive approach can make all the difference in your experience.

I I can’t recommend Dr. Gurtcheff highly enough! After going through four unsuccessful IVF cycles at another clinic, and two IUIs at two other clinics we turned to her for help, and it was the best decision we could have made. We started with a donor egg and partner sperm cycle. Although this first attempt ended in a chemical pregnancy, Dr. Gurtcheff’s support and encouragement were invaluable. She believed in us and our potential as parents, which gave us the strength to keep trying. Next, we shifted to a cycle using my own eggs and donor sperm. Dr. Gurtcheff implemented a testosterone priming protocol along with Clomid to help boost my egg production. Unfortunately, this cycle didn’t produce viable embryos for transfer. Just when we were ready to throw in the towel, Dr. Gurtcheff urged us to proceed with one last cycle using donor eggs and donor sperm. She thoroughly explained the risks of transferring multiple embryos, and we decided to transfer two this time. Thanks to her expertise and unwavering support, we were thrilled to welcome our beautiful boy/girl twins! Dr. Gurtcheff’s personalized approach and belief in our journey made all the difference. I am forever grateful for her care and highly recommend her to anyone facing similar challenges.

Many of my monitoring appointments were at the satellite clinic, which was conveniently located closer to my home.

They provided options to decrease costs for certain procedures and provided resources for financing

Dr. Gurtcheff was incredibly thorough in recommending a single embryo transfer to maximize our chances of a healthy pregnancy. She took the time to educate us on the risks associated with transferring two embryos, ensuring we understood the potential complications. However, knowing this was our last cycle and that we wanted our future children to have a sibling, we made the heartfelt decision to transfer two embryos. Her guidance and support throughout this process made us feel confident in our choice, and we couldn’t be happier with the outcome!

We went to see Dr Gurtcheff for a consultation. She expressed compassion for what we are dealing with and took the time to listen to all our concerns and make sure she understood our history. She then gave us the information we needed for next steps and let me know I would need to get some blood work done. She explained what they were looking for and what the results would mean and how they would communicate those results to me. She then did an ultrasound and explained to me what PCOS is, which I was pretty sure I had but my OB did not officially diagnose. She confirmed to me I did have it and explained what it is and symptoms I might experience as a result. She made our next steps very clear and provided us with a folder of information so we wouldn't forget anything. We didn't feel rushed by her at any point.

Make sure you know your own history. She will want to know testing, procedures, diagnoses, all of that so make sure to have it written down if you are forgetful of all the medical terms like me.

We have not been treated by Dr Gurtcheff yet, we only had our initial appointment. She did explain what medications I would take and what the process would look like if we decide to move forward with IUI.

Our consultation was $325. My blood test was around $100

Very compassionate and understanding of where we were in our infertility journey. We jumped right into IVF when we switched to UFC and it was an amazing experience! Even as we went through IVF we couldn't have hoped for a better experience or outcome

Do the consultation! You will fall in love with Dr. G! She helps make the rough patch of infertility treatments a little easier and helps you understand as you go as well as involves you in a game plan moving forward (especially after our chemical pregnancies when we went back to the drawing board!)

First 2 transfers, estrogen started day 3 after ultrasound. Lining checks throughout cycle. 5 days before transfer started PIO. Both ended in chemical pregnancies Transfer 3 we added 2 "experimental procedures" (deemed here in the US as experimental) to try to help our embryos stick. Still did estrogen and PIO in same sequence and added triple progesterone, so oral progesterone 3 times a day and vaginally at night after transfer. The other procedure we added was lipid infusions. I got one a week before transfer, after confirmed pregnancy test and then once a month until 20 weeks. We truly believe that infusion is what helped our embryo continue to grow!!

1500 self pay transfer cost, 3500 billed to insurance. Dont remember retrieval cost

We transferred 1 during our first fresh transfer. Then the next 2 transfers, with warning, we transferred 2 each time. We had a singleton

Dr Gurtcheff is there for you every step of the way. She answered all our questions in a timely manner and we never felt like we couldn’t talk to her about any concerns or questions that came up during our treatment. She was always upfront with us and honest. I felt that she did what was necessary to become familiar with me as an individual and what would be best for my body. She did all she could to learn what would lead to a successful pregnancy based on us personally. She has a sweet temperament and you feel like she is more of a friend than your Dr. which I liked because it made me feel comfortable during a very uncertain time. She shares in your successes and failures. I always felt safe under her care.

