First appointment with RE

[hopingforit]

I asked this exact same question in the regular TTC forum but only got one answer so I figured maybe some of you ladies here could help me out a bit better. The one answer I got suggested I come here for help. I called to make an appointment with a regular OB/GYN since my husband just got insurance again. To my surprise, they said since we have been TTC for 18 months, they would give me an appointment with an RE. I went to a GYN in October but my husband lost his insurance before we could do anything so this will be my first experience with testing and all that goes along with it. I was told that the first appointment will be an hour long consultation with no exam. I want to know what to expect when I go there. Though I know it is different with every doctor, what basically happens during this appointment? Is there anything I should ask him about what he is going to do or anything that would be important to know? I'm very excited about it. I don't temp so I can't take charts because my previous GYN said that temping isn't necessary and if you get a surge on an OPK, that's good enough. I'm very happy to have a doctor that has as much experience with infertility as he does. I'm just nervous that he is a male doctor. I have only ever gone to female GYN and actually would have preferred one but he is the only RE at this practice. Any tips on how to be comfortable about it? My DH won't be going with me...is there any information I should get from him prior to going so I can tell the doctor if he asks? When I do manage to get pregnant, would he be my OB/GYN or would I have to find a regular OB/GYN? Any information will be super helpful. I'm super excited because I thought going to an RE would happen after I did all basic testing at a regular GYN.

Lots and lots of to all of you

 

[raelynn]

hopingforit, we had our first meeting with our RE in January. Four our first appointment, we completed a bunch of paperwork on our TTC history. Luckily for us most of the forms were available ahead of time so we just brought it in with us. For us, my obgyn had already ordered us a lot of fertility testing so we had them send over all our results from that. Basically, we met with our RE and reviewed our history - how long we've been ttc any issues we've had previously. From there, he reviewed our options and gave us the next steps. If you haven't had any previous fertility testing that will probably be your next step (blood tests and ultrasound to see if you are ovulating, hsg to check for any tube blockages, semen analysis for hubby, etc.) Our fertility center also provides us with an assigned nurse and financial adviser so we met with them as well and got our information packet with all the contact info and such.

My obgyn was great since she sent us for a lot of fertility testing herself (not a lot of gyns do this) but I personally prefer the RE now. The whole facility is centered around fertility problems so they are very nice and understanding and for us at least, they've been great to try and get us into our action plan very quickly. They just understand LTTTC a lot better since that is what they deal with. My RE is male too where I've typically preferred a female but at this point I've seen so many doctors for our fertility testing and such it doesn't even really matter. They're very professional so just try to keep in mind they are a doctor and they do this all the time. Usually, the RE will take care of you up to a point ( a certain number of weeks into your pregnancy) and then you go back to your main obgyn at that point. Ours told us how long during our consultation. Also, depending on your insurance, they may have similar rules where they only cover an RE to a point.

Hope this helps some and good luck!

 

[hopingforit]

hopingforit, we had our first meeting with our RE in January. Four our first appointment, we completed a bunch of paperwork on our TTC history. Luckily for us most of the forms were available ahead of time so we just brought it in with us. For us, my obgyn had already ordered us a lot of fertility testing so we had them send over all our results from that. Basically, we met with our RE and reviewed our history - how long we've been ttc any issues we've had previously. From there, he reviewed our options and gave us the next steps. If you haven't had any previous fertility testing that will probably be your next step (blood tests and ultrasound to see if you are ovulating, hsg to check for any tube blockages, semen analysis for hubby, etc.) Our fertility center also provides us with an assigned nurse and financial adviser so we met with them as well and got our information packet with all the contact info and such.

My obgyn was great since she sent us for a lot of fertility testing herself (not a lot of gyns do this) but I personally prefer the RE now. The whole facility is centered around fertility problems so they are very nice and understanding and for us at least, they've been great to try and get us into our action plan very quickly. They just understand LTTTC a lot better since that is what they deal with. My RE is male too where I've typically preferred a female but at this point I've seen so many doctors for our fertility testing and such it doesn't even really matter. They're very professional so just try to keep in mind they are a doctor and they do this all the time. Usually, the RE will take care of you up to a point ( a certain number of weeks into your pregnancy) and then you go back to your main obgyn at that point. Ours told us how long during our consultation. Also, depending on your insurance, they may have similar rules where they only cover an RE to a point.

Hope this helps some and good luck!

Thank you for your answer! I first wanted to say that I like your name. My niece's name is Raelyn....I have only known one other person with that name.
I haven't had any fertility testing done at all so I thought he would order the basic tests. I was hoping he would order them ahead of time but I guess not knowing my full story....he can't really do that.
I know that the center I am going to is not specifically fertility related. My old OB/GYN isn't covered under my new insurance so hopefully when the RE gets done with his job, I can just get another one at the center. I think when it comes to the doctor being male, my husband is more uncomfortable with it than I am but since he is the best around the area, we just have to deal with it and after a few appointments, I'll get used to it...I hope LOL.
Insurance is one thing I'm worried about. I don't know what fertility testing is covered under my insurance. My hubby works for the state so I know it's good insurance but I don't know what is covered. I'll have to ask at the office but I do know that they cover any specialist without a referral so I think my number of visits is unlimited. Another good thing is, if we don't get pregnant and we have the insurance for a year, the state I live in requires insurance to pay for IUI, IVF etc. for a specific number of times.

Thanks so much for the information. It was very helpful. Lots of to you!

 

[raelynn]

Raelynn is actually just a nickname for me. It is a combo of my first and middle names.

I don't know about your insurance specifically but ours has a dedicated infertility line (we actually had to call in ahead of time to get pre-approval) and they were able to tell me what they covered. There is also usually an infertility section in the insurance packet you get when you first sign up so you may want to look for that. If the center you go to offers a financial adviser, they're very helpful with the insurance info too. Ours got in touch with our insurance company and could tell me a rough estimate of how much we'd be responsible for.

I think all the REs around us are male so we didn't really have much of a choice but ours is really nice so I've gotten used to it.

 

[hopingforit]

Raelynn is actually just a nickname for me. It is a combo of my first and middle names.

I don't know about your insurance specifically but ours has a dedicated infertility line (we actually had to call in ahead of time to get pre-approval) and they were able to tell me what they covered. There is also usually an infertility section in the insurance packet you get when you first sign up so you may want to look for that. If the center you go to offers a financial adviser, they're very helpful with the insurance info too. Ours got in touch with our insurance company and could tell me a rough estimate of how much we'd be responsible for.

I think all the REs around us are male so we didn't really have much of a choice but ours is really nice so I've gotten used to it.

I'm actually waiting on the booklet that tells me what is covered and what is not. I looked everywhere online for the information but couldn't find it and they were very unhelpful when I called the regular line. I will have to check if they have an infertility line or something like it. That would be much more helpful. Thank you. :

 

[raelynn]

Yeah, when I called the main line for ours they wouldn't help me at all. They just referred me back to the infertility line which was going straight to voicemail even though they were still supposed to be open. I finally got through another day though and they did end up helping me out.

When is your appointment?

 

[hopingforit]

Yeah, when I called the main line for ours they wouldn't help me at all. They just referred me back to the infertility line which was going straight to voicemail even though they were still supposed to be open. I finally got through another day though and they did end up helping me out.

When is your appointment?

I haven't found an infertility line for my insurance yet but I will keep looking. Hopefully I can find one.

It is on the 22nd of this month.

 

[raelynn]

Well good luck with your appointment! They should be able to at least start you on a course of action.