I'm 5'6", 238 pounds. I have BALLOONED up since I was 15. At 15, I weighed 125 pounds and had a beautiful body. Now, at 21, I'm 238. I have attached a few photos for reference. I am very interested in Lap-Band®, and was wondering if anyone knew a good doctor in Mexico to recommend? I don't have the cash to afford the surgery in the states. And, if I have complications, its still going to cost me money regardless of where I have the surgery. Any suggestions would be very helpful. I have already been to a seminar and was selected for surgery.

I don't know about any Dr's south of the border, but I would say that if you don't have a lot of cash, the fills are going to put you in the poor house. It took 8 fills to get me to a good level, and they cost anywhere from 150-400 bucks a pop. That said, I recommend the surgery to anyone who's willing to use it right. It is a tool, you'll only loose so much if you're not willing to eat decently right(+ no carbonated beverages) , and do some moderate exercise.

Thanks for the info!

I'm in south Texas and went to a seminar w/ Dr. Griffin. He told us of a story of a lady getting her LAP-BAND® done in Mexico. They put the band in but not the catheter or the port. Now she's back in the states trying to find a Dr. who will complete the surgery and he says, "no one will touch her". And she is stuck like that. Be careful if you go to Mexico.

Mexico sounds scary to have surgery there, but actually Ive talked to quite a few people on here and also read about it that have had surgery there and they have state of the art facilities. I would do your researchs BIG TIME because ive also heard some really really bad things . you can find lots of info on this site about mexico DR's, just search it. Good luck

I'm considering Dr. Ortiz from Obesity Control Center, I've heard a lot of good things about him.

IPES, do you have medical insurance? If so you may be a candidate for your medical insurance company to cover the surgery. I have not yet been banded I started thinking about the surgery last year, was told that I would not be approved through Aetna because my BMI was not 40 (38.8) and I had no co-morbidities. My husband switched insurances to BCBS TX , I'm now required to have a BMI of 40 and complete 6 medically supervised dieticians visits. Even if you don't have insurance it may be cheaper and safer to get insurance and get approved through them. Although Mexico may a good alternative, if you have complications, which is not rare, it's easier to get follow up care in the states.

Good Luck

No I don't have medical insurance. If I got the surgery done in the USA and I had complications, I'd still have to pay for it anyway. I'd probably go back to Mexico anyway and have the problems fixed.