Thank you for all of your responses. The first thing I need to say is that I would never consider surgery unless I had exhausted all other avenues for weight loss including medical, emotional, physical, psychological. We have reached a point where I feel like this is our last and only option. Some may say I'm unnecessarily risking the life of my daughter, but I feel like if we don't do the surgery I'm risking her life as well. She has just developed diabetes, she went from being the happiest little girl to a girl who is depressed and cries every day because of her weight. She has been bullied, tormented, and teased every school day since she was 7 years old. Of all 5 of my children she has been the one who ate veggies and fruits, she was also my most active yet she has continued to gain about 2 pds a month for the last 6 years. We have had her thyroid checked, multiple labs and nothing explains what is going on. The only thing that explains it is that she says she's hungry all the time 24/7. So even though she knows what to eat, what not to eat etc, it doesn't help if you are always hungry. You just end up being cranky and angry at having to limit portion sizes when your body is telling you your hungry. For all of you who have had surgery or are considering it, imagine how hard it is for you now as an adult, can you even imagine the torment of being obese as a teenager? It's hell. Kids are cruel and it's not right that she should have to endure comments day after day. I got the sleeve 8 mths ago, it has changed my life. She sees this, she has seen what it has done for me including the fact that I am happy and healthy now. I was hungry all the time, and now I'm not, I have to remind myself to eat. All I want as her mother is for her to be happy. And if she continues down the path she's on, I may not have her for much longer. She is in a place where she doesn't even leave the house. She has become a different person .If things don't change I can see not only physical dangers in her future but emotional and psychological damage as well. I want her to live a life where she can make friends based on her personality, not on her physical appearance, where she can focus on the normal teenage stuff and not about her diet. She just turned 13 and is 200 pds.
As far as Mexico goes I'm still uncertian. The reason I posted this was because I was curious how many people would actually recommend a doctor from Mexico. It seems interesting to me that so many people will"risk" their own lives going there but not willing to recommend one for a 13 year old. Why is it different for an adult vs. a child? If you couldn't lose the weight as an adult what gives you the right to judge a teen who can't do it? It's interesting how hypocritical some people have been. I have in no way jumped to this decision. We have been praying and researching it for months. We've exhausted everything we have to help her and nothing has worked. Of course I would do everything in my power to see a U.S. Doctor but when you have 5 kids and make $30K a year it's quiet impossible to fork out 20K for the surgery. 8K will not be easy as it is. She has seen me go through the surgery, she knows what it entails but if anything I think the longer you are overweight, the longer you do the yo-yo dieting the harder it is to start thinking differently. If she does this now it will be easier to develop healthy eating habits and healthy emotions in regards to food. Not only that the fact that it wont be painful for her to exercise will be huge. She loves to exercise but right now it's extremely painful and embarrassing for her.
I appreciate everyone's comments, but I would politely ask that you look at yourselves and realize how hard it has been as an adult and ask yourselves just how much harder it would be if you were a teen. I love my daughter but I want her around and I want her to be happy. If I dont do the surgery she may not be around much longer and she certianly will not be happy.