5DogMa

My daughter had her surgery with Dr. Garcia 6 months ago. We had a great experience and all the doctors and staff are super nice and the facility clean. You'll love Dr. Garcia. The day of surgery they did blood work, ekg and chest xray. Probably if you have other conditions or health issues they might do more tests, but she didn't have any health issues. She had a drain tube just while in the hospital and they took it out just before we left to go back to the hotel. She had 5 very small incisions with clear stitches that disolve on their own. They did 2 leak tests and the last one they recorded on a DVD they give you to take home along with the surgery report and test records. She's had no problems at all and recovered quickly. She's lost almost 70 lbs, 20 were pre-op. She's actually almost too thin although she still wants to lose more. We will be going to TJ again for other medical services. We had a great experience in TJ and have no reservations about going back again.

Be sure to tell the doctor and take your CPAP machine to Mx. Most like to put you on it in recovery. You said you had sleep apena in the questionaire right? If your using a coordinator tell/remind them also. They will instruct you on what to do.

So I just read up on this "bloodless surgery". Since this surgery is done thru tiny cuts with very little blood loss plus the instruments used to cut away the stomach stop bleeding as they staple. Unless something went terribly wrong I just don't see why anyone would need a blood transfusion. There are a lot of videos on You Tube showing this surgery. Like azquilter92 said I don't think, and I have not heard of people needing blood transfusions resulting from this surgery. Something would have to go wrong. You should ask any doctor you are considering if they have ever needed to give a patient a blood transfusion from this surgery and why. It's probably pretty rare.

Not sure what you mean "bloodless" but my daughter had a great experience with Dr. Garcia and his staff at Hospial Mi Doctor in TJ. I have BCBS also and it depends on your employeer what coverage they have choosen. My company policy said they do not cover WLS UNLESS you have a BMI 40+ or co-morbs with BMI 35+. I was a 42 BMI with co-morbs so they covered it.

That's exactly why I don't tell anyone. They don't understand and I don't have time or the patience to educate them. This journey is hard enough, don't set yourself up for the fustrations of dealing with people who don't get it.

The doctor that did your fundaplication surgery, what does he/she say about VSG? As you know the fundaplication was done probably had to do with your acid reflux. VSG can cause acid reflux to get worse in some patients. Before VSG surgery I had severe acid reflux and took Nexium twice a day so my surgeon was not sure if I should have VSG but should go with RNY. I told him when I'm down in weight the acid reflux gets better and is has for me. 6 month out and 60 lbs down I don't know if I even need it anymore but I take it just in case.

For my daughters surgery we used Alma at Ready 4 A Change. She was fantastic! We also used Dr. Garcia and his staff at Hospital Mi Doctor and can tell you from our experience they are also fantastic. Follow-up is with you PCP and they (Dr. Garcia's group) give you all the paperwork about your surgery and a CD with a video of your leak test to share with your PCP.

Took me at least 2 months before I stopped taking naps, but I'm older although I was walking a couple miles a day before surgery and going to the gym. I think it took me longer than normal to get my energy back. My daughter was back to normal in less than 2 weeks after her VSG surgery.

I think there are several coordinator companies associated with Obesity Solutions International. We went thru Ready 4 a Change and most of the paperwork said Obesity Solutions. Even the goodie bag from the Hospital MI Doctor has Obesity Solutions International on it. Our coordinator was alma and she was great. I think it's a way to get more exposure for the doctors to be listed with several WLS coordinators. All this being said, we loved Alma, Dr. Garcia and the staff at Hospital Mi Doctor in TJ and would choose them all again. We had a fantastic experience there and felt safe and in good hands. We paid $5,000 for my daughters VSG surgery package.

