rhw94123

Very interesting – just chiming in to say that I got C-diff from clindamycin for a tooth a few years before getting sleeved. Suffered with the c-diff for a couple of months and then a doctor prescribed an antibiotic for me that (TM I) turned my pooh white for a couple of days and then I was back to normal.

With the Affordable Care Act (Obama Care) you're not supposed to be denied care or even coverage (there's a difference !) because of a pre-existing condition. Being in a state of having had WLS is a pre-existing condition. Of course, various quadrants of the insurance world are phasing in to the ACA at different paces and manypeople with company-supplied insurance just have their old policies and will for some time to come given all the extensions. I happen to have a new, individual ACA-compliant policy (through the infamous exchange, lol) starting 1/1/14 that says WLS surgery is not covered, but revisions or adjustments to WLS are covered if they remedy a life-threatening situation. (Similarly, a ruptured breast implant is not covered if it just LOOKS weird, but if there is a resulting toxic silicone leak or something, a revision might well be covered.) I spoke to my PCP about this and told him that I would be hitting him up at each visit to consider whether anything going on with me should be documented IN CASE OF a possible future complication. Similarly, I resolved to always bring up any pain or reflux problems or whatever whenever I saw any doctor (if it were real--not saying I plan to make things up) in any context (Urgent Care, oral surgeon, whatever) so that I would have records to retrieve if I needed to make a case in the future. A side note- Every state has to eventually cover help with Obesity under Obama Care, but it can be as little as allowing 3 nutritional visits per year (which is the minimal route that my state took). But some states went the deluxe route as far as Obesity goes and they have written coverage of WLS in to their ACA-compliant policies (and those states' premiums tend to be higher for now, too, until their populations start to be healthier because of having been covered, etc., etc.).

Good luck with your research. Really, as much as people move around these days, imagine if physicians refused to care for people who had had procedures from anyone other than themselves or close colleagues. Here are some points I've focused on and role-played-in-my-head to get in the right frame of mind to talk to a potential new PCP or other medical professional: * Would I be sheepish & apologetic about asking if I'd merely had my appendix out out of state and needed some follow-up care? * What if I had ear tubes in, placed in Canada, and needed someone to take them out for me * Maybe I should try to come across like I had the surgery from someone two states over [or from a deceased surgeon or whatever] * Or maybe I should say I had surgery in the "San Diego Metro Area" (Tijuana is part of that). * Or I could say I had surgery from a physician who lives " out of the country" now * What if I'd been on a humanitarian work year in Mexico and just happened to have the procedure there? It shouldn't matter whether I traveled there specifically for surgery or whether I got it while there on other business. I bring all of this up because when I needed to talk to my doc I kept thinking it would be way easier to say one of THOSE things, and then I had to ask myself "why?" Many of us are so apologetic about having left the country specifically for an elective surgery-- we need to give ourselves pep-talks & try not to put up with judgment from professionals who are supposed to be judgment-free. (When I gave myself that pep-talk I came across as very matter of fact--not inviting any judgment or seeking my PCP's approval, etc. -- and I think things went better as a result. It is very late and I am very tired. I will probably delete this tomorrow, but it makes perfect sense to me right now, lol.

My new Obama-care compliant policy (effective 1/1/14) is not allowed to refuse to pay for treatment of pre-existing conditions. Being in a state of having had WLS is considered a pre-existing condition, so my policy reads that WLS is not covered, but that revisions/corrections to it ARE covered if they remedy an immediately life-threatening situation. I checked all of this out pretty thoroughly before heading to MX for self-pay surgery in late 2013 . I've also rehearsed in my head what I will write or say if I sense that some health provider is going to try giving me a hard time about where I had my surgery... I'm mostly being humorous here, but I've resolved to answer "The Greater San Diego Metro Area," since on many maps and in many directories, San Diego/Tijuana ARE listed as such ! Best to you!

Interesting! I have never heard of 3 4 - surgeon often congratulates patient on having had a "tiny" liver, only requiring that he make 4 incisions 5 - number of incisions that I most often hear people have been told to expect 6- the number someone gets if she gets her gallbladder out during surgery since that requires a small extra little hole for the drain to come out of. (I think some people get six incisions, too, if the surgeon is struggling with certain aspects of moving & holding the liver in the right spot during the procedure.)

