Bubba's Mom

Dec 11 in TJ. Still excited.....nervous too though. Does anyone know if this thread is the way to have a December group or is there another place for it?

@@cinamini1 There are a bunch of us using Dr Ortiz in November if you want to see and hear how things went. Good luck to you!! We are in the November 2014 group under "November Sleevers in Mexico"

I'm just a little baby here...6 days post op.
Yesterday though, my mom & I went out together and did some shopping. I didn't expect her to go the entire time without eating just because my diet is so restricted right now, so we decided on Denny's. I ordered a cup serving of their chicken noodle, a Decaf coffee, and small cup of Water. I won't lie, it was hard sit there with my little Soup, while my mom ate her eggs, bacon, and pancakes. She had told me while we were looking at the menus that she felt bad eating in front of me! So needless to say, I do try not to make comments in front of her, because she shouldn't feel bad for eating in front of me. I told her, "mom, I made the choice to have this done! You shouldn't feel bad!!"

I am scheduled for mid-December in Mexicali, Mexico with Dr. Rodolfo Wilhelmy. I feel no hesitation, at all. Can't wait to go and get to this stage of my life!

December 13 for me. 12/13/14 he he Dr. Elias Ortiz at Mi Doctor Hospital.

Just scheduled mine for 12/10/14!

I am counting down too! Dr. Elais Ortiz is my surgeon. How about you?

December 13 for me. 12/13/14 he he Dr. Elias Ortiz at Mi Doctor Hospital.

Here is my review of Dr. Elias Ortiz and A Lighter Me.
I was picked up at the airport after a short wait by Abraham and Remy who were quite delightful and funny. They took me and one other patient directly to the hospital for bloodwork. While some people get their EKG's the day before surgery, I had mine the next day right before surgery. They communicated with me by text ahead of time about my pick up time and location. 
The first night at the hotel (Marriott) was good. The hotel is lovely. The staff are over-eager to help you. My bellhop offered to order me some broth and popsicles to my room, which was good. I spent some time lying by the pool in the afternoon.
 
At 6 pm Ronda, (the aftercare co- ordinator) called me down to meet others with the lighter me group in the hotel lobby. I was really excited to meet this group. There was about 8 patients there, 6 of whom had already had the surgery the days before, and me and another who was having surgery the next day like me. The post-op patients were all up and about, and every single one had good things to say about the hospital and Dr. Elias Ortiz. This was a great relief for me, as I was still apprehensive. After the meeting, a post-op patient and I walked together to the "hipodrome" mall (Walmart Mall) and browsed around and even went into the casino for a bit. Its about a 10-15 minute walk there, with a slight hill going up. There is also a very nice movie theatre there that shows movies in English with spanish subtitles - i didn't go, but spoke to others who did (cost about $7).
 
The next day was surgery day. I found all of the doctors including the anesthesiologist to be kind and helpful. The process was efficient. The staff kept the mood light. I was the first of 5 surgeries that day, with my surgery happening at about 130pm. The doctor at the hospital discussed the results of all my tests with me before surgery.    I woke up in my hospital room, which was average, but certainly clean and functional. There were TVs in each room and wireless Internet. Although there were safes in each room, I didn't feel any need to use it. My only complaint about the hospital was that on Saturday night, there was blaring music from a bar directly next door (right beneath my 4th floor window) which did not let up until after 3 am. This did not recur on Sunday night, so there is one thing to consider when picking surgery dates - maybe avoid Saturdays. I found the nurses kind and helpful, and they spoke sufficient English. The floor was a bit small, with about 6 or 7 double rooms or so. The blankets and pillows are not great, consider bringing your own.   Important to note that "A Lighter Me" hires EXTRA nurses to help their clients at the hospital. There were always at least two nurses available all the time including at night. The Lighter-Me nurses are required to check you regularly, and they make a point of telling you that they are Lighter-me employees.    The second day included a visit to radiology for a leak test. You get a copy of that video recorded test to take home with you, along with your blood test results. I saw my EKG results at the hospital and discussed them with the doctor, but I didn't get them in my take-home package, so I think that was an oversight.      On discharge day, I had a bit of a problem in that my drain site continued to bleed well after I returned to the hotel. I called Eduardo about it, and he came to return me to the hospital right away, to have it checked. I saw Dr. Morales almost immediately, and he put in an extra stitch to close up the site a little better.  Both Ronda and Janese learned of my short return visit to the hospital and checked up with me afterwards. I guess this was very unusual.  
I spoke with Dr. Ortiz and Dr. Morales a few times over the course of my 2 day hospital stay. There was a final group meeting with Dr. Ortiz and Dr. Morales on the day we were leaving to fly home. Both are very friendly and kind. 
  On my discharge day, and after returning to the hotel I attended a second 6pm meeting group with Ronda, since I felt it couldn't hurt. The group meetings were very helpful.  I should also point out that the after care program is good. Ronda emails informational material out every few days, depending on your stage of pre-op or post-op. She has replied to my emails quickly. I don't think other companies have any sort of follow up program like that at all. I should also add that in my group, there were TWO former patients who had returned to Tijuana to accompany their family members to their surgery. So, it was a great chance to speak to longer-term post-op patients about their experience (and obviously, it was quite an endorsement that they were recommending Dr. Ortiz to their own family members).   Another thing that impressed me is that you can 'friend' the lighter me staff and Dr. Ortiz directly on Facebook, and see for yourself what is happening with whatever group is there now. You will see people shopping, visiting the beach, having meetings with the doctors - it's just a level of transparency that offers increased confidence to anyone thinking of using A Lighter Me and Dr. Ortiz. Personally, I did not get the chance to go shopping and do tourist type things with Abraham, because of my extra trip to the hospital described above, but I think everyone else did. Because Abraham knew I'd missed the excursion, he brought me a "to-go" cup of delicious beef broth to my hospital room later on, which was a nice surprise. I had occasion to text or telephone all of Remy, Eduardo and Abraham for different reasons during my stay, and I always got prompt responses.    You are discharged from the hospital with your medical records (the leak test video and blood work), medications for pain and antibiotics, some milk of magnesia, a t-shirt, and some other 'swag'. Eduardo spends some time with you discussing the take-home medications before you go.     So, overall the experience was a very good one. I think the Lighter Me team is a team that appears to work well together, genuinely cares about you, provides a quality service, and is interested in making sure your experience is safe and positive.    My criticisms are few. I didn't like the noisy bar beside the hospital (a problem apparently limited to weekends) and I had one nurse who took my blood work who had to 'dig' around for a vein far too long and ultimately, had to get a senior nurse to do the job. I didn't meet Dr. Ortiz for the first time until after surgery, and it should have been before (although I did meet him several times later on). Oh also, they did have me sign some authorization forms that were written completely in Spanish, which i felt uncomfortable doing. However, overall, these were minor things that would not have changed my decision to use A Lighter Me.    I am only 5 days post surgery at this point, but am doing well. I really feel much better after a nice solid sleep in my own bed at home. My incisions are closed up and much of the bloating and swelling is gone. Anyone can feel free to email me with questions. 

I am also hoping for a Dec surgery date. I meet with my surgeon on Thursday and hopefully will get a date then. Still have to get insurance approval. Anyone else have people think you're crazy for doing this over the holidays? I think it will be the best Christmas (and birthday - my birthday is Dec. 13) present ever!

Looking for start a mini support group for sleevers who plan to get surgery done in December of this year. I figure its only two months away so we should meet up now and plan for it Lemme know if anybody is interested!

I hear you! Of all the changes that will be coming in my near future, the loss of my Dt. Pepsi will be the hardest to take! Good luck to both of us!