Ask questions. Don’t be afraid to find out all you can about your specific fertility treatment. Make sure you have a calendar for all the appointments you will have.

We had a failed cycle where we had to cancel the cycle before egg retrieval. My body didn’t respond to the medication as expected. We made the necessary adjustments for the next cycle which we did a frozen embryo transfer but no pregnancy. In our following cycle a few years later Dr. Gurtcheff made even more adjustments and we did “embryo glue” a uterus scratch during egg retrieval and we tested our embryos for the most success. At the time I was discouraged to have had two previous failed cycles, but as I look back I realize our Dr. needed to learn my body and how it responded or didn’t respond to the medication. She did all she could for us to have success.

General care of the clinic which included ultrasounds, blood work, lab work, and an initial visit with our Dr. We also had fees for medication and anesthesia for egg retrieval. We also had additional fees for genetic testing, and “embryo glue.”

Our Dr. Educated us on all the benefits and risks to each decision whether we transferred one or two embryos. She recommended one embryo transfer.

Shawn was incredibly informed. She was able to cite recent research and provide data on best practices for our situation. She was honest about the success rates of our situation and spent the time to explain costs and what to expect with assistance in the costs. She walked through the process but also explained that there would be deviations in the process and the deviations didn’t mean anything was wrong only that my care was specific to me and could change based on hormones and need for changed timing, etc. Going into the procedures I knew exactly what to expect and what the cost would be. There were no surprises and I was given the opportunity to make the decisions with the doctor at each visit. I was so scared during the process because I am an anxious person, I would call all the time and Shawn would call me back on her personal cell after hours to comfort and reassure me.

Just go for it with her, if you have any doubts ask she is so kind and willing to answer anything or research it and follow up with you. You will safe and at ease in her care.

Shawn first used a rapid hormone cycle. I was able to produce many eggs but only 6 made it to 5 day embryos and then only 2 were grade B at implantation. We implanted one and it didn’t take. Then when I did my next round with her we had to do a re-retrieval since none of the embryos from the first round survived. She talk to me about doing a long cycle using hormone for a month before retrieval. She explained that with my PCOS many times women require the older methods. She went into great detail of why this was the case. I felt so much better the second round. I used less hormone injections because my body responded better to the hormones. The eggs retrieved were much better quality and thriving. We implanted day 5 embryos, 2, and I ended up with twins. Super healthy and completely normal twins.

The costs were comparable to all the other fertility centers in Utah. I did feel that Shawn and her nurses had amazing ideas on grants, medication assistance, using the cheapest pharmacies for meds and fertility insurance.

Shawn said she always recommended single embryo transfer because of the risk to the mother and babies if there are multiples. She explained that length that she never implants more than two and she always recommends one. She also said that of course there are better odds of success with two embryos at once. She made sure to inform myself and my husband thoroughly before we chose to implant two. She was never forceful or upset either way, just kind and knowledgeable about our decision.

Dr. Gurtcheff is knowledgeable and compassionate. Although we were given a hard diagnosis she had a way of giving us hope. During our consultations she was willing to take the extra time to thoroughly answer any questions we had. I had 2 HSG tests, one performed by Dr. Gurtcheff and one by another physician. Dr. Gurtcheff was more gentle and very little discomfort was felt compared to my other experience. We trust her with our care.

Make sure you take advantage her knowledge and ask as many questions as possible.

Trying to conceive our second child Dr. Gurtcheff recommended doing a mini stim cycle. With the hopes of reducing my chances of OHSS while still producing good quality embryos. She took into account the fact that we already had a son and wanted to only have 1-2 more children. She prescribed femara along with gonal-f. I haven’t completed the cycle yet so we will see if it will be successful.

We haven’t completed our IVF cycle yet, but it is estimated to cost around 10,900.

Dr. Gurtcheff is an amazing doctor. She is incredibly intelligent, highly compassionate and competent, and very friendly and warm. She made me feel so comfortable in her presence and I always felt very hopeful and motivated after speaking with her. She is very detailed in her explanations and she is with you every step of the way. She calls you personally on the phone to explain something, instead of having a nurse call. She instilled a feeling of complete trust, hope for the future, and faith in me. I had been lacking this for a while, as infertility is a very stressful experience. I always knew I was being taken care of and Dr. Gurtcheff genuinely cared about getting us to our destination.