Unless you plan on getting involved with the Mexican drug cartel or buy illegal drugs, I don't think you have anything to worry about. We were there in January and felt totally safe. The areas you'll be in are full of tourists and they want to protect the tourists because we are a huge part of their economy. Use common sense in Mexico just like here in the US. There are neighborhoods in my little town I wouldn't walk around at night. I get so mad at people who talk about stuff they don't know anything about. Hearsay and gossip! Any time anyone, not just Americans, travel to a foreign country you need to be aware of your surroundings and cautious. Good luck with your surgery. Relax it will all be okay.

My daughter did not. Her surgery was in January.

Pain probably not sleeve related but your unbilical or hernia repair. Usually sleeve pain in the left side where they took out the porton the stomach they removed. Just my thoughts since that's mostly what I've read about post-op sleeve pain and that's where mine was although very minor pain.

I was going to also do the band until I did a lot of research and saw so many band revisions to sleeves. If I'm going to go under, I'd rather do it just once. VSG seems easier with less complications. I'm really glad I didn't get the band.

You are supose to be sipping not gulping this soon after surgery. You probably have some swelling and need to sip. Yes, I know that's not what you wanted to hear but you probably know that's probably the main cause of your symptoms. I still can't gulp or take big swallows or it comes up and I'm almost 6 months out. Fizzies, yes I know what you mean. I think that's because you do swallow some air when you drink and since both the air and liquid are trying to squeeze through a thin narrow tube it would cause like bubbles/fizzies. I still have squeeky bubbly noises coming from my esophagus all the time.

Are you drinking enough fluids? Dehydration is serious and you must drink more than eat at this point. "Many people experience dizziness, faintness or light-headedness when they stand up. This is called postural hypotension (low blood pressure), and is due to a drop in blood pressure when going from a sitting to a stanging position. Usually, this is not a problem, as long as it occurs occasionally, and is often treated with the simple advice of "get up more slowly". Dehydration can increase this effect because of the limited amounts of Fluid in the body so special precautions should be taken when changing from horizontal to vertical." Also, you still could be under the influence of the anesthesia. It wears off slower on some people.

Mine drain was left in for 5- 6 days until I couldn't stand it anymore and had it taken out. I told them I'd take it out myself if they didn't, so they did. My Dr leaves them in for a week. Mine was painful and was told I couldn't shower with it in, but I did anyway. The taking out part wasn't that bad. He took it out slowly. I hated that drain if was very uncomfortable. My daughers drain was only in a couple of days and they took it out before she left the hospital. She didn't have any problems or discomfort with hers. She had her surgery in Mexico with Dr. Garcia.

Wow, I have not heard of a re-sleeve surgery. Why do they do that? Does the stomach stretch out so much that you would need it done again? I sure don't want to go through this again. Guess I better be really careful not to stretch out my sleeve?

There is more to it than just numbers. Read this http://www.dsfacts.com/weight-loss-stall-or-plateau.html

How long ago were you sleeved? How does one get a too big sleeve?

Yes, I'm 5'1" and started out at 233 lbs. How old are you? That does have some influence. I'm 57 so I don't lose as fast as someone who's say 25 -30 years old. How active are you? I sit at a desk most of the day or I'm driving. So if you have a more active job or lifestyle that helps. Because of my age I've had more years of yoyo dieting that has slowed down my metabolisim. It comes off fast in the beginning and then slows down the closer you get to a more normal weight. Everyone is different. At 3 months post-op you should be feeling pretty great. Again, I think age plays a role. I had no energy the first couple of months, but by 3 months most of my energy had returned. Eating while traveling can be a challenge especially if you will be eating out a lot. You won't be able to eat 1/3 of what you use to and you might not tolerate foods you use to. Sharing a plate is a good idea. The other night my daughter, who also was sleeved 6 weeks after me. shared a 2 chicken enchilada plate. Together we didn't eat even 1/2 of the plate and then took the rest home and ate on it a couple more times and threw the rest away. We laughed about how we could have eatin the whole plate before surgery and then some. Like 2 baskets of chips with guacamole. Might be a good idea to jump start your weight loss before surgery and try to eat the way you will after surgery. Start on Protein shakes that are low carb and have low sugar. We like premier Protein Shakes that are pre-made and you get them at costco. They are low carb and low sugar and taste better than some. At least we like them. Try to get over your carb and sugar cravings before surgery. Anything that will make it easier on you after surgery. It's a head game adjusting to a new way of eating.

