CandyPants81

That makes sense!

Ok, so I am NOT a doctor or a nurse, so forgive me if this questions seems to have an obvious answer... Regarding the post op gas pain that I keep hearing so much about: Where does the gas come OUT? I hear walk, walk, walk to relieve the gas pain. Walk to expel the gas, walk to get rid of gas. But my question is how does that work? As far as I understand, regular everyday gas travels through your digestive system or is created there. It's in the digestive system and is expelled either through burps or farts (I hate that word, by the way. LOL). But the post op gas is caused by the gas the surgeon puts in your belly to puff everything out and give him/her room to work, right? Sooo...how the heck does that gas come out if it's just trapped in your body? Does it just dissipate gradually? Is the walking just for pain relief, or does it somehow help you to pass gas? If so, how?? Also, I keep seeing people say the Gas X strips help, but how do Gas X strips help if it isn't your regular everyday gas? C.

I considered putting mine in as vacation also, but then I'm taking 4 days in October for legit vacation and didn't want to risk not getting the second one approved (it's a delayed honeymoon/10 year anniversary/ let's FINALLY go to Universal Studios without the kids trip). Lol. My office is really small as I said, and it is RARE that anyone puts in for time off that is not approved, but I kind of run the front office and my absence always sends everyone into a tizzy.

Requested...just waiting for approval on the FB group.

I can relate. I work for a small non-profit, and I work very closely with my boss. Many people in our office are anti wls, so I had already decided I wouldn't tell anyone until I got back, especially since I'm going to Mexico for the surgery. After much tossing and turning (I'm also very uncomfortable with lying), I just bit the bullet and submitted the request for time off. Under "reason" I put "medical travel/procedure". That was it. Sure enough, she sent me an email asking if the medical procedure was for me. I said "yes, it is for me, but nothing too bad. Don't worry." That seemed to satisfy her, and she didn't ask anymore questions. Good luck! C.

Good to know...just in case. I had heard before that traveling with birth certificate and drivers license was enough to get you back across the border, but we applied for the passports just to be on the safe side. If his doesn't come back in time we'll just have to go with what we have.

So hubs and I went and applied for our passports (cards) three weeks ago. Mine came in the mail a couple days ago, and we expected his to follow shortly. Well, yesterday we received a letter stating that he needed to submit more information in order to verify his identity. When we spoke the a representative on the phone and gave him our travel date, he just told us to send in as much documentation as we could from the list of acceptable items they provided and that we "should" have it in time. Should?!?! Yikes!! I've had three different names through my life (maiden and two marriages) and it's HIM that they need to verify. Lol. Anyone else been through this? I'm a little worried as we only have 4 weeks left. C.

I'm on July 22. I don't technically havr to start my pre op diet until the 9th, but I'm going to start a mini diet on the 1st to kinda ease me into the real deal.

Same date, different surgeon! Good luck! C.

I hope it's okay that I respond. I have a July date, but I can relate all too well to the stories of coworkers and friends not understanding. When I briefly mentioned several months ago that I was considering WLS, my coworkers almost fainted. I mentioned it to my sister and mother around the same time and they all gave me the same response. All said something similar to "I don't see why you need it. Why don't you just try to diet and exercise?" (Right...because that hasn't occurred to me over the 15 years that I've been big and getting bigger). When I decided for SURE that this is what I was going to do, I only told my husband and my two best friends who have all been truly supportive. I ended up telling my mother ONLY because I'm going out of the country and I didn't want to leave the country without telling her where I was. She's offered her support, but has also tried to talk me out of it several times. I did not, and will not tell my coworkers before I go. I submitted my time off request to my boss and I only put "Medical travel/procedure" for the reason. She called my desk to make sure I was okay, and approved the time without asking anymore questions. Our office is small, so my absence will be noticed, but I do plan to tell everyone when I come back. I just don't want the negativity before I go. Good luck to all! C.

Hey there! Try the Mexico Forum. Maybe someone there is. I think there's a whole June/July Sleevers thread over there too. :-)

July 22 in Tijuana. Can't wait to be on the other side of this surgery. 38 days! So close and still so far. C.