I would just let them know that she is going to take care of them and will put their worries and fears at ease. She is highly skilled and knows exactly what she is doing. She is professional, and very compassionate.

We are just starting IVF. We have been through numerous tests and procedures leading up to this point.

They will be somewhere between 13,000 and 25,000, depending on if we choose PGT testing or not.

She always made sure I had a say in what my treatment was. She showed me studies to know everything I could before making decisions. She is straightforward and doesnt beat around the Bush when it comes to my weight, but she is mean about it. She is very kind and a great doctor in my eyes.

She has lots of information. Be prepared to write stuff down or record what she says.

3 cycles - femara to induce ovulation with timed intercourse and progesterone suppositories to make sure that my hormone levels were sufficient (no pregnancies) 1 cycle - femara for ovulation and iui with progesterone suppositories ( miscarriage) 2 cycles - femara with plaquenil ( to act as an immune modulator because of my miscarriages) and steroids( because the femara wasn't working very well anymore) for iui ( no pregnancies). Also used progesterone suppositories, prometrium, and PIO to keep my hormones elevated incase of conception

We haven't discussed it yet, but I will find out her stance at the end of the month during my ivf consultation

Dr. Gurtcheff was very compassionate, considerate of my time, honest, and warm during most of our interactions. While we didn’t see her often, she did perform my surgery, egg retrieval, and transfer. We always left every meeting we did have feeling more positive and hopeful than we did going in.

Be open-minded with the information she gives you and set realistic expectations as to what it will take to achieve a pregnancy.

Dr. Gurtcheff used an antagonist protocol for my IVF, with Gonal F 150, Menopur 75, and Cetrotide. She ended my stims and triggered me a day early so I wouldn’t overstimulate. She was very careful that I was taking doses that were safe for me, and my health and well-being were more important to her than trying to get as many eggs as possible.

The initial consultation is $230, each IUI cycle is $800-1200, the IVF cycle is $8,300, ICSI is 1500. Preservation of embryos is $655. Medications for IVF are around $3,000 without insurance.

She was very honest about the risks of multiple embryo transfer, was very logical about the risks outweighing the benefits, but she ultimately left the decision up to us.

Dr. Gurtcheff always had a smile on her face. I saw her for my consultation, ultrasound and insemination. I missed her my last apt and it was sad. She explained everything very well for my husband who didn’t understand it at all. She was patient.

Know that you may not always see her at an apt, but that she knows everything that’s going on. She cares and she remembers. Sometimes she’ll call to check in.

We used the Fallopian tube wash out procedure due to endometriosis, hormone levels, clomid and she did al of this to help aid my ability to get pregnant. I’m lucky it worked

I believe we paid about 1100$ but insurance covers some cost for my IUI. About 500 for labs and testing prior.

I love her so much she was always there for me when I really needed her. She did not do all of my iuis I wish she would have but I have nothing bad to say about her. She would be the one who would call with results so if I had questions that nurses could not answer I could get them right away and have some peace of mind.

Trust her in what she says! There where times I didn’t want to do the testing again because it was miserable. But she always explained why it needed to happen and always made me feel so much better about things even in the bad times.

I always did better on 10 days of fermara instead of the usual 5. They switch the protocol so I could do 10 straight days instead of doing five getting checked and getting back on it for five more days when at that point insurance would not pay for the meds

I paid 525 for times intercourses rounds and 875 for iui rounds I have not gone any where else so I don’t know if that’s good or bad but for the car I get from her I wouldn’t want to go any where else

She is a good doctor and knows her stuff, just wish she would be more open to other natural treatments as well. She can be blunt, but she does have a lot,of compassion and care for her patients. In the beginning of the whole IVF treatment with her I wish I understood more and new what questions to ask. I wish there would have been more explanation.

Be firm in what you want. Listen to what the doctor says, but stick to what you want. Ask lots of questions and get clarification on anything/everything.

I honestly don’t know. I feel so dumb that I don’t know. That is what I mean! I just did what she said with blind faith and didn’t do my own research or ask the right questions.

The first time was more expensive. The second was discounted, which was nice. Meds not included and anesthesia was separate. Insurance covered nothing.

