TheSkinnyCow73

I am 3 days post op and yes, I did all of that. FMLA and short term are most important. I was able to get 5 Weeks off from my job. alot of folks go back sooner but I wanted to make sure i was ready to hit the ground running when I did return.

Yes! I was sleeved at 1pm today and everything has been great! They keep an IV in you full of liquids and happy juice! :smile1: I have a little bit of gassy feelings everyonce in a while but I get up and walk and it helps so much. Cant drink anything for the first 24 hrs but you can swish Water in your mouth and spit it out. I have found that chewing on a wet rag, although not very pretty, helps tremendously! the drain bag isnt as bad as i was thinking it would be. Whew! So far so good! the care here is excellent so far! :smile1: will post more later!

Thanks jewel! Yes! Most definitely bring a pillow and wash cloths. Other than that, all has been fantastic! My turn for surgery is in an hour...the anticipation is killing me! Something else I suggest...if your cell phone is capable, download the google translation app. It has come in handy for us because it has the voice option. See y'all on the other side in a bit!!!

hi everyone! just wanted to check in and let you all know how things are going..... first of all, Juarez IS NOT scary. My husband and I just went walking around the mall area (at night) and it is just like any other city near a mall. I think they drive faster here though! LOL As long as you arent trafficing drugs and pissing off the drug cartel, there isnt anything to worry about. The hospital is NICE and CLEAN! My room is bigger than some hotel rooms we have stayed at! I will post our pics once we get back to Houston. The language barriet is trying at times but you figure it out! We now know how they feel when they cant understand english! It is very awkward cuz I dont want to sound like a Texas redneck speaking spanish! LOL As soon as you get to the hospital they have everything ready for you and it has been flawless so far! I have had my xray, ekg, bp, lab work and another bp and temp done in less than 4 hours!!! My husband is impressed and that says alot!! Trust me! My nerves are starting to get to me but I am trying to keep my eye on the prize! My health and energy!! Tomorrow morning they will come in and hook me up to the IV (we figured that one out using sign language!!) and sometime in the morning I will have surgery. yay! I will keep you posted on how everything goes!!!

Thank you for the well wishes ladies! I am praying for the same thing and will keep you all updated as much as possible!!! I am so excited that I can hardly stand it!

The day is over and I said my goodbyes to my co-workers and boss for the next 5 weeks! My surgery weekend is finally here!! woohoo! Tomorrow we fly to El Paso, cross the border into Juarez and arrive at Star Medica Hospital! I cant wait to meet Dr. Rod and his team and join you all on the LOSER'S BENCH come Saturday morning!!!! hugs & kisses!

Wow! You all are such inspirations for me. I get sleeved next Saturday and I cannot wait to be able to post awesome stats like this!!! I am squeezing, and I stress SQUEEZING, into 16's but should righfully be in 18's..... I cant imagine being in a size 10 or 12 for longer than 6 months! I was probably that old when i was wearing that size!! Congrats to you all for your hard work and rockin' that sleeve!!! And thank you for sharing your experiences too!!!

Well said Kelly! Thanks!!

How would any of you feel if you found out that someone was deliberately trying to take food out of your family's mouth by spreading rumors about your career? A career that you have spent years and years training and educating yourself in? I dont think that would make any of you very happy and especially when everyone keeps asking you the same questions over and over and over again. ALM didnt even have the balls to tell Dr. Kelly to his face! They just started moving patients to Dr. Garcia and he had NO IDEA WHAT WAS GOING ON!! CLASSY!!! And I know this first hand because I spoke to Dr. Kelly personally when all this started back at the beginning of January. I dont blame Dr. Kelly a bit for being offended and changing his attitude or even being rude. He has worked damn hard to become the surgeon that he is today, I researched the hell out of him before I made the decision to go with him.... His credentials and record speaks for itself and I am sure he is tired of hearing all the bullshit that A Lighter Me is spreading.... I easily found his license #2006280 and verified it at www.cedulaprofesional.sep.gob.mx/cedula/indexAvanzada.action so GottaGo, get a grip. Isnt it funny how Linda and Sandy from ALighterMe didnt mind standing next to Dr. Kelly at his induction into FACS last year (www.prweb.com/releases/2011/10/prweb8910330.htm) Do all of you understand how elite that group of surgeons really is and for him to be recognized speaks volumes!! He was an awesome surgeon back then and ALM didnt mind putting that all over his credentials on their website at the time.... so what happened? I will tell you what happened, JEALOUSY.. ALM didnt like the fact that Dr. Kelly was still working with Trish (the other woman!! Oh, my!!!) and she was giving his patients what ALM couldnt, PERSONAL ATTENTION!!! Gottago, you really need get off these boards. We all know that you are Sandy or Linda or one of their trolls and trying to drum up more business for Dr. Garcia. Why dont you GO DO YOUR JOB and really go out and market Dr. Garcia and build his business and reputation instead of trying to ruin an excellent surgeon's reputation and wasting all this time on these boards? Give Dr. Garcia what he is paying you for.. representation of his skills! Not a smear campaign against another doctor!

I am not sure I am understanding your surgeon. When he pops that band off, you are back to your original stomach pre-band (plus or minus some scar tissue of course!). I just had my band removed and have no restriction at all. Why in the world would that affect future weight loss and make us on the lower side of losing excess weight? IMO, it makes us one up on virgin sleevers because we know what to expect and how to handle it when we have a tool that works! I am a fighter too and I believe that our weight loss is in our hands, not a previous band being on our stomach. Our sleeve is going to be our tool to lose as much weight as we can as long as we work it. You rock that sleeve (when you get it) and show him that you are in that 80%+ categoryl! Good luck and stay positive!

