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LGBT Parenting
BostonGayGal
member
I would like to find an RE in the Boston area.
BostonGayGal
member
Round 3 (insems 5 and 6) was a no-go. Best case scenario, I will be 36 when I have a baby. I had always wanted several children, but that isn't seeming likely at this point. I am questioning the advice I am being given by the midwives at AICGB because they keep recommending 2 inseminations a month and I just feel that between the cost of the sperm, inseminations, acupuncture, and time off of work, it is a lot to spend. I know I am still in the 'average timeframe' but I don't want to be 10K in the hole before I find out there is a problem. I want to at least get on the waiting list while I try again this month.
I really want some medical testing to know that the fabulous-vacation's-worth of money I am spending every month for an ineffective douching is not completely in vain.
Who do you recommend? What is involved in the testing? Did your insurance cover it (and why?) or how much did it cost out of pocket?
This discussion has been closed.
Re: I would like to find an RE in the Boston area.
Infertility coverage only covers people with a diagnosis of infertility, which I am told I can not obtain until I have had 6 unsuccessful cycles of IUIs.
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Ah ok...I didn't know that. Sorry. I still recommend Dr Hill though.
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I can only offer advice about the testing. FWIW, my insurance covered everything 100% (except co-pays for the meds) so I opted to take advantage of every medical intervention possible. IUIs 2 (c/p) and 3 worked.
HSG - to make sure there is no blockage in your tubes. The nice thing about this test is that even if you don't have a blockage studies show having this done does increase your odds of a successful IUI the following several months.
U/S - IMO, the best testing we did wasn't the blood work, but the follicle checks. This really helped pin point timing to make sure we didn't miss ovulation or go too soon.
Trigger - I had no side effects, it cost about $35 and it made sure I would ovulate within a given time frame. We always did the IUI 12hrs post trigger. I ovulated about 8 hours after the IUI (best guess, based on a slight pinching feeling I think was ovulation). I really credit this ability to time things with the success we had.
Also wanted to speak to the testing portion of your post....
My experience was pretty similar to what Two shared above. Although I had no known or suspected fertility issues, I worked with an RE from the start and took advantage of every medical intervention possible---HSG, blood work, multiple ultrasounds per cycle, clomid, trigger, etc. The cycle that worked included the most drugs/ interventions and the introduction of b2b iuis. And like Two, I credit the re's ability to narrow down the perfect timing for inseminations with our success that cycle.
Best of luck to you. These are such hard decisions to begin with, and then when you throw money into the mix.....
I am looking itno Boston IVF now, specifically Dr. Oskowitz and Dr. Riley. My understanding is that I will pay for the consult, but then the testing will be paid for by insurance. But then the IUI's will cost $450 each (more than double what I pay now). Since all I want done is the testing for now, I am not sure it will be a good fit. An 'independent' RE might allow me to test but then continue IUI's at AICGB? I don't know. I am waiting for AICGB to get back to me with what they suggest.
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BGG my friend's son is named Riley after Dr. Riley he is amazing.
I just wanted to say I feel your pain. We did 3 cycles (4IUIs) and nothing. We switched to a RE after taking a break in Oct and will be doing the inseminations sometime later this week. Given my age (29) he said we will try Clomid/Premarin this month and I'll be getting a trigger shot on Wednesday. If this fails, he said we'll start testing.
At the very least, you should have the HSG (dye test) done. That will let you know if your tubes are blocked. You can ovulate monthly, but if the tube(s) are blocked, it won't make a difference.
Our insurance covers $0 of anything, and we are currently $10k in the hole, which is insane given that IVF at this particular doctor's office would have cost us $9500. Good luck, I hope it works out for you!
HI! DW and I just went through AICGB. We only did one IUI a month (to keep down on cost) and got lucky on #3!!
If you are looking for a Fertility Dr. I would HIGHLY recommend Dr. Fox at Brigham and Women's. We met with her when we thought DW was going to carry first. She is kind and informative and spent over an hour answering all our questions. Also, I have a friend who works there making baby's and she has lots of good things to say about the whole clinic. :- )
good luck!
oh...and side note...a portion of our unmedicated IUIs got reimbursed even going through AICGB! So make sure they are submitting your claims to your insurance. You may be able to get a credit towards any further procedures if you do them there.
I don't know much about fertility testing but good luck there!
I spoke to AICGB and Dr. Anderson is seeing me today to discuss doing the blockage testing which would need to be done between day 7-9. Then I go back tomorrow for day 3 hormone testing, which will be followed by day ten testing.
Because I have extremely painful periods they think the blockage testing will be covered, and the other testing may or may not be, but it will be less than $500.
I REALLY hope that I can do the blockage testing this cycle since it apparently cleans things out and there is a bump in bfp's immediately following it since everything gets a flushing. I would be very very excited to have a due date in August since my mother and I both have birthdays that month.
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I am struggling with the same issue. We are also working with AICGB and I would love it if we are successful without much intervention. But, I am also getting antsy. It's been six months - though that has only included 4 cycles in which we tried due to my long cycles and a summer vacation. Cycle three led to a chemical pregnancy.
We did go and consult with the Brigham clinic and loved them. But, they basically said to go away for several more months before switching to them. They seem to be getting a bit more conservative about rushing to clomid, triggers, etc. I have very mixed feelings about it since I am 35 and do not want to waste much time. But, I guess we will at least stick with AICGB for two-three more cycles. Brigham did advise switching to two insems a cycle - which we had not been doing consistently. It's frustrating not to know what to do and to see all the different advice that everyone receives. To me, it makes logical sense to counteract the deficit we have from using frozen sperm with things that pinpoint ovulation more accurately. But, I guess i have to be patient.
mrl02 - I had an appointment with Dr. Anderson the other day. I am having AICGB due the day 3/10 blood work. They will submit to insurance based on my complaint of painful periods but if it isn't covered it will be a bit under $500. They also scheduled me for an HSG next week and think that will very likely be paid for based on the painful periods.
I will hear back about my day 3 blood work later today. We shall see... Best of luck to you.
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