I believe if you have had complications from a past lap band (or still have one with which you are having issues) the field of surgeons you should look at is narrower. For a straight, new sleeve, I think there are 8-10 practices that are well revered for their different strengths, etc. As far as follow-up goes, my surgeon's patient relations manager (Omar) has indicated I can head back and do a quick couple of nights in the extended stay apartments in the same block as Florence Hospital if I am concerned about anything and/or want to seek out some modest-priced follow-up testing. Dr. Illan is super approachable and accessible and my impression is that he enjoys follow-up interactions because he's gratified to see how well his patients are doing and how (generally) positive things are for them. He's also a somewhat younger mid-career physician who is a rare combination: A surgical "hotshot" who seems to be respected by his peers and more senior mentors AND an unpretentious, easygoing non-egotistical personality to boot. His advertising is almost 100% word of mouth, so I also think he views each patient interaction as an opportunity to build his practice and cement a relationship. I am hoping to take a couple of loved ones down for their own sleeve surgeries in the coming months and (crazy as it sounds) I hope I get them there while he is still in this somewhat junior era because I'm sure when he's a full FELLOW in the American College of Surgeons (FACS) sometime soon, his prices will have to go up and my dear ones won't get the great deal that I did ! Good luck as you research and learn the lay of the land. I honestly think there are a number of excellent choices. All the best, RHW

How are you doing by now, Tiff? Hope all is well!

So glad you had such a positive experience! I remember the thorough research you seemed to do and was eager to see which surgeon you would choose and how it would go for you. Happy Sleeving!

Hello! Congrats on your plans- I bet you're really excited. You may want to keep an eye out for patients of Dr. ILLAN since he uses Florence, too. When I was there walking the halls after my surgery I noticed someone friendly-looking in the room next door. I sweetly spied on the white board on the nurses' wall and saw she was a patient of Dr. Garcia's. When I was near her on the hall walk I just said "hi--are you from the States? I'm a bariatric patient from the US" ( in case she wasn't bariatric -- didn't want to presume, lol). Of course she was and she became a fun buddy. Good luck -- you'll probably suddenly connect with a bunch of people. I know many docs use the Marriott, so the odds are in your favor for sure .

I think age (excess or lack of it)is a sticking point for many of us as we choose a healthcare professional (in my case, especially a surgeon). Because WLS is quite "physical" since so many patients are large people, physical stamina and agility were back-of-my-mind concerns as I considered surgeons. My confidence in Dr. Illan only went up as I talked to others about how fast, precise, agile and in-shape he was. I was also heartened to learn that he was a right-hand man to Dr. Kelly for so many years, clocking in hundreds of WLS surgeries at that time in addition to those stemming from his position at the IMSS hospital as a trauma surgeon. I'm so glad there are many good affordable choices in MX. I know many of the physicians in the U.S. are accumulating expertise significantly more slowly than the Mexican surgeons because they don't get nearly the volume of cases. Happy sleeving to all!

Hi, Jayson! I'm losing a little hair, but it was really thick to begin with, so I don't mind too much :-). I love my new low/typical blood pressure, low cholesterol, low blood sugar, etc. I need to update my weight ticker - I'm at 157 with 29% body fat which I'm pleased with, too. Hope you're doing great as well and that we hear from some other November 11 people:) !

I found myself wondering who she chose, too

Good point, Tiff, I think you're right that it doesn't notify when you join... maybe just shows your face if someone clicks & wants to see "all members." Hope all your preparations are going great

I got Latisse there for $38 each. (At the central biz district pharmacy called "Gusher"). Got inhalers for my son for $6 each, too:)!