Speaking of recording the surgery: I plan to have Dr. Q record mine for me on a jump drive, but I don't know how soon I'll be ready to look at it. On one hand it gives me the heebie jeebies, and on the other hand I want to see what it looks like! Also, Sassy, I'd like to PM you if you don't mind.

How slow is very slow? There was a surgeon that I was considering that I struck from my list because I could not get a response back from a coordinator. After multiple times of me reaching out to them, they still took a full week to send me an information packet. In my opinion that was extremely unprofessional, and I don't want to be off in Mexico and receive that type of support. I understand that family emergencies happen, and things come up (none of these was the case, but if it had been, I could understand), but I was promised contact time and time again and never received it. And by the time they did follow up, I had already booked with another surgeon. Good luck! C.

Oh dear! I'm sorry to hear that this has happened to you, dear Sassy.

@@Sassypants92201 Glad to hear that you're doing well. Please keep us posted if you feel up to it. Wishing you a smooth and speedy recovery. C.

I will be having surgery in Tijuana on July 22nd. My husband will be traveling with me, but if you happen to pick my surgeon around that time, it would be nice to meet you. Keep us posted on your research. There's a lot of good information here and most people are really nice and want to help. Good luck! C.

Glad you're ok, Sassy.

Hi and welcome. I am not traveling alone, but I've heard that a lot of people do and they do just fine. Depends on your personal situation and how comfortable you are with traveling alone, medical procedures, etc. One thing to consider is getting a surgery buddy. If you know your date and/or surgeon, you could always post in the forum to see if there's anyone else that will be having surgery around that time in the same place. That way you won't feel completely alone. Also, some of the agencies that schedule for patients have coordinators that will either travel with you (you have to buy their plane ticket) or will meet you at the hospital/clinic. So there are some options for you. C.

July 22nd here. Seems like time has slowed to a standstill ever since I got my surgery date. Practicing sipping Water, trying different Protein shakes, and OD'ing on Bariatric Pal posts and YouTube videos in the meantime. C.

I told my husband, who has watched me struggle with my weight for years. He has been so supportive. I also told my two best friends who were also extremely supportive (one is worried half to death, but still supportive). I told my mother when I first started planning this, but she had a mini panic attack so I haven't told her that I have a date set. I won't tell her that until the day before I go. She's been as supportive as she can be considering she doesn't think I'm heavy enough to have surgery. "Maybe you could try diet and exercise", she says. (Right, mom. Why didn't I think of that during these past 15 years that I've been severely obese?) Besides that, I don't plan on telling anyone else until I get back home. I think there is such a stigma attached to Medical Tourism, and I just don't need the negativity. On my leave request for work, I just put "medical travel/procedure". I don't plan on telling my coworkers anything until I get back. I don't mind if people know...I just don't want to hear the "OMG Mexico?!?! WHAT??? ARE YOU CRAZY???" speech twelve times before I even get on the plane. C.

@@Sassypants92201 Wow! I didn't realize it was coming up so soon! Good luck. Everything will be great! Can't wait to hear all about it when you feel up to posting! Candy

From what I understand, we should be sipping almost constantly, making sure to stop sipping 30 mins before meals and not starting again until 30 mins after meals. I think the focus is on staying hydrated and paying attention to the swallow amount. The only way to stay hydrated post surgery (with a tiny new tummy) is to take small sips all day. Another thing I thought of is weaning myself off of coffee. I usually have about 1-2 cups per day, and when I start my pre op diet I can't have caffeine. So maybe I'll start subbing with decaf.

I ordered my sample pack from unjury last night. I will wait until after surgery to try those, so that I know which ones I like. As far as the pre-op diet, I have already tried Pure Protein's chocolate shakes (my husband had them for completely unrelated reasons, but didn't like them so I tried them). I like those, but they are very sweet. Next I'm going to try the Slim Fast high Protein in vanilla. I had my husband to write out an exercise plan for me that includes some resistance work as well as cardio. Nothing too heavy (my knees won't let me), but something to get me in the habit of being active again. Looking at my bottle of Water now. This sipping all day thing is going to really take some practice. Candy

July 22nd...so close and yet so far. Hehe