Those using donor embryos- question

lizzielou80 · June 2014

Hi everyone that went the donor embryo route.

I'm wondering how everyone got matched up. I've been on Miracles Waiting for a while and have had a little contact (2 matches but 1 changed her mind and 1 the clinic where the embryos are stored is making it impossible for them to transfer to me..so in limbo on that). What are some other routes? I've checked w/ the AZ clinics here and 2 have "embryo programs" but the wait is ridiculous. I've heard of FIRM- and I've reached out to them with pretty much no response (which I heard is common). I keep reading on other groups all these people getting matched up and just wondering what more I should be researching. I have insurance (that thank you Jesus) covers FETs- so I'm willing to travel to another state if a clinic has embryos available as long as they are in-network with my insurance. We've spent almost 20K on infertility treatments so far- and though a baby is of course priceless- my husband really feels we should not spend a ton more on something that just might not happen. I, however, refuse to give up on the dream of a baby- but agree we should attempt to keep costs down- which is why I'm looking for any clinic that is in-network (even if I have to travel). Sorry for the long post..just trying to find some guidance on where else I can turn to find embryos. Thank you all so much for your help, thoughts, advice.

Twinkie0612 · June 2014

We did our donor embryo cycle through FIRM, because they are very affordable (We are OOP) and have no wait list for embryos. Honestly I would rate my experience there as mediocre. One thing to think about with them is that pretty much all of their embryos have been frozen using slow freezing techniques, they only adopted vitirification in the last few years I believe. This means realistically you can expect to lose more embryos to thaw than you would if they had been vitrified. Also, it is hard to get the coordinator on the phone, you have to leave her a message and she will call you back. Once I was established as a patient, I found that she was a lot better at calling me back within 24 hours.

Since you have insurance, I would recommend looking elsewhere. I know women that have had success with FIRM, but I know many that didn't as well. To me FIRM is a low cost provider.

There are other options. I know many women love the NEDC. We did not choose them for personal reasons, but they have a great success rate. They do require a homestudy, which increases the wait time. There are also agencies you can help you find embryos, but they charge a fairly hefty fee. I think Snowflakes fee is $8,000.

Km672 · June 2014

We are looking into the donor embryo program at California conceptions.

liz4paws · June 2014

Hi there! We "adopted" embryos privately, but there are plenty of other options. I have a link on my blog that might help. Click on the "Embryo Adoption" badge at the bottom of my signature. Good luck!

lizzielou80 · June 2014

Km672 said:

We are looking into the donor embryo program at California conceptions.

@km672 i have heard great things about them.- but since I have insurance I don't think that works with a place like that. So i'm torn that though they have success that I just don't know that I can spend 12K on something that I can get for 20% OOP w/ insurance. But it's on the list to consider still for sure!

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Those using donor embryos- question

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