Q's about vial purchase and storage...?

GeminiJai

I have selected a donor but will not be performing my first IUI until either early December or early January... I've noticed that at least 2 of the donors that I'd previously saved to my "favourites" have recently gone from "Y" to either a "N" or "C" status for IUI availability, which has given me cause for concern about my donor.

I'm new to all of this and was wondering if anyone could give me some insight into vial purchase and/or storage?

- Should I purchase vials NOW and store them with Fairfax for 50-80 days, and incur the additional cost... OR
- Should I just wait and purchase them when and as needed, crossing my fingers that he will still have availability?

-- Also, on a side note: how many vials does one typically purchase at a time? Do most people only purchase 1 at a time, on an as-needed? Or do you purchase "in bulk," with the assumption that it will take several attempts? This is an important question for me to ask because the buy-back is only 50% and that is ONLY if the vials stay at Fairfax (and you pay the $40/mo storage fee).

Thank you!

robin

geminijai,
I purchase 2 vials at a time. I have not purchased any more than that. I do this with the thought that I want to see the numbers before I would purchase a lot. I also have the thought that if it doesnt work than I was "meant" to switch. carzy, I know it's just what I do. My doctor's office has the availability to store the vials, so I have them shipped there. They have had to be stored there for around 2 months, since I do not always produce viable follies. If your doctors office has the availability than you could have them shipped there, if not I would suggest having them stored if you feel that you have found "the one".

Sending you lots of baby dust!

Robin

GeminiJai

robin wrote:

If your doctors office has the availability than you could have them shipped there, if not I would suggest having them stored if you feel that you have found "the one".

Thanks, Robin! I really-really-really like this donor (oddly enough, he seems like someone I'd instantly be interested in if we had met in a "perfect" world- if that makes sense?) so I'd rather not switch to someone else, if I can avoid it. I will definitely call the doctor's office today to see if they have availability to store vials... And buying 2 at a time makes sense, as well. That way, if it works the first time you're only out the cost of 1 extra vial - and, if it doesn't work the first time, you've already got another vial on-hand to try again as soon as your follies allow.

GeminiJai

I just called my doctor's office and they do have on-site storage! I also talked with the donor counselor who said that many women purchase at least 2 vials at a time (some actually use 2 vials *per* IUI attempt- but I absolutely could NOT afford to approach it that way!) to avoid paying for repeated shipping costs per vial. Now I just need to come up with the $ to make all of this happen, since I had originally planned on saving til the end of the year for my first 2 vials, but may now need to finance it on credit and make payments... :roll: I just really don't want to chance my donor's availability.

maria2

I purchased 2 vials at a time...mostly to get the discount (I also joined the Club Fairfax for free shipping)....My RE's office stores the vials for me for free....while I'm trying. If the vials were just sitting there and I wasn't actively trying, then they would charge me....so ask your RE what their policy is for storing the vials.

Good luck!!

GeminiJai

maria2 wrote:

I purchased 2 vials at a time...mostly to get the discount

Maria- I thought you only got a discount on storage/shipping if you purchased more than 4 vials at a time? Am I missing something?? Also, I had thought about Club Fairfax but the cost is $165/year and Fairfax is smack-dab between my home and my doctor's office, so the cost for local courier is only $95 - which didn't make the "free 1st shipping" perk of the club seem very worthwhile.

maria2

They offer different discounts each month..i think once they had buy one vial get second 50% off? So keep eyes out for different discounts...free shipping was good for me because I live in california!

moewhit

GeminiJai wrote:

maria2 wrote:

I purchased 2 vials at a time...mostly to get the discount

Maria- I thought you only got a discount on storage/shipping if you purchased more than 4 vials at a time? Am I missing something?? Also, I had thought about Club Fairfax but the cost is $165/year and Fairfax is smack-dab between my home and my doctor's office, so the cost for local courier is only $95 - which didn't make the "free 1st shipping" perk of the club seem very worthwhile.

I typically order two vials at a time because my doc does back to back IUIs meaning the day after trigger and the following day. I drive to Fairfax which is about 50 miles away and pick up my vials and deliver it to my doctors office. The shipping costs about $200 so that's a huge savings for me. I just need to return the nitrogen tank within 10 business days or there's a fee. My docs office stores it indefinately without a fee. By the way when I joined the Fairfax Club in June, they offered 3 months of free storage and free shipping on the 1st order.

Good luck with your cycle!
Moe

GeminiJai

moewhit wrote:

I drive to Fairfax which is about 50 miles away and pick up my vials and deliver it to my doctors office. The shipping costs about $200 so that's a huge savings for me. I just need to return the nitrogen tank within 10 business days or there's a fee.

Moe- I thought I read under the Fee Chart that it costs $100 to pick up vials yourself? If it's free, I would be HAPPY to pick them up for my doctor's office- instead of paying $95 for local courier! And wouldn't we all just love it if Fairfax ran a "holiday" special in December for BOGO 50% haha!

-jaime

moewhit

GeminiJai wrote:

moewhit wrote:

I drive to Fairfax which is about 50 miles away and pick up my vials and deliver it to my doctors office. The shipping costs about $200 so that's a huge savings for me. I just need to return the nitrogen tank within 10 business days or there's a fee.

Moe- I thought I read under the Fee Chart that it costs $100 to pick up vials yourself? If it's free, I would be HAPPY to pick them up for my doctor's office- instead of paying $95 for local courier! Also, my doctor's office will do free storage so I think I might purchase 2 vials at a time (1 to use, the other to store off-site for free "just in case"), as well. I would love it if they ran a "holiday" special in December for BOGO 50% haha!

-jaime

Hi Jaime!
The first time I picked up the vials I didn't pay anything. When I placed my order I just indicated that I would pick up during business hours. Then the second time, I actually had two vials in storage so they charged me $45 as a processing/handling fee to remove from storage. Then I simply drove down and picked up then dropped off at my doctors office. My doctors office is in Towson so it cannot be handled by a local courier which is why it's about $200 if it was delivered.

I would call client services just to see if things changed. By the way I picked up my vials within the past two weeks. I hope it works out for you and you can save some $$. This can be very draining on the picketbook!

Baby dust and best wishes.

Moe

GeminiJai

moewhit wrote:

The first time I picked up the vials I didn't pay anything.

Moe- YAY! Thank you! That's great news!! If I pick the vials up, myself, it would be "on the way" to my RE's office, anyway! I'll call them tomorrow, though, just to make sure ... And, you're right- this IS very draining on the pocketbook! Although every penny spent will be worth it in the end, it's still nice to save money when and where you can.

PS. I'm so excited to see how everything turns out for you, with the vials that you recently picked up :P

Good luck & lots of baby dust,
Jaime