We only did 2 transfers. Both with 2 embryos.

Dr G is the reason we have our son. She’s the reason I didn’t give up on the medical world and continued on with treatments after seeing 2 other clinics that treated me like they had all the time in the world and had shown no urgency. Dr G was so kind and loving towards my family, she made things feel like priorities and urgent. She saw how hard it had all been on me and was the salve for our painful reality.

Take in all the information you have on yourself and current situation. Inform dr G of any and all information you have and she will adjust your care to fit you perfectly in the timeline you need.

I went to DrG after seeing 2 other specialist. I brought along all the information I could as well as treatments I did. Dr G started me on Metformin (750mg 2x a day) as well as clomid. Doing this combination felt different as I was convinced I was pregnant just 1.5 months later. Unfortunately I was not and went back to her clinic in tears. We discussed my chances Of success with IUI. The percentage rate she shown us were not much better, we explored our percentage rates of success for IVF. It was hard to wrap our heads around the cost. We knew it was the next step, she set us up with a coordinator right away and we began planning. We knew egg retrieval Would be next step. Dr. G suggested that we do frozen embryo transfer due to my diagnosis of PCOS. She explained why and we all agreed it was the best option. I began in December 2014 egg retrieval was in January 2015. I do not remember the exact dosage of menopur that I was on. Those were tiny shots in and around my belly, I went in every other day to measure and check on growing follicles. The clinic monitored me very well, we retrieved at optimal time thanks to them tracking me very closely. We set a day for transfer in March 2015, leading up to transfer i began progesterone in oil as well as suppositories. Estradiol was also prescribed. I did one suppository at night and one in the morning-1ml shot of progesterone and I can’t remmeber dosing of estradiol. Bloodwork would determine how much longer I would continue estradiol. Progesterone and estradiol prepped my body for transfer, The reason for both was to mimic a cycle for my body so when it came time for transfer, my body would hold onto the pregnancy. I continued progesterone shots for 10 weeks after transfer. Protocol after transfer was to a wait for 10 days before having a blood test to determine hCG levels. The clinic specifically puts you on very light activity for 48 hours post transfer. This is to ensure low stress so the body can be optimal to accept embryo.

Around 10,000$ For egg retrievel (pays for dr fee clinic fee and all the meds) 500$ a year for keeping eggs frozen. 7500$ for transfer (dr fee, meds) Clinic appointments with ultrasound Around 350-450$ Saline sonogram around 650$

Dr. G chose a single embryo transfer because of the quality of our embryos. They were excellent and my uterus was also excellent. This gave us optimal chances for a viable pregnancy.

We have only met with Dr. Gurtcheff twice, and felt like we weren't receiving much communication from her or the plan she has set for us. We happened to see her on one of our many visits and were able to speak with her and she assured us that she she looks at our chart often and is always aware of our situation. It helped us feel a little better, since we haven't seen her at any of our IUIs.

Be upfront about what you want and how much time you're willing to spend on each step (timed intercourse, IUI, then onto IVF, etc.)

The first 2 IUIs i was just on Fermara, the upped my dose to the highest dosage for my second IUI. I came in every few days/once a week to check my follicle size, etc. once my follicle was mature, they had me use the trigger shot and i came in for my IUIs 24 hours later. For my 3rd IUI, we introduced Clomid and Fermara along with the ultrasounds and trigger shot. it seemed to help my follicles grow faster and larger, which was great. I had one on each side that was mature and the other times i only had one. I am starting my medication for my 4th IUI today - again with the highest dosage of fermara and clomid. I have developed a cyst on my left ovary in between my last IUI and now, but they just called me with my blood results and it is not estrogen producing, so we can move forward with my 4th IUI. Before my IUIs, we tried one cycle of timed intercourse with fermara and a trigger shot.

for each IUI cycle, it costs around $900.00 plus medication, that is around $50.00. We have not gotten the cost numbers for IVF quite yet.

She explained that if i have 3 or more mature follicles we would not be able to move forward with an IUI, because of the chance of multiples. She is ok with two mature follicles for IUI.

She has the best bedside manner and is very balanced with providing information and showing compassion. She is so patient and I never felt rushed when asking her questions. She is the most empathetic dr. I’ve ever had! She helped me understand what endometriosis is and was the reason I was diagnosed. I love her!

