I had gastric sleeve surgery in Puerto Vallarta on December 12, 2013 with Dr. Lopez and his team. I would highly recommend surgery with Dr. Lopez.

Prior to arriving in Mexico I had a patient coordinator who very quickly responded to all my questions. Once I arrived in PV, one of the doctors picked me up and drove me to the hotel. The hotel was very nice and right on the beach.

The next morning I met the surgery coordinator, the anesthesiologist, Dr. Lopez and a second surgeon. They answered all my questions. The hospital was the cleanest, most modern hospital I've ever been in. I live in Toronto and have a very high standard of health care. A team of nurses did my pre op tests. There was a little bit of a language barrier but we got through it.

Once my tests were okay I was brought into surgery. When I woke up I was in a lot of pain. This is my 4th abdominal surgery and this was the worst time waking up. I was a revision from lap band to sleeve so I'm sure the scar tissue caused some of the pain. That night I had a steady stream of nurses taking care of me. I got up to walk a little at a time that night. The next day I was also in a lot of pain. According to Dr Lopez, Canadians and Americans rely too much on pain meds and not enough on healing through walking. He encouraged walking as much as I could. I did insist on an extra pain shot the second day as the pain really was unbearable. One of the doctors drove me back to the hotel early in the afternoon on the second day.

The hotel had a quiet area where I could do my walking, which I tried to do 4 times a day. By the second night I was a different person. I really improved dramatically. The doctors called me regularly and dropped by to check on me in the hotel that night. They said I was doing great and they removed my drainage tube. The next 3 days I spent walking, napping and then repeat. Everyday the pain got better. I had no appetite but was sure to drink water all day.

I would recommend bringing some packaged broth and Gatorade with you as there is no broth available and the drinks at the hotel were pricy. My mom ate at a number of the restaurants and enjoyed them if you're bringing a companion.

I flew home 5 days after surgery. It took 14 hours and wiped me out but I made it. Definitely wear something comfortable. I wore yoga pants and a sweater.

My post op diet was 1 week clear liquids, 1 week full liquids and then 2 weeks soft foods. I'm almost at the end of soft foods. I've had chicken breast, fish, pork tenderloin, well cooked vegetables, beef, eggs and cheese with no issue as long as I chew very well and eat slow. I threw up twice, once I ate while on the phone and ate too fast and once I ate beef that was very spicy. Otherwise I'm doing great. I have no issue getting my water or meds in. I don't have much of an appetite but try to eat a few times a day in order to get my protein in.

All in all I had a great experience with Dr Lopez and his team and would recommend them. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Kelly

How is everyone doing now? I'm planning on booking RNY for sept/oct 2014 with dr Lopez. I'm interested to know how people do in the long term

1/17/13 surgery. I have lost 82 pounds and since October have been happily maintaining at 183 (I'm 5'11"). I had plastic surgery today (LBL, AL, and BL/BA) and feel like I will get down to 170-175 after I recover.

 

I had stalls along the way, but never ever let them bother me. I only tried setting a date/weight goal one time and that did not work for me. Instead, I set 60/60/60 goals every day. 60+ ou water, 60+ ou protein, and 60+ min of exercise. I believe whole-heartedly that was the key to my success.

 

I also turned into a regular runner, although I'm very slow. I have run numerous 5Ks, two 10Ks (first in 11/13), three half marathons (13.1 miles), and 1 Ragnar Relay (200 miles/12 runners/2 vans/31 hours/2 hours sleep. I did 3 legs/12.5 miles total). BUT, the distance running (over 5K) really slowed my losing.

 

Good luck!

Hi all I hope someone reads this in time I've read that your suppose to walk after having surgery but I was curious about the freedom that we get ? Do we have to check in every time we leave the hotel after surgery? Are we allowed to go out and walk around ? Do we have to be back by a certain time ? Just curious thanks for the information

Hi all I hope someone reads this in time I've read that your suppose to walk after having surgery but I was curious about the freedom that we get ? Do we have to check in every time we leave the hotel after surgery? Are we allowed to go out and walk around ? Do we have to be back by a certain time ? Just curious thanks for the information

When you wake up from surgery one of the first things that you are encouraged to do is get out of Bed while pushing your I.V. Pole, and walk the halls of your hospital ward. Trust me, this will speed along your recovery and get rid of the internal gas, making it much more comfortable for you.

Once you are discharged from the hospital, 1 1/2 days in my case, you are pretty much on your own. You have the freedom to walk wherever you care to go, but trust me, you'll want to stay close to a comfortable bed!

