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Dr. Ariel Ortiz at the OCC



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Will anyone else be in Tijuana at the same time? I will be traveling alone and would like to have a sleeve buddy.

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I was there on 3/29. I went by myself, but got to know the other people who were having surgery the same day. I was nervous before the surgery and there were times when I would have liked someone to chat with, but I also was glad to have quiet and time to myself, too.

There's a forum for Mexico and self-pay-- you may want to post there, too and see if you can connect with someone that will be there at the same time you are.

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Hi guys I have my VSG scheduled in a couple of weeks with Dr. Ariel Ortiz at OCC in Tijuana and would love to hear more of the experiences with them from any of you that may know anything and or may have had your procedure with him .... Just a part of a bit more last minute research ..... Thank you in advanced

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Hi. I went to dr Ortiz too. I went alone. Out of the seven people having their sleeve on the same day, five of us came alone. The hotel was nice and everyone was helpful and very friendly. On the day of your surgery they will sit u down with a nutritionist and do a EGK to make sure your heart is healthy enough for surgery. You will only stay there for the night of your surgery. Ask for lots of Popsicles . You will inhale them. The next morning I was sent back to the hotel with a bag of Meds ($160.00 extra) and a paper with instructions. The pain medicine is a joke so bring your own if you have any. You go back once for a bandage change and then u get your drainage bag out on day 3 post op. Try to walk when u can. It helps with the gas. ( they pump your stomach up with air for surgery. It looked like I was six months pregnant ) My stomach didn't go down for about 10 days. If you have anymore questions, you can email me directly jmo9121120@gmail.com. You'll do great.

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I did. It was pretty cool. They gave me some "lovely" stuff to drink and I immediately had an X-ray that I watched on a tv monitor.

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Anyone have any plastic surgery in Mexico? I am not even half way to my goal and wouldn't consider plastic surgery for another year or so but my arms were already very heavy both because I was overweight but also genetically...and now my arms are...gross! I didn't think I would consider plastics after this journey but I would love to wear sleeveless shirts!

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Anyone have any plastic surgery in Mexico? I am not even half way to my goal and wouldn't consider plastic surgery for another year or so but my arms were already very heavy both because I was overweight but also genetically...and now my arms are...gross! I didn't think I would consider plastics after this journey but I would love to wear sleeveless shirts!

 

Hi Covatila,

 

I was just recently sleeved and saw a lady from Louisiana there at same time that had an arm lift and breast augment and lift.... She looked amazing! Arms were so tiny.... And boobs so big!

Lol!!

Of course I didn't see her before so can't comment, but the end result looked very nice and she was thrilled! Dr Medina is the plastic Surg.

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Hi guys I have my VSG scheduled in a couple of weeks with Dr. Ariel Ortiz at OCC in Tijuana and would love to hear more of the experiences with them from any of you that may know anything and or may have had your procedure with him .... Just a part of a bit more last minute research ..... Thank you in advanced

Hi Leysi,

 

I was just sleeved by dr Ariel Ortiz on April 15/14

The other person posting here has given a good review of events.

 

I will add that the care is very personal and thorough and if you have specific concerns/ allergies be sure to bring them up at the time of the nutritionist/cardiology checks. You can ask to speak to the surgeons directly, they work in a team.... Ortiz and Martinez.

 

All protocols are as good as US and in my opinion the experience of the surgeons is better.

This is a CENTER OF EXCELLENCE designated clinic/surgeon so they have to pass very strict protocol checks to get this designation.

 

My brother is a Gastroenterologist and he told me to find a surgery center with this seal of approval for best practices/protocols !

 

DO NOT take the pre op diet lightly..... The day of my Surg they cancelled a person because they had not lost enough weight to be safe.

 

You will be in very capable experienced hands.

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Hey everyone.

Thank you so much for all the informative posts. Without them I could never have made the decision to book my surgery and pick my surgeon with confidence at OCC. Which I am excited to say is Monday August 25th.

