MONDAY: 7/29/2013

I just arrived in Tiajuana and am thrilled to be here. I only came from Houston (3 hr flight) and do a lot of traveling so I'm rather adept at traveling on my own, but I did want to share my experiences for those of you who might be wondering what it's like.

Arrival in San Diego was a breeze and I got a phone call from my driver, Eduardo, while I was waiting for my luggage. He spotted me through the crowd and came over, introduced himself, and helped me with my luggage. He was a very pleasant man and willing to answer questions that I asked. We then moved to another terminal to pick up a second passenger from Calgary, Canada. Her surgery is scheduled for today, so she is headed straight to the hospital.

The border crossing was a non-event. We just drove past the border patrol, giving them a little wave, and went about our merry way. I was the first to get dropped off at my hotel, chicken, or anything else). When I headed down to the restaurant for my cup of Soup I was surprised to receive what looked like a steaming bowl of Water. However, desperate as I was, I dug in with fervor and discovered it was actually a very nice cuppa. If I time this right, I'll get one more cup in before I have to stop my intake altogether.

When I got back to my room I got one more phone call from the coordinator here in Mexico. She apologized for not being here upon my arrival and explained that this is a VERY busy week for them. I told her I was doing fine and having no problems at all. She gave me a few instructions about preparing for my surgery tomorrow, answered a couple of questions I had, and promised to call back in the morning to let me know what time to head to the lobby for my trip (it must be very close) to the hospital.

So far, everything seems to be going to plan and I am very pleased with the entire process. Just thought I might share in case anyone is wondering about the "details" of doing the Mexico thing. :-)

Sounds great so far. I love reading everyone's adventures. I appreciate your details in sharing. So, who's your Surgeon?

Thanks Hope! My hospital is Mi Doctor and my surgeon is Dr. Ismael Cabrera Garcia. If you click on the "My Surgeon" link in my profile, you'll be taken to his profile.

ok...will do. Thank You

Lots of Questions:

Do you know what size bougie does he do?

Is it an actual hospital or a clinic he does the surgery in?

Is the the put you up in a Hotel like a Holiday Inn? or more like a Hotel 6 type?

How much for everything? (excluding of course plane tickets)

Sure...no problem, Hope.

1. Sorry, but I don't know the answer to the first question.

2. It is a hospital (here's the link: http://www.hospitalmidoctor.com/) but a small one.

3. The hotel room is on the level of a Holiday Inn except my room is quite large. The lobby and restaurant areas are more like a Ramada or higher because this hotel caters to gamblers so they need the entrance and casino part to be impressive.

4. I took advantage of a "summer special" or something like that and my total bill was $4,200. There was a fee for using Paypal and paying early (3% I think) that would have been a lot more if I had waited to pay with a card until I got here. I think there may not be a fee if you come across with cash, something I didn't want to do. Anyway, with my flight included I am here at just under $5,000.

The things you give up for doing it this way (my only option) are things like:

1. I had no prep work done, haven't yet met the surgeon performing my surgery tomorrow, and think the information I've received so far is a bit skimpy on details. I've supplemented that by doing as much research on my own as I can and now have a collection of alternative plans and surgery details (from other hospitals) so I'm okay with that.

2. Because I'm showing up ready to go tomorrow, I'm guessing there's a chance that something could cause the whole thing to fall through. I'm relatively healthy, in spite of my large size, so I'm not that worried about that. If it happens, I think my options are to give up or to go home and come back when whatever the problem is gets resolved.

3. The follow-up on the back end will be skimpy as well because I will never come all of this way for an actual Dr. visit. I've heard from others though that phone calls and emails are responded to quickly and efficiently by doctors, nurses, and staff here, so I'm hoping for the best there as well.

Hope this helps!

You are so detailed, I love that! Thank You.

I love the price and the hospital looks real clean/nice but I think I would need more of the PreOp testing for reassurance, and nurses and doctors being more there for me in a sense. You must be pretty independant person to be able to do this surgey without them doing the tests and such. I would be freaking out. How? how are you being so strong?

My experience was nearly the same EXCEPT Eduardo WAS NOT there when we arrived. After MANY phone calls and a 2 hour wait, we were finally picked up and taken to the hotel. Quite nerve-racking. Anyway...my surgery was Friday and I am home after a long day of traveling yesterday (Western New York). The rest of the experience was great, from the coordinator, Nissi...to the doctors and nurses (my favorite was Sam). Feel free to message me any questions you may have. Good luck to all!

I saw your post about no one being there to pick you up. I was at lose to help you but others seemed to know what to do! Glad all went well Julie!

Bea- you will be in my prayers for a successful surgery! Would love to hear about everything once you are out and back home Good luck!!!! Sherry

Bea, I was at the same hotel and had the same surgeons. He works with Dr. Louisiana Valenzuela. They are both awesome. Yes, I'm biased. Good luck and God Bless. Your time there will go fast!

Dr. Louisana Valenzuela is also a trauma surgeon as well as bariatric surgeon. See if you can find a guy named Jaime. He is awesome. He is American who lives in TJ and is bilingual. He will get you whatever you want/need within reason (Legal..etc). LOL Great guy to get you sips of drinks, wash cloth, etc.

Hi Bea,

By now you have had a successful surgery and are recovering nicely. Had my band- to-sleeve revision in TJ (Dr. Ortiz) 5/13/13 and was very pleased with the experience. I just returned from accompanying a friend who had her sleeve done at Mi Doctor--also very successful. I live in Houston and would love to have a band sister. Will send a private email on that.

Keep us posted on your experience and don't forget to rest well.

Lucille