Come with questions prepared, she is amazing at answering any questions you have.

When I first went to see Dr Gretcheff, I had told her I was able to get pregnant naturally after 2 years of trying, but had a miscarriage at 10 weeks. She was the Dr. who first diagnosed me with endometriosis. Since I was able to get pregnant naturally, she wanted me to continue trying while taking progesterone after I ovulated for a few more months. After that didn’t work, I decided to have surgery for my endometriosis. During surgery, They found I had stage 3 endometriosis, but the surgeon was confident he excised it all and told me to try naturally for 6 months. After I wasn’t able to get pregnant for 6 months after my surgery, I went back to Dr. Gertcheff at the beginning of this year. We decided to try 3 rounds of IUI before pursuing IVF. The first round, I was taking 50 mg of clomid for 5 days after my baseline ultrasound. I produced 1mature egg that round and we did the IUI. We waited for 2 weeks and the results were negative. Dr. Gurtcheff increased my clomid up to 100 mg for the second round, which also produced 1 mature egg and was also negative. For the 3rd IUI, she increased my clomid to 150 mg which produced 2 mature eggs. I’m still waiting to see if the 3rd one worked, but if it is negative our next step would be IVF. We have been trying to get pregnant for a total of 4 years now.

Each IUI is $875 which we had to pay out of pocket. I don’t know how much IVF would be. The trigger shot and progesterone were about $200 together. Clomid was $40.

Dr G is a kind and pleasant doctor. It was a little hard to connect with her first but but after the second or 3rd visit she helped me understand my diagnosis and treatment plan and options and showed more compassion. She gave us different options and helped us to understand what we should expect from our options. She was willing to run tests when I questioned about immunological issues.

Have and open mind and ask questions when you want to know more about something.

Because I had a Low Overian Reserve. We did a low dose medication. She explained to me that my body wouldn’t produce any more eggs on a higher dose medication than it would probably on the lower dose medication. I would have 1 to 3 follicles very time.

I was lucky to have my iui’s and most medication covered by insurance. IVF procedure was about 15k.

I only had 1 viable egg to transfer and so we only did one. If we had more than 1 she would have let me do 2 if I wanted to but do recommend more than 2 because of my age.

I’ve only seen her once. That was only for the consultation. I understand she is a busy woman but it would be nice to have your doctor perform or explain treatment plan for that cycle. I would love to see her more often for appointments. I’m a little nervous for IVF so hopefully she will be the one explaining the process and be performing the treatment.

Come in with questions, always be communicate with her staff, and don’t be afraid to tell them anything.

My last cycle for IUI - I was taking Clomid 2.5 mg, Fermara 7.5 mg Dexamethasone, and for ovulation I toke Pregnyl.

Spent $500 for timed intercourse, spent $1000 (including medicine) for one IUI, other two IUIs were covered by insurance but probably spent $200 on medicine each cycle.