My date AND doc changed... I will now be having surgery on 2/11/12 with Dr. Rodriguez in Juarez, MX. This time next Firday I will be on a plane headed for El Paso!!! :Banane14: woooohoooo! :party4: :party4: :party4: :party4:

This is a great post!!!! I thought I would bring it back up to the top of the list for those of you that are thinking that the band is a good option. I am a former band patient (not the lapband) on my way to being sleeved and cannot wait to be able to have restriction AND keep food down!!!!

So excited for you!!! Sending lots of hugs and prayers your way! You will do great and keep us posted!!! :smile1:

This is exactly what I always say! (most people never knew I had a failed band) And you are right, it DOES shut them up, FAST!!!

Wow! You all just reminded ME of what an awesome husband I have TOO! I had a failed band and when I approached him about getting the band removed and getting sleeved, his first words to me were, "what do we need to do to get you where you want to be in life?"... I love my hubby sooo much!!! Thank you all for reminding me of that too!!!!!!!!!! p.s. - Like the old saying goes.. When MAMA aint happy, aint NOBODY happy!!!

This is great to read and a post I am sure I will need to come back to often once I am sleeved! Congrats to you! How exciting! I cannot wait to be where you are! I have to admit that the negative thoughts are creeping in since I was a failed band patient! The "what If" scenarios are going crazy in my head! You are definitely an inspiration to us all!!!! Thanks for posting!!

What a rollercoaster ride this last month has been!!!! After all my posts searching for others with the Molina band (and finally having it removed successfully), being scheduled with Dr. Kelly for my sleeve on 2/21/12 and having to cancel due to ALM being VERY UNPROFESSIONAL (and Dr. Kelly not having the ability to take my FSA credit card either ), I have decided to have my surgery with Dr. Jose Rodruguez in Juarez, MX at Star Medica Hospital. I was able to talk to him and a couple of his patients on the phone and through email that also had a band with tummy scar tissue and feel confident that he is the right doc for me. Guess my $20MM question is... Is anyone else scheduled for surgery that weekend with Dr. Rodriguez? I will be at Star Medica with my husband from 2/10 - 2/13 with my actual surgery date being 2/11. Just looking for others that will share my surgiversary.

I havent had my revision yet (3 weeks, woohoo!) but I did just have my band removed and I will tell you that I am soooo happy that thing is out of me after all these years of puking, choking and sliming!! (although I am watching what I eat for fear of ballooning up before my surgery date) I started at my highest 285 in 1995 and got down to 140 within 2 or so years then slowly started gaining. I am at 210-215 right now and ready to be sleeved! From what I have read on these boards, the sleeve is everything the band was supposed to be and I am sooo ready to find out for myself! Good luck!

I asked Dr. Rodriguez this just last night since I have the six scars from my band removal and the open scar from my band. He said that he DOES try to use old scars when possible. He said his cuts are 3-5mm if he has to make new ones. I would ask your surgeon just to make sure.

You are exactly right Kimmes. that is why i put the second link that shows the surgery count for the doc. I want everyone to make sure they know what they are going in for. RESEARCH, RESEARCH, RESEARCH!

I just found this website and thought I would share it with you all..... $8k ALL INCLUSIVE for a gastric sleeve in the US isnt bad! http://coastalbariat...16/Default.aspx http://coastalbariat...69/Default.aspx "The self pay option of $8,000* for Gastric Banding and Sleeve Gastrectomy in the Myrtle Beach area results in significant savings and can be advantageous to those looking for affordable weight loss surgery and not wishing to travel outside of the United States. *This price covers any complications that might arise within 90 days of either the gastric banding or sleeve gastrectomy surgery and one year of fills for the gastric band. Hospital, surgeon, anesthesia and radiology fees are all covered for the surgeries." I have chose to go with Dr. Rodriguez in Juarez, MX for $6800 (and many more revision surgeries under his belt) but for those of you that dont like the idea of MX, this may be an option for you. Just remember to always do extensive research on the doc and facility before you make a decision! Sometimes you get what you pay for! Good Luck!!!

OMG! adamsmom, this is awesome to read! I have been so upset about all this and hubby is upset cuz we "might have all this money sitting around to use" and really dont need it. Thank you so much for the reassurance! I am planning on getting all the info that you suggested and I have even "stolen" forms from other insurance companies to have the doc fill out for me. THANK YOU!!

thanks Gottago. Unfortunately, Dr. Rod doesnt use A Lighter Me so I am going to have no choice but to take the chance of using my card and having all my paperwork in order just in case. I will keep everyone posted on how the financial journey goes since my surgery is now in 3 short weeks! If anyone else has any experiences/suggestions, keep 'em coming! :smile1:

I found this link for others that have used FSA..... I guess I am going to have to make sure my ducks are in a row and just do it! http://www.obesityhelp.com/forums/mexico/4075601/Using-HSA-FSA-funds-for-lap-band-surgery-in-Mexico/

I am going through BeLiteWeight. They were just given the medical status for FSA but haven't worked out the kinks with the new system. I am going to get the letter of medical necessity and the detailed bill and call it good. I NEED this surgery. http://www.obesityhelp.com/forums/mexico/4075601/Using-HSA-FSA-funds-for-lap-band-surgery-in-Mexico/