It took us around 30 minutes and we left the hotel around 10am. The driver has a pass that lets him into a special lane and you by-pass the regular traffic going into the US. That's when you show your passport.

They probably gained 3 lbs of Water weight after surgery. You're on an IV and that puts water weight on some or probably even most. Don't freak out about this surgery. Be realistic about your expectations an keep remembering it's a tool not a miracle and don't expect it to be easy.. You got a lot of work ahead, this is just the beginning. My daugher had Dr. Garcia on Jan 23rd. We loved him and his staff in TJ. She's down from an 18 to a size 8-10. She like me struggles with the food addiction. We were just saying, "well you can't eat a whole gallon of ice cream at one time, but you can eat a gallon in a day!" Some days it's just hard.

It will work IF you work it and you get your head straight. You still have to diet so to speak. 3 small heathy meals a day and a couple of healthy Snacks. After 5 months out I can eat the wrong and bad things and then also eat off and on all day and gain weight. This is a tool not a miracle. It curbs your appetite and controls how much you can eat at a setting. How often do most of us eat when you're NOT hungry? Me, often. I can keep my sleeve full all day if I want to and really add up the calories and with that the weight. This is more of a head game than most understand until you get into it. Most of us are emotional eaters and we are food addicts and that's why we got so heavy to begin with. Your new stomach only holds a small amount of food, but if you put a small amount in your stomach every hour or so with high calorie and bad foods, you'll gain weight. The first 3 months or so you're scared to hurt your sleeve and you're real careful. After that you start to test the limits of what and how much you can put in there. The stuggle with the food addiction and emotional eating is where the work really is. I wouldn't strive for skinny either, make the goal healthy. Because the other side of this is that skinny does not necessarily equal happiness. I think a lot of us think we'll be happy when we lose the weight, everything will change IF we lose the weight. Be prepaired to change your life, the way you think about food and they way you deal with everyday life without using food. Changing from a couch potatoe to an active lifestyle. Everyday doing some sort of exercise to keep moving. Yes, I knew all of this when I started, but what I didn't know was how hard it would really be. Food addiction is as strong or even stronger than drug addiction. You have to eat to live so it's always in front of you challenging you to keep in control. Again, this is a tool not a miracle. I'm just keeping it real and honest.

What I liked most about the Mexican doctors is that they talk with you NOT at you. They don't act like they are better than you and don't have themselves on a pedistal. My American doctor who did my surgery was pretty arrogant, sure he's very good at what he does and it took him 2 1/2 hours to do it. My daughters Mexican doctor took 1 hour 15 minutes and he also is very good at what he does. I get really mad when people talk bad about Mexican doctors. I have my American doctor and American hospital VSG surgery 7 weeks before my daughter had her VSG by a Mexican doctor at a Mexican hospital. So I think I can say from my experience the Mexican doctors and Mexican hospital were just as good and in some cases better than the American doctors and hospital. Her cost was $5,000 plus travel to San Diego. My insurance was billed over $60,000 for my VSG surgery and hospital bill of that my insurance paid $10,028 after the insurance discount. I paid $3,000 out of pocket and all those darn tests before surgery cost my insurance another $20,000. Mexico is so much better, easier and cheaper. I say head for the border! Ole!

Dr. Garcia gave us a CD with a video of the upper GI they did before we left the hospital to give any health care professional who would do follow-up. That way they can see what was done. He also gave us the notes from the surgery and other information to give any doctor who might do follow-up. It's not like it will be a mistery what was done to you. Dr. Garcia and I'm sure Dr. Kelly is the same are willing to talk with any US doctor who would do follow-up with their patients.