So let me start by saying a few words as to why I'm writing this. I was recently sleeved by Dr. Garcia in Tijuana and I am very happy with my results -- so far. If you want to read moment by moment blows of someones happy surgery, this isn't the blog. I've read every blog here and a majority are dead on accurate. But there's a lot no one bothers to mention and I wish someone had. Also, I'm posting this from a made-up user ID.... I read the boards daily and respond frequently, but prefer to keep some elements of my issues private (as you'll read). Thanks!!

First, Waiting! I appreciate in the U.S. were go-go-go people who are comfortable with our busy, full schedules but in Mexico, there is NO scheduling at all! You sit and wait, and wait, and wait. The day of my surgery we were taken at 6:45 to the hospital, we waited until after 9am for the hospital staff to even arrive to check us in. Once in my room, more waiting; I didn't have my surgery until NIGHT! Despite numerous attempts to ask when (approx) my surgery would be - "soon" is the only answer I got. Want to go shopping after surgery, plan to wait. No one can tell you if or when or how long. I waited 2 whole days and then in a matter of minutes of a phone call, was expected to be ready.

Second - Coordinators. Good luck. I saw my coordinator ONCE on the very LAST day. Once I was taken back to the hotel, I had questions I needed answered and despite my attempts (for over an hour) and the hotels attempts, no one could reach them. And their voicemail boxes were full - wonderful. What if I had an emergency?

Third - Not Like U.S. Hospitals. Now I accepted this going in. BUT, if when waiting to be taken into ER I am awake and can see the person before me laying naked on the OR table - I'm sorry, I find that bothersome to several degrees. First, how many germs are flooding through those open doors? Second, if I was awake enough to see someone (who I actually knew from these boards and hotel), then who is seeing me? Not cool.

Fourth - The Yucky (yes, the yucky truth - feel free to skip) No one bothers to tell you that your pee after your final leak test will be BRIGHT green for days - not an issue, but a heads up would've been nice. And the diarrhea - oh my stomach aches just thinking about it. It smells horrendous - like sick tummy. Its lasts for, I don't even know how long, I still have it, and its explosive. So yes, you probably will shart yourself. Just speaking the truth here.

Again, I want to say I am HAPPY with my results ---- these were just things NO ONE bothered to mention and it would've been nice to prepare a bit better. So, bring a extra book, ask all your questions before you leave, ask to be drugged up before going to the OR and sit on a towel afterwards and you should be ALL set!

How long do u stay

Ok...i have a question ..they provide transports..hotel ..?. how much was airfair ..passports ? Were u alone?.

I had surgery with Dr. Garcia in March. I went through the Ready4A Change website. Very good experience. I flew to San Diego with a guest. Our plane tickets were about $325 each. We both had to have a passport card. We could have bought a passport, but the passport card was cheaper and worked just fine. They picked us up at the San Diego airport and drove us to Tijuana. We stayed in a hotel two nights, hospital two nights, then the hotel one more night. They drove us back to San Diego airport the next morning to catch our departing flight. The cost was $4700 for everything except plane tickets. You will also want to take a little spending money and money for tips.

Dear God I missed a lot! For a second there I wanted to break a beer bottle on the corner of my kitchen counter and just start shanking people! Lmao! I can't stop laughing at some of these posting. Ha ha ha ha ha. I LOVE THIS THREAD!!!

I didn't have the same doctor, so I can't comment on him, but my experience (in Mexico) has been totally different. Dr. Aceves' staff (coordinator Yolanda) has been right here the whole time... she picked us up on the other side of the border, in fact, so we wouldn't have to wait for the shuttle. I haven't had to do ANY waiting, really... we were hustled around with very little waiting time pre-op, and anything I need post-op is brought to me right away. Altogether a different experience, so far. So, I'm not discounting this person's experience, but only saying it's not representative of all doctors in Mexico.

I had my surgery in Piedras Negras with Dr. Guillermo Alvarez, and my experience was totally different. I did not have to wait for anything. The Nurses were very professional and attentive. We were checked on every 2 hours at least for the first 24 hours after surgery. Meds were given automatically. We didn't have to wait till we were in pain to ask for pain meds. All questions were answered promptly. We were checked by Dr. Alvarez or his assistant several times a day. Post of instructions were explained clearly. The facility was clean, privacy was maintained at all times, and all our needs were anticipated and taken care of before we even had to ask. I'm a Nurse, and all I can say is I wish patients were taken care of as well in my Hospital as I was taken care of by Dr. Alvarez and his staff in Mexico.

