The $35 Consultation - What Happens and Why It Matters

A new-patient visit at Arbour Longevity costs $35 and lasts 45 to 60 minutes. For many people it is the most useful hour of healthcare they will buy all year, because it looks at why you feel the way you do, measured against optimal ranges, not just a quick screen for disease.

Short answer: The $35 consultation is a 45 to 60 minute visit where we listen to your full symptom story, do a focused exam, and order the right deep lab panel for your situation. The $35 is credited toward your treatment plan if you move forward. Labs are billed separately.

What happens during the $35 consultation

Here is the hour, step by step:

• A real conversation about your history and the symptoms bothering you, not a paperwork drill.
• A focused physical check related to your concerns.
• Orders for a deep, optimization-grade lab panel. Depending on your case, that can include a full hormone workup, a complete thyroid panel, metabolic markers like fasting insulin, inflammation markers, and nutrition markers.
• A plain explanation of what we are looking for and how the results will shape your plan.
• An overview of options that may fit (hormone therapy, peptides, medical weight loss, regenerative procedures, aesthetics, IV therapy). This is a good moment to raise the 5 questions worth asking before starting any aesthetic or wellness treatment.
• A clear next step: when to get labs drawn, when to return, and what treatment usually looks like.

Bringing recent records (bloodwork, imaging) is helpful but not required. If you have no recent labs, we start the workup from scratch.

Why it looks different from a primary care visit

A typical primary care visit is about 15 minutes, and its job is to catch disease and manage what insurance covers. That is essential, but it is not built to figure out why a healthy-looking 42-year-old is exhausted, foggy, and 18 pounds heavier than two years ago when her standard labs all read "normal."

A longevity visit asks a different question: where is the gap between how your body should be working and how it is actually working, and how do we close it? That means a longer visit, a deeper set of questions, a broader lab panel, and results read against optimal ranges (what is ideal for how you feel), not just the wide "normal" range. If your labs keep coming back normal while you feel terrible, our piece on why that happens explains the difference. For more on the testing itself, see the 5 blood tests your doctor is not ordering.

The five lab areas we order most often

Depending on your symptoms, the visit usually generates orders in some mix of these areas:

• Hormones: total and free testosterone, SHBG (a protein that holds onto your hormones), estradiol, progesterone, DHEA-S, prolactin, FSH, LH.
• Thyroid: TSH, free T3, free T4, reverse T3, and thyroid antibodies.
• Metabolism: fasting glucose, fasting insulin, HbA1c (a 3-month blood-sugar average), and a full cholesterol panel.
• Inflammation: hs-CRP (a blood test for inflammation), homocysteine, and ferritin.
• Nutrition: vitamin D, B12, folate, and magnesium.

For some patients we add markers like PSA for men over 40 or advanced heart markers for those with a strong family history. The panel is matched to you. Nothing relevant is skipped because of insurance.

Lab costs and the fee

The $35 covers the provider visit. Labs are separate and depend on what is ordered, often $200 to $600 out of pocket. HSA and FSA cards cover lab costs. If you proceed with treatment, the $35 is credited toward your first program.

What I see in clinic

The most common new patient has already done the rounds: a primary care visit, one basic panel, and the advice that everything looks fine, even though they still feel off. They are not imagining it. Once we run the deeper panel and read it against optimal ranges, there is almost always something to act on, whether it is a thyroid pattern, low iron stores, or a hormone shift. The relief on people's faces when their experience finally lines up with a number is the reason this visit exists.

What the second visit looks like

Two to four weeks later, once labs are back, we design the plan. We walk through every marker, point out what is optimal and what is not, and build a personalized plan from there. That may include hormone therapy, peptides, medical weight loss, regenerative procedures, aesthetics, or lifestyle changes. Improvements in energy, sleep, and mood often show up within 2 to 4 weeks of starting, with body-composition shifts over 3 to 6 months. Follow-up labs are usually repeated at 6 to 12 weeks, then a couple of times a year. To understand our overall approach, see longevity medicine versus functional medicine and how Arbour is different from a med spa. Our longevity medicine program is built around that same ongoing tracking.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the $35 fee really credited to my first program?

Yes. If you proceed with treatment, the $35 is applied to your first month or first program charge.

How soon can I be seen?

We aim to schedule new consultations within 1 to 2 weeks. Same-week visits are sometimes available.

Can I bring my partner?

Yes. Many patients bring a partner, and we are happy to accommodate that.

Do you accept insurance?

Arbour is a self-pay practice. Most longevity, regenerative, and aesthetic services are not covered by standard insurance. We accept HSA, FSA, credit cards, and Klarna/Affirm financing.

What if my labs come back normal?

A deep panel rarely comes back fully optimal across every marker for someone who feels unwell. "Normal by reference range" is not the same as "optimal for how you function." We walk through your results and the gap, if any, between where you are and where you want to be.

Can I bring records from my primary care doctor?

Yes, and it helps. We review whatever you have. If your existing labs were thorough enough, we may not need to repeat them, though usually a few extra markers are needed.

Where is the clinic, and who do you serve?

2217 Packard St #15, Ann Arbor, MI 48104, with free parking. We serve Ann Arbor, Washtenaw County, and the wider Southeast Michigan area. Hours: Thursday through Monday, 10am to 7pm.

The next step

If something has been off and the standard workup did not explain it, the $35 consultation is built for exactly that. Forty-five to sixty minutes with our clinician, the right lab orders, and a real plan.

Arbour Longevity, 2217 Packard St #15, Ann Arbor, MI 48104. (734) 436-3357. Thursday through Monday, 10am to 7pm.