My husband and I started out seeing Dr. Peterson with the University of Utah. We had all three cycles of IUI with him. When we started into the IVF process, things got really messy and we knew that it wasn't the right fit. So we decided to do our homework. We had some good friends who had been to Utah Fertility Center, and had loved their experience. So we decided to set up a consult with Dr. Gurtcheff. Right away, we felt completely comfortable with her and even though we were taking this huge leap in the fertility world; we felt confident that we would be successful with her and she would guide us through the process each step. Dr. Gurtcheff was very confident that we would be successful. We were the "picture perfect" candidates for IVF and even though I had low egg reserve, we were sure that we would be successful on the 2nd or 3rd cycle. We started into our cycle, and I began injections, medications, daily appointments, etc. My body responded really well and I was one of the lucky ones who didn't have too many side effects from all the hormones. I did end up having to stem for an extra two days, so i did a total of 12 days of injections. Normally, I didn't see Dr. Gurtcheff for the ultrasounds (these were performed by the Nurse Practitioners or PA's). So on the day of egg retrieval, I was very excited to see our doctor again. She was very sensitive to my needs, taking the time to go over any questions we had before the retrieval. She was very kind and caring, almost nurturing in a way. This process is scary, and she helped ease our minds. The egg retrieval went really well, and we ended up with 17 follicles. Over the course of the 5 days, we ended up with 7 perfectly healthy embryos. So we felt very fortunate. We did not do PGS testing because we didn't really fit the bill. Looking back now, I wish so badly we would have. We proceeded with a 5 day fresh transfer and transferred 1 embryo. We froze the remainder. One thing I want to mention here is that I have a history of having an inadequate cervix (I had two surgeries on my cervix in the past). Dr. Gurtcheff was extremely concerned about this and took all the appropriate measures to ensure that we were handling the situation appropriately. She did not feel comfortable transferring more than 1 embryo at a time where we did not know how my cervix would hold up under pressure. I felt very confident in her expertise and knowledge, as well as comforted knowing she had my best interest in mind. The first cycle was unfortunately unsuccessful, but we had been prepared that might be the case. We didn't let us deter us, and we pressed forward. The first frozen transfer went smoothly; again, Dr. Gurtcheff was fabulous and walked us through the procedure. We chatted through the transfer like old friends. Fast forward... the second transfer also failed. We were all perplexed, but we still felt hopeful because we had 5 frozen embryos still and knew our chances continued to increase with each subsequent transfer. We proceeded with our third transfer (second FET). With hopeful hearts, we waited the 2 weeks (anyone in the fertility world knows that this is the worst 2 weeks ever and truly feels like a lifetime). The wait was finally over, we got the call and we were ecstatic to find out that we were pregnant! FINALLY pregnant! After 3 years of infertility. I can honestly say that is probably the happiest day of my life. Dr. Gurtcheff was excited for us and we started to prepare for the next step. A week later, I went in for an HCG test to make sure my levels were still rising. Unfortunately, they had not, and in fact, they had dropped. I was having a miscarriage and the pregnancy was not viable. We were crushed. Just like that, it was taken away from us. With no further answers, we directed our questions to Dr. Gurtcheff, and although she was uncertain why it hadn't worked either, she was sensitive and caring and literally spent almost an hour with me on the phone to comfort me and talk me through possible scenarios as well as new plans to move forward. Moving through the next few cycles was hard, and I was losing hope with each failed round. Dr. Gurtcheff did research and we tried new things, and new medications. We even tried a non-medicated cycle on one of them, and just used my own bodies hormones. We also transferred 2 embryos on another. Unfortunately, for some unknown reason, none of them worked. We never even became pregnant again. At this point, I had been diagnosed with repeated implantation failure. After 6 full transfers, and no successful live births, we had officially shut down and our hearts were broken. We knew we needed to take a break. Dr. Gurtcheff remained compassionate and understanding. We met for a final consult after our last failed round, and we discussed the next plan of action; another retrieval, with PGS testing this time, and a few other tests. One or two more transfers, possibly. Then, we start looking at surrogacy if needed. Statistically, couples are more likely to be successful on their 6th or subsequent transfer. We hold onto that and hold onto the hope that when we are ready to try again, we will be successful and will get our miracle baby. It has been 4 years since we started infertility treatments, and we have not been successful yet. It has been truly the hardest trial of our lives. Even though we were not successful, I can honestly say that Dr. Gurtcheff made the process easier. Infertility is not an easy subject, and I'm sure that going into the profession is not an easy choice. Watching couples be successful is the most rewarding part of their job. But when couples aren't successful, it also negatively affects them, and I believe that Dr. Gurtcheff was sincerely disheartened every time we got a negative result. She felt the emotions with us. We have since taken 7 months off, and we are focusing on other things right now. But when we are ready to try again, we will be returning to Utah Fertility Center and we will see Dr. Gurtcheff. We have invested a lot of money and time, and emotions into this trial, and coming up empty handed has been extremely hard. But we are strong-willed, and are not ready to give up the fight yet.

Make sure you have all the questions you want answered at the time of your consult. Also, inquire about resources; i.e. therapy, help groups, etc. My husband and I didn't really look into these options in the beginning and they would have been very useful throughout the process. I'm pretty sure it was mentioned in the consult, but perhaps it should have been a bigger part of the conversation. Infertility is very taxing on a couple and a marriage.

