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This Is Just So Frustrating! Doctor Selection....



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I am scheduled for next week, and I'm scared and excited and having all of the expected emotions. But I'm still very happy with my choice of doctor. :)

Me too! See you there!

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After months of research I'm going with Dr Francisco Gonzalez. He's with BajaMed Group. I don't want the experience of being herded through like cattle being tagged. I'm sure this is going to piss people off with me saying that. Google him. His records and achievements speak for themselves. No, your not going to see his name plastered up on here BC he doesn't pay all of the tons of money on advertising and supporting these forums to promote his name. He doesn't need to. Period. I'm paying 6300 and have been on touch with my surgeons from the get-go. I'm also vlogging my entire experience at YouTube.com/shesstrangelynormal. Ultimately, if u wanna stand in line all day like cattle being tagged, go with someone else and pay 4500-5000. That's not for me. Ugh

I totally agree I would not want to be herded like cattle either. Dr. Garcia only does 4 surgeries a day and I never once felt like a paycheck or a cow lol when I was there. As far as the advertising goes I never once chose him because of any advertising he paid for. I chose him because of the testimonials on this forum about him which are all positive. Everyone has to make the choice they are most comfortable with and I am so happy you have found a surgeon that you are happy with. As far the as the price tag goes the cost of the surgery does not make the surgeon better or worse. I feel like I got the same great service for $5000 that some people pay $8000 or more for. I agree with comfortably numb we cannot put every doctor in the same category. The more you pay for a surgery does not guarantee you a safe and happy experience. I do hope you have a wonderful experience and am honestly happy for your choice. Good luck with your journey and I will tune into your youtube channel.

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Comfortably Numb' date=' you are so right. When I started this journey I checked out every one of these doctors and narrowed it down to a few. I chose Dr. Kelly because of my interactions with him, with his staff, etc. For about 3 months now, I've been in constant contact with him or Omar and I could not be happier. I feel like I am included with a big family! I've talked to dozens of people privately, previous patients, etc etc. Not one of them had anything negative to say about their experience with Dr. Kelly. The clincher for me was meeting a lovely lady who went to him with a friend, then went back to him for her own surgery, then referred her own family members to him! Honestly, that was the best referral info I could have gotten.

Many of these doctors are very good, and you can find positives and negatives about ALL of them. Yes there are some who do this surgery for a LOT cheaper (using recovery houses, etc) but honestly, that's what works for some people. If that's all they can afford and are willing to take the risk, then that is their decision. Sometimes that's the best someone can do.

I am scheduled for next week, and I'm scared and excited and having all of the expected emotions. But I'm still very happy with my choice of doctor. :)[/quote']

Finding Myself, I'm glad to hear your story. I probably wasn't clear on this but pur surgery this weekend was both my wife and myself. We had such a great experience we are planning to returns soon to visit!

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Dr. Alvarez is the sweetest guy you'll meet. Very down-to-earth and easy to talk to. He's done more sleeves than any doctor in the world, as I understand it, and I am so glad I chose him! I recommend him highly! :)

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    • LeighaTR

      I am new here today... and only two weeks out from my sleeve surgery on the 23rd. I am amazed I have kept my calories down to 467 today so far... that leaves me almost 750 left for dinner and maybe a snack. This is going to be tough for two weeks... but I have to believe I can do it!
      · 0 replies
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    • Doughgurl

      Hey everyone. I'm new here so I thought I should introduce myself. I am 53y/o and am scheduled for Gastric Bypass on June 25th, 2025. I'm located in San Antonio, Texas. I will be having my surgery in Tiajuana Mexico. I've wanted this for years, but I always had insurance where bariatric procedures were excluded. Finally I am able to afford to pay out of pocket.  I can't wait to get started, and I hope I'm prepared for the initial period of "hell". I know what I have signed up for, but I'm sure the good to come will out way the temporary period of discomfort and feelings of regret. I'd love to find people to talk to who have been through the same procedure or experience before. So I look forward to meeting you all. Hope you have a great week!
      · 2 replies
      1. Selina333

        I'm so happy for you! You are about to change your life. I was so glad to get the sleeve done in Dec. I didn't have feelings of regret overall. And I'm down almost 60 lbs. I do feel a little sad at restaurants. I can barely eat half a kid's meal. I get adults meals often because kid ones don't have the same offerings at times. Then I feel obligated to eat on that until it's gone and that can be days. So the restaurant thing isn't great for me. All the rest is fine by me! I love feeling full with very little. I do wish I could drink when eating. And will sip at the end. Just a strong habit to stop. But I'm working on it! You will do fine! Just keep focused on your desire to be different. Not better or worse. But different. I am happy both ways but my low back doesn't like me that heavy. So I listened (also my feet!). LOL! Update us on your journey! I'm not far from you. I'm in Houston. Good luck and I hope it all goes smoothly! Would love to see pics of the town you go to for this. I've never been there. Neat you will be traveling for this! Enjoy the journey. Take it one day at a time. Sometimes a few hours at a time. Follow all recommendations as best you can. 💗

      2. Doughgurl

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    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. LeighaTR

        I hope your surgery on Wednesday goes well. You will be able to do all sorts of new things as you find your new normal after surgery. I don't know this from experience yet, but I am seeing a lot of positive things from people who have had it done. Best of luck!

    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. summerseeker

        Life as a big person had limited my life to what I knew I could manage to do each day. That was eat. I hadn't anything else to look forward to. So my eating choices were the best I could dream up. I planned the cooking in managable lots in my head and filled my day with and around it.

        Now I have a whole new big, bigger, biggest, best days ever. I am out there with those skinny people doing stuff i could never have dreamt of. Food is now an after thought. It doesn't consume my day. I still enjoy the good home cooked food but I eat smaller portions. I leave food on my plate when I am full. I can no longer hear my mother's voice saying eat it all up, ther are starving children in Africa who would want that!

        I still cook for family feasts, I love cooking. I still do holidays but I have changed from the All inclusive drinking and eating everything everyday kind to Self catering accommodation. This gives me the choice of cooking or eating out as I choose. I rarely drink anymore as I usually travel alone now and I feel I need to keep aware of my surroundings.

        I don't know at what point my life expanded, was it when I lost 100 pounds? Was it when I left my walking stick at home ? Was it when I said yes to an outing instead of finding an excuse to stay home ? i look back at my last five years and wonder how loosing weight has made such a difference. Be ready to amaze yourself.

        BTW, the liquid diet sucks, one more day and you are over the worst. You can do it.

    • CaseyP1011

      Officially here for a long time, not just a good time💪
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
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