Best wishes, BN-Monkeydog! Just checked this and see that you are now in Mexico . Please tell Omar & all hello -- my BMI just sunk below 25 last week, so I know they'll be happy for & with me . I will be thinking of you tomorrow! RHW P.S. Re: the FB group, it is a "closed" group, but not a "secret group." So if people look up the group and click to see who is in it, they will see the faces of those in the group but they cannot see what is posted back & forth unless they are in it. I think there is a way to set FB to NOT notify when you join a new group, but unless you do something very specific, I do believe your joining the closed group will show up to others if they are on their desktops (I think it would show up over on the right of the desktop where you see the comments of people you don't even know--definitely more than you see when on mobile). And people can definitely see that you are a member of the group if they hunt it down and seek to know who is in it.

I failed to respond to a couple of personal messages because of not coming on here often (sorry!). Since those were long ago, I'm just writing some general info and offering to give further detail if needed/ desired . I traveled to Tijuana through San Diego Int'l Airport back in November 2013 (almost 4 months ago). I had a perfect, positive and uneventful trip, surgery and recovery. My surgeon was Dr. Jalil ILLAN Fraijo (goes by Dr. ILLAN) and I returned as the companion to a dear one 2 months later in January since I was so impressed with the whole surgery experience, etc. Dr. Illan is very popular and well-reviewed, but most of his marketing is word of mouth / referral. His past and prospective patients have a very lively/active/supportive/informational facebook group. In addition to his private practice (Baja Bariatrics), Dr. ILLAN is an ER/Trauma Surgeon at one of the many hospitals in the Mexican social security system (which are called IMSS hospitals). I went to visit him at his IMSS location in a newer area on the outskirts of Tijuana (it is called Clinica Uno in the IMSS system, but it is a large, vast modern hospital, not a mere clinic). I visited the IMSS hospital because the spouse of the loved one I brought back for surgery after my own was really insecure about the whole "self-paid-surgery-in-Mexico" thing and I promised him I'd go make sure the ER situation was "real" before I let his wife go in to surgery, lol (kind of a funny situation, but it was enlightening to see Dr. ILLAN's "other" world, too ). Florence Hospital is a well-equipped, mid-sized hospital in Tijuana's "Beaches" area (called LAS PLAYAS). The Bariatric wing is clean & quiet. The decor is 10-15 years behind in appearance, but this didn't bother me. Ninety percent of the employees at the hospital speak English. Some aspects of the bathrooms and rooms have more quirks and deferred maintenance than one would see in most American hospitals, but nothing was overly troubling to me. PLUSES FOR AMERICANS HESITANT ABOUT TRAVELING TO A FOREIGN COUNTRY: 1) You are met at the San Diego Airport and whisked across the border by a lovely driver called Linda. Omar (patient relations coordinator) meets you and Linda once you're in Tijuana and Omar takes you and your companion to the hospital for check-in from there. Omar is with you and your companion every step of the way all four days and unless you ASK for some independence you will never have to venture out in to the community on your own. 2) Wi-fi and US Cell coverage are quite good in the hospital. Hospital is so close to the ocean/border that US cell signals reliably come in in many parts of the hospital. You don't need to buy a foreign plan (although a few cell calls might sneak through here and there and cost you a little, the charges are not huge and you can turn cellular data off on your phone and/or put your phone on wi-fi and merely SKype or facetime with your loved ones). If all of this confuses or perplexes you, Omar can and will happily take your phone from you and set you up to avoid charges and be in touch with your loved ones. He was constantly offering me his phone to call home if I was fumbling to make calls and there is also a toll-free US number to the hospital that you can give your family ahead of time. 3) There is a brand new WALMART 1.5 blocks from the hospital and the walk is easy with only one street to cross. Funny as it is, Americans are hard-pressed to feel like they're in a foreign country when dear old WALMART is right there in all its familiarity. You and your companion do not have to obsess about what to pack since this makes it SUPER easy to walk over and pick up anything you've missed. All patients have 2 full nights in the hospital after surgery and two full nights in the high-rise, 4-star Hotel Lucerna before going home. If a patient would like to arrive the night before surgery rather than the morning of, he/she stays an additional (complimentary) pre-night in the hospital. I arrived the night before and just talked and watched movies with my companion that first "pre" night. When I returned as my loved-one's companion 2 months later, she elected to have us fly in the morning of surgery and skip the "get-settled" night in the hospital. I slightly preferred the way she did it because it felt like less "down" time, but both worked great. Please feel free to ask me any questions as you do your research on Mexican surgeons. There are definitely lots of great choices! I am an information/ research hound myself and I would be happy to share how I arrived at Dr. Illan amid all the excellent choices.