I sort of already discussed our cycles in detail but some of the specifics I can remember that we did differently: 1) not transferring more than 1 embryo at a time (with the exception of one cycle and only after consulting with my high risk doctor). 2) 5 medicated cycles, and 1 natural cycle 3) Repeated testing (I did 2 HSG tests. Which btw are the WORST). But, when I had my first, i was with a different doctor and they did not put me under and I almost passed out from the pain. When Dr. Gurtcheff did it the second time, she was shocked to learn that they hadn't put me to sleep. We did this the second time and it was a much more pleasant experience. Again, a reason why Dr. Gurtcheff is amazing. 4) We tried a new medication called Neupogen due to repeated implantation failure. 5) We did not do PGS testing on our embryos. We plan to do that when we do our next full cycle.

OH boy.. how can I forget the absorbent costs associated with infertility treatments. hah. From beginning to end, with four years of infertility treatments, we have spent close to 30,000 dollars on TTC. Between medications, IUI, additional testing and actual IVF. Unfortunately, neither of our organizations that we work for, nor do our insurance companies, help with infertility expenses. It's always been a very troubling concept to me. They say where it's elective, it's not covered. But I can vouch for every single woman who struggles to have a child naturally, that being infertile is NOT elective. No one chooses to be diagnosed with infertility. Yes, the process of moving forward with infertility treatment is a choice; but only after couples have exhausted all other options. As women, we are physiologically designed to conceive and carry babies. When that piece of you is broken, it's an internal struggle every day to really believe that something is wrong with you. I wish more insurance companies would consider this. IVF is expensive. But how can you put a price on true happiness; how can you put a price on a child of your own.

We chose to do ICSI and had great results. We got 7 embryos that all made it to the full blastocyst stage and thawed beautifully each time. We did not grade them. But they always looked beautiful under the microscope. Obviously, there is no way to truly know without doing PGS testing.

Dr Gurtcheff has always been happy to talk through any questions I’ve had and explain any of the treatments we were moving forward with. She has been clear in communicating our next steps when previous treatments didn’t work. When simply taking clomid and timing intercourse didn’t work after the third try she suggested we move to the next step trying an IUI so we didn’t waste our money on something we felt fairly confidently wouldn’t work. She has been patient with our hesitations and been willing to go with our plan and desires when they did not match her suggestions, but has been clear about what we can expect if we adjust our plan and try something new. After 3 failed IUI attempts she suggested that we move on to ivf with the better odds for those in our situation, but was very patient when we waited for 6 months taking a break and deciding what we wanted to do. When we did decide to move forward with ivf after another bad summer of cysts and growing endometriosis she was quick to adjust the plan to accommodate the growing severity of my endometriosis and suggested a specialist who could perform surgery this time to remove my cysts while preserving and keeping my right ovary, and was involved at each step (minus the actual surgery). While we are just now starting the actual process of our first round of ivf I feel confidently that Dr Gurtcheff will continue to support and treat me to the best of her ability, with her best plan for my own situation.

Come prepared with questions and don’t hesitate in asking anything. She’s so happy to answer questions, but can’t predict all of them. And there are no stupid questions, ever.

In my first three months of treatments I started with a baseline appointment and then took clomid for 5 days, had another ultrasound to check the stimulation of my follicles. When the timing was right following that second ultrasound I would give myself the hcg trigger shot and then my husband and I would have sex 12 and 24 hours after the shot. I then took progesterone suppositories until my blood test to confirm if I was pregnant or not. The following treatment was the same except that rather than my husband and I having sex we did the interuterine insemination, but the timing and medication was the same. I then had my first laparoscopic surgery to diagnose and clean up my endometriosis. Following the surgery we did two more rounds of the IUI but used femara instead of clomid as it is supposed to be better for women with endometriosis. None of the treatments were successful so we took a break over the summer while we were doing some traveling, and to give my body some rest. We will be doing our first round of ivf in a month.

The Cycle of clomid, with a trigger shot, and times intercourse, we paid around $300 a month. Each IUI cycle cost $1000.

I was first a patient of Dr. Gurtcheff's in 2012 after trying to get pregnant for over a year. I was seeing her in Pleasant Grove and then saw her in Murray when they opened their location there. I did 3 rounds of Clomid and two IUIs with injectables and was not able to get pregnant. When she recommended we move on to IVF, we moved to MA and continued our care there, under Dr. Zimon. I resumed my care with Dr Gurtcheff when we wanted to try for another pregnancy with our frozen embryos. We moved our embryos from Boston to UT. I lost both of those embryos, so now we are pursuing donated embryos in hopes of a successful pregnancy.

Stay up to date on current research, ask all your questions.

