I'm still considering having my sleeve in Mexico but now I'm leaning towards the states partly because Mexico doesn't use narcotic pain relievers. I'm a baby and I don't do pain. The surgeon in the US said he gives you a pain pump right after surgery and sends you home with liquid lortab. All the Mexican Drs I've talked to say they send you home with trammadol type stuff for pain. To me a major surgery needs major pain relief!

I had my surgery done in German, and they don't do narcotic pain relief either (or at least that's what I gathered from how whatever they gave me didn't work). I have to say though, my pain level wasn't really that high, and I'm also a big baby with pain. I would hope that if I had really, really been in pain they would have given me something stronger. My guess is Mexico would be similar. I don't think anyone wants you to suffer.

I think your concerns are valid; I had them too. I was concerned that I would be uncomfortable, but I wasn't.

I've come to theorize that the Mexican doctors do so many of the surgeries and get so fast and efficient that they "get in and get out" quickly without rifling around too much (for lack of better words).

They do use a symphony of drugs on you-- anti-inflammatories, anti-nausea meds, antacids, etc., but none of them are narcotics post-op. I guess my ideal program would be somewhere in between the Mexican way and the US way. Maybe a little something more than one gets in Mexico, but not as much as in the U.S. ( I do think it's weird that US doctors routinely send people home with 10 to 14 days worth of narcotics when most people only need them for a day or two after most procedures).

Best wishes!

I got my surgery in Guatemala, I was in a lot of pain after it, my doctor was great he asked me if I wanted pain meds! I got it the first day but then I decided not to have it anymore. He told me it was my choice and that if I felt I needed it just to let him know. He was great and listened to my decisions he made me feel supported! The pain was really bad for me the first week but walking helped a lot. You can do it! It's sooo worth it!

@@zmdh39 that makes so much sense! And you're surgeon sounds like a real mensch for explaining it to you so well! I like my surgeon a lot, but sometimes I felt a bit out of the loop on stuff.

Darn it ZMDH you just ruined my plan to take liquid narcotic with me. Someone had mentioned in private to me that her only beef was being in pain and not getting pain meds for her surgery in Mexico. I am going to forward this link to her so she can understand why. I told her I would bring liquid narcotics for my surgery just in case lol. Now you have gone and ruined that plan for me with a logical explanation.

(I still might bring a bit just in case but obviously I would never take it without the doctor being completely aware and ok with it).

Edited June 7, 201412 yr by Travelmego

LOL ok, I will still bring some. However, the argument for being able to know if the pain is from a complication is compelling. I certainly won 't be so easy to take them now. It will be only as a last resort if the pain is intolerable. Hopefully, I won't have pain at all!

Thank you zmdh39 for your great responses. Ditto for me about not needing any pain meds after surgery. Dr. Ortiz actually sent me home with sublingual supradol which is an anti inflammatory. In a lot of cases, surgical pain is caused by inflammation resulting from the tissue trauma. Getting the inflammation out is a basic defense to preventing pain in the first place. I took them for 2 days, because I knew reducing the swelling in my new sleeve would also help with nausea and being able for things to pass through. I've got 4 leftover doses that I saved in case I get a bad backache or headache or something.

The other thing narcotics do is slow down your GI tract and can cause constipation. Definitely not something a bariatric patient needs! And I know what you mean by US doctors overprescribing. I was given 40 Vicodin after my endometrial ablation and I took one....pretty sure the other 39 are in my medicine cabinet. And don't knock tramadol, folks. It's the best pain med I've had for my broken back, fused neck and broken ribs. Worked way better than the hydrocodone and oxycodone I was given. (Doesn't do shit for a headache, though )

Everyone has different reactions and tolerances to pain, so definitely take pain meds if you need to, but don't take them just because....