A Doctor will call to check on you periodically and will come to your hotel remove your drain about 2 days later.

That's about , hope this helps

Thank you for your response @@tagyoorit everything has been swell up to this point can't wait to have surgery later on

Thank you everyone I had surgery with dr lopez on Saturday around 4p and every thing has been swell not to much pain I've been walking alot

Thank you everyone I had surgery with dr lopez on Saturday around 4p and every thing has been swell not to much pain I've been walking alot

I'm so glad to hear your surgery went well. Please keep is informed of how it's going post-op with your recovery!

So how is your progress going?

I'm so glad to hear your surgery went well. Please keep is informed of how it's going post-op with your recovery!

Yes!! Let us know

I have surgery booked with Dr Lopez on Nov12.

Nervous as heck!!

 

Post op diet looks scary ... Please tell me no one feels faint and hungry from sipping all those ounces of broth!

 

Love all the contributions and perspectives. Thank you pioneers....

Hello All,

 

I had my gastric sleeve procedure done by Dr. Lopez's wife, Dr. Jacqueline Osuna.  I went to Tijuana and had surgery on August 27.  I cannot speak highly enough about the entire experience...the staff, the care, the surgery, everything!!

Yes!! Let us know

I have surgery booked with Dr Lopez on Nov12.

Nervous as heck!!

 

Post op diet looks scary ... Please tell me no one feels faint and hungry from sipping all those ounces of broth!

 

Love all the contributions and perspectives. Thank you pioneers....

Post op diet is going well for me. Kept up with protein shakes that were fortified with essential vitamins and minerals.  Could really only stomach broth and jello, but didn't feel shaky or light headed.  Slept a lot that first week...probably just tired from the whole surgery and trip put together, but had that week off of work and made good use of that napping time.  I did move onto highly watery pureed foods after the first full week following surgery. Baby foods were a big staple.  After that full second week, I've been doing highly pureed things like broccoli cheese soup whipped in with mashed potatoes, or a cheese omelet smooshed up really well with cottage cheese...I came up with some weird, but surprisingly good combinations. I'm going to start adding a little more spice and a little more texture now as I move out of my 3rd week and into my 4th.  Still pretty partial to finely pureed meals at this point. Can't quite handle even the chunkiness of cottage cheese without having it whipped.  Found a GREAT yogurt that I can manage at this point: Chobani now makes yogurt with finely cut (teeny tiny) pieces of oats.  It is really good, plus is calcium, protein, AND fiber all in one.  Good luck with all your pre-op work!  Please feel free to ask any questions you'd like answered about what I experienced.  Everyone is different, but there are a couple of universal issues that I think we all had to overcome, so don't be afraid to ask.

I'm having my sleeve done with Dr. Lopez on October 21. Start the pre-op diet in three days. Husband and I are going out for the "Last Supper" tomorrow night. I'm nervous but ready to do this thing. I'm glad to hear such good experiences with the doctor. Their patient coordinators have been great thus far. I will definitely report back afterwards with my own experience.

I'm sure it will all go well, and hope you'll report back on your experience.

By the way...is Dr. Lopez performing the single incision technique on you?

hi im bob --had the sleeve oct 16 -14 was great and fine after -good resulys but the one thing is i got told my bmi was 73 and was ripped off for 1200 bucks and then another 600 for the room because i was let out early after weighing at the resort i was told my bmi was based on being 5 ft 2 in ,since i am 5 ft 11 and my sister was there who is 5-7 ,,this was laughable --doc lopez sent me a cheque for a grand for wrong bmi and then put a stop payment on it --surgery was good but as a business man -he is a mafia con ,,typical for dishonest surgeons but alas its mexico -what can you say --its how it is they addon what they feel like

hi im bob --had the sleeve oct 16 -14 was great and fine after -good resulys but the one thing is i got told my bmi was 73 and was ripped off for 1200 bucks and then another 600 for the room because i was let out early after weighing at the resort i was told my bmi was based on being 5 ft 2 in ,since i am 5 ft 11 and my sister was there who is 5-7 ,,this was laughable --doc lopez sent me a cheque for a grand for wrong bmi and then put a stop payment on it --surgery was good but as a business man -he is a mafia con ,,typical for dishonest surgeons but alas its mexico -what can you say --its how it is they addon what they feel like

Zoey1962,

That's simply horrible that he did that to you. I was scheduled with him,and decided to change to another doctor. Guess it was a good decision.