I did 3 rounds of Clomid in 2012. I always responded to meds and had 1-2 mature follicles, but no pregnancy. I did 2 IUI cycles with her as well, both with injectable meds. My husband has good sperm counts, but neither IUI was successful. My AMH was low and dropping, so it was recommended we move on to IVF, which we did (but with another clinic and doctor out of state). For my FET cycles, I took estradiol valerate to prep for FET and PIO to help support pregnancy. My first transfer had a positive pregnancy test, but HCG levels were low and never went up appropriately. I had an early miscarriage after verifying via ultrasound no viable pregnancy. Dr. Gurtcheff did a full round of bloodwork to check for factors that could cause repeat pregnancy loss (nothing found) and I had an endometrial biopsy done. My second FET was similar to the first and resulted in a successful pregnancy until 13 weeks when I developed a SCH that caused me to miscarry. She was supportive of us trying IVF with our own eggs again, but my insurance denied coverage due to high FSH levels, so we are pursuing donated embryos at this time.

FET was $2900.

I was referred to Dr G from my OB/GYN. I trust my OB with my life (She literally saved mine) so I felt very comfortable from the first time meeting her. She had done her research on my particular situation before meeting with me and I could tell that she was interested in lowering all potential risks from my blood issue. She was willing to get all my medical doctors involved to come up with the best plan for me to be successful. I felt like she was going above and beyond for my care and she did it without hesitation. Her genuine care and concern is just one of her best qualities.

Go into your initial appointment with an open mind and heart. That way you will be able to hear and see that she has a genuine love for her job and helping people.

My treatment was put together with input from my other medical doctors. After having my first daughter, I suffered a pulmonary embolism. I am prone to blood clots and that is high risk with high levels of hormones. I am taking an estrogen blocker as well as heparin. Then after the egg retrieval I will take lovinox injections to lower the risk of blood clots.

The treatment cost was an IVF cycle With Gestational Carrier

I had already decided that only one embryo would be transferred at a time prior to meeting.

Dr Gurtcheff is very sweet and easy to talk to. she is great at explaining everything throughout the whole process. she truly seems to have my best interest in mind and seems to want us to get pregnant as badly as we want it.

ask her anything! she is a fountain of knowledge. I had so many questions and worries with my last miscarriage and there wasn't one thing she couldn't answer and she assured me that this wasnt my fault and involved me when deciding a new care plan.

when I first met with her she said "we have to figure out what the problem is first before we can treat it." she did an ultrasound and several labs to determine that I had PCOS. she then started me on provera to start a period and I did. then we did 2.5 mg of femara to help me ovulate because I wasn't ovulating on my own. that dose didn't work and she increased to 5 mg the next month. I ovulated and got pregnant, but unfortunately ended in miscarriage. the following month we did 5mg of femara again but no ovulation, so she increased it to 7.5. I have been on that dose for two cycles now and have ovulated both times. she also gave me the option during the process to do timed intercourse with monitoring at any point, but I decided to wait and try just the femara for a while first. each cycle she has done a 21 day progesterone to confirm ovulation and if I ovulate then she does an HCG test the week after. she has given me a lot of options for what steps to take next, especially after my miscarriage, which I appreciate! since the miscarriage she has also started me on 200 mg of prometrium twice a day each cycle after ovulation is confirmed and baby aspirin once a day. prometrium was done a couple other times on the cycles that I didn't ovulate to start a period

Dr. G was amazing! She truely cares and you feel she is part of your team and rooting you on for success! She explains everything so well and doesn't give any false expectations! She is very thourough and quick to respond! She was nothing short of amazing!

Be open and don't hesitate to ask questions and expect honest feed back!

We did estrogen priming instead of birth control because I had once had a low AMH blood draw (it had since normalized by the time we started IVF). We then did stims (follistim 225 and one powder of menopur) for 10 days with blood work and ultrasound monitoring. We started ganirilex on atom day 7 and triggered day 10. Egg retrieval was 36 hours. Transfer was 5 days after. Endometrin was started day after egg retrieval. Currently waiting for my beta as I'm filling this out! (already been getting positive at home pregnancy tests :) )

Before medications $9800

We were set on transferring too, while Dr. G made us very aware of the risks, she was so willing to work with us and support us. They do have a strict policy of transferring no more than two though.