I am a little surprised by the naked people but the rest of the stuff mentioned is not really a big deal. I am feeling pretty glad that I was on my lady time of the month during my surgery because I got to wear underwear lol. Hopefully no one saw anything but maybe boobs! Anyway not everyone's experience can be 100% stellar. I had a fairly good experience' date=' but it was NOT great. I used Dr. Almanza. I really think Dr. Almanza is absolutely fantastic. I got a great sleeve surgery done by him. I still have fabulous restriction at 13 months post op. I mean, I am absolutely thrilled with it. However, my issues were with the facility itself and not with the surgeon. I think Dr. Almanza is absolutely fantastic. My problem is that they sometimes book 8-9-10 surgeries in a day. There were 7 surgeries the day I went and things went okay overall but some of the folks that came with me had to wait until VERY late in the evening before receiving surgery. Any more than that and it would have probably been too chaotic. A few of the nurses were great, a few were inattentive. The facility is also subpar--it is very tiny. I would say budget low rate. I think doing more than 6 surgeries in a day for a surgeon is a bad idea. That is my issue. I think Dr. Almanza would be much better off using a hospital facility and not booking more than 5 or 6 surgeries MAX. I also would have preferred him to use dissolving stitches instead of the kind that have to be removed when you come home. I think sometimes it is the FACILITY and not the DOCTOR. I stand by my testimonial that Dr. Almanza is absolutely fantastic and KNOWS what he's doing beyond a shadow of a doubt. I also think he'd be better off using a hospital and lowering the amounts of surgeries he does per day.

I guess what I'm getting to is was the DOCTOR excellent? Do you feel he performed your sleeve well? Were the nurses good/attentive? The rest of the stuff is just minor. I commend you for posting about some of the negatives though. Although they aren't really that negative lol :-). People sometimes just don't want to hear ANYTHING negative, and that's just silly. There are positives and negatives with every surgery experience. I had a less than great experience with a plastic surgeon right here in Texas. He was not very good and I would not recommend him. I walked right out of his office and never went back, before he ever did anything on me. Bad experiences can happen anywhere. I could have absolutely paid for the plastic surgery right here in the U.S. with that crappy doctor, but I am now choosing to spend my money elsewhere. Guess where? Mexico! I am choosing Dr. Sauceda in MX who is absolutely wonderful. He is far cheaper than in the U.S. but it's not about price. I could use any plastic surgeon in the area that I want. But I am choosing to use him because he's sooo good. I tried to give my money to a local plastic surgeon, but could find none that were as good as Dr. Sauceda! His results on plastic surgery are way better than any photos I saw from the docs around here.

As far as Dr. Garcia, i've heard almost all positive. I hear he's excellent at what he does and that's what matters the most. You want a competent surgeon who has experience, and he does!

Good luck everybody![/quote']

How much is your plastic surgery going to cost in mecico

I live in Montreal' date=' where our health care is covered so money is not an issue. We also have very good hospitals here, and I've had the luck (hah) to experience several of them. The care I received in Mexico was superior to the care I received in Canada. In Montreal the nurses were busy busy busy. In Mexico, it never took long to get the attention of a nurse. It was a small hospital, but it was clean, and it was well run. I never had to wait for anything. In Montreal, waiting is just a fact of life. Plus the surgeons in Mexico have more experience doing the sleeve than most surgeons. So no, I do not regret my choice of surgeon or the fact that I went to Mexico one bit. I had a great experience and I'm planning on going back to Mexico for plastics down the road, THAT's how much I believe in the level of care they provide there. People don't choose to do go there because they're too poor or don't have insurance. People choose to go there because they are excellent surgeons with excellent track records. And they don't make you jump through a million hoops to get there.[/quote']

U are so right the care we receive in Canada is not the best because of cutbacks, everyone is trying to make money with the least possible effort, I going to Mexico because in Canada the insurance won't pay so I am self pay