Plugging along here . Very pleased with the sleeve as a tool and feel like slow loss is good loss as my personal goal (though not yet truly in focus) is not too far away. (I have been concentrating on retaining muscle/Lean Body Mass and I think I've been successful.) (I weigh 159 today with 30% body fat. When I weighed 159 7 years ago, my body fat percentage was 36%.) I think my personal goal will be an in-shape 148 lbs which should take me off the line between two clothing sizes (10/12)and a BMI of 23 or so. Most important thing, of course, is that my Blood Pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar are all blessed-ly normal! Congrats and best wishes to all - so great to hear all the gratitude and upbeat news on here

Surgery was 11/11/13 (13 weeks ago). I'm down 41 pounds since surgery day to 165 and my body fat percentage has decreased from roughly 41% to 32% today. Working hard to retain my lean body mass (muscle) and thankfully it's working. Glad things are going well for everyone!

One tip is to clear the cache/ your browser's history frequently as you shop online with airlines... supposedly the fares you see are an average of $50 lower if you do that.

Such valid concerns! I had surgery 2.5 months ago & am so much healthier (cholesterol down from 215 to 150) that my insurance company should send me a rebate on my premiums, lol . I have an individual policy from the ACA exchange & I chose it because I was able too see its fine print ahead of time. It reads that WLS is not covered, but that revisions or adjustments to it are covered if they remedy a life-threatening situation. Best wishes in making your decision. The surgeon you have chosen is certainly well-regarded & has probably trained many of the most reputable US docs. You also get 3 nights in a full-service center of excellence hospital with him and he is a fellow in the American College of surgeons. (I personally felt that his costs were unnecessarily high compared to the Mexican surgeon I eventually chose, but I strongly considered him before I got comfortable with my choice).

Sounds like a great time! I think so many folks don't realize how good they are likely to feel so soon after surgery (not everyone, but most of us ...!).

I also used Baja & Dr. Illan & my expectations were also exceeded. I am a researcher & was going to spend twice as much on one of the "famed" /veteran Mexican surgeons if my research didn't lead me to feeling my safety & success wouldn't be as good or better with Dr. Illan. The whole team is very detail oriented & professional & they are determined that you come away happy about your experience, your choice of surgeon & Mexico in general. I was low BMI & have lost approximately 75% of my excess weight in 2.5 months (and all but 5lbs of that has been fat). My cholesterol has gone from 215-ish to 150 and I can't manage to get anything but a normal blood pressure reading no matter how many times I try. One side note: I would definitely deem Dr. Illan the surgeon to use if you have a loved one who is spooked about your going to Mexico... the practice unofficially specializes in skyping & communicating with prospective patients & their loved ones before scheduling and they ALSO seem to have a sort of mission statement to flood each patient & his/her family member(s) with amazing personal attention & care once there.

So glad to read your upbeat update! Best wishes!

You will get lots of advice and support, I know! At first blush, it sounds to me like you need to drink another shake a day and then FLOOD yourself with Water. Supposedly the body gets stubborn and holds on to weight if you starve it AND burned fat supposedly needs a lot of water to get carried out of your system. GOOD LUCK!!! I seriously bet your body is about to release some weight . Edited to say: You may want to pick up some Keto-stix (ketosis test strips) at Walmart or wherever (diabetic section) so you can make sure you are in/ stay in ketosis since I know that's what really gets the glycogen stores out of your liver.

I know there is a somewhat increased risk of gallbladder issues after bariatric surgery and/or rapid weight loss. Both of my siblings (not overweight) had to have their gallbladders out at roughly my age (and since I am self-pay on many medical things), I paid $500 extra and requested it be taken out when I was sleeved in Mexico 2 months ago. This resulted in one extra (small) scar where a drain tube was placed for 48 hours and my surgery went 55 minutes instead of 30 just for the sleeve (my surgeon was fast). Best wishes!