I got instructions from Lucia today on pre op weight goal recommendations so I'm going to start right away and try to ease my way towards it and get into the Protein frame of mind. Let me tell you the one thing that gives me incentive is that in 4 months I will be given a tool to help me maintain any efforts that i put in now. That is really something to look forward to.

Anyhow thanks everyone, i look forward to getting to know you.

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Hi Guys! Okay iv been researching getting the sleeve done in Tijuana! But got confused that there are two "Ortiz" - iv been talking with Janese from a lighter me - and have been doing a lot of research on Ariel ORtiz- and I really really liked Ariel Ortiz!!! But then realized that a lighter me would really be with Dr Elias Ortiz.... - I called OCC today and now I'm just super confused on who to get my surgery done from - yes Elias is much cheaper with a lighter me BUT I don't want to just go with who is cheaper of course .... But on the same breath iv heard so many good things about the process and surgery with " a lighter me /Elias Ortiz. - would love some advise!!!!!

 

 

Also when getting the surgery done with a lighter me - what hospital are you in ?? Mi hospital? Iv researched Jerusalem hospital not to crazy about that hospital so want to be clear on what hospital I would be in with what doctor.

 

 

Nickole

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I haven't been to the mexico for surgery but if you search on here there is a lot of info on the dr's and hospitals that a lot of ppl like

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Hey everyone. Thank you so much for all the informative posts. Without them I could never have made the decision to book my surgery and pick my surgeon with confidence at OCC. Which I am excited to say is Monday August 25th. I got instructions from Lucia today on pre op weight goal recommendations so I'm going to start right away and try to ease my way towards it and get into the Protein frame of mind. Let me tell you the one thing that gives me incentive is that in 4 months I will be given a tool to help me maintain any efforts that i put in now. That is really something to look forward to. Anyhow thanks everyone, i look forward to getting to know you.

Thats awesome and i think its a great idea to get a head start. my surgery was 2/17/14 and i started preparing myself in october when i signed my paperwork and got my surgery date. i started making small changes like substituting 1 meal for a Protein Shake. i bought all kinds of Protein Shakes to find ones that i really liked. i stopped drinking soda and alcohol...i believe thats what led my post-op diet to not be as challenging. i didnt think the pre-op was too bad either. i dont lose as much as other people, but i am happy with my weight loss. i feel great and have no complaints about my decision, it was the best decision i ever made!

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    • Aunty Mamo

      Iʻm roughly 6 weeks post-op this morning and have begun to feel like a normal human, with a normal human body again. I started introducing solid foods and pill forms of medications/supplements a couple of weeks ago and it's really amazing to eat meals with my family again, despite the fact that my portions are so much smaller than theirs. 
      I live on the island of Oʻahu and spend a lot of time in the water- for exercise, for play,  and for spiritual & mental health. The day I had my month out appointment with my surgeon, I packed all my gear in my truck, anticipating his permission to get back in the ocean. The minute I walked out of that hospital I drove straight to the shore and got in that water. Hallelujah! My appointment was at 10 am. I didn't get home until after 5 pm. 
      I'm down 31 pounds since the day of surgery and 47 since my pre-op diet began, with that typical week long stall occurring at three weeks. I'm really starting to see some changes lately- some of my clothing is too big, some fits again. The most drastic changes I notice however are in my face. I've also noticed my endurance and flexibility increasing. I was really starting to be held up physically, and I'm so grateful that I'm seeing that turn around in such short order. 
      My general disposition lately is hopeful and motivated. The only thing that bugs me on a daily basis still is the way those supplements make my house smell. So stink! But I just bought a smell proof bag online that other people use to put their pot in. My house doesn't stink anymore. 
       
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    • BeanitoDiego

      Oh yeah, something I wanted to rant about, a billing dispute that cropped up 3 months ago.
      Surgery was in August of 2023. A bill shows up for over $7,000 in January. WTF? I asks myself. I know that I jumped through all of the insurance hoops and verified this and triple checked that, as did the surgeon's office. All was set, and I paid all of the known costs before surgery.
      A looong story short, is that an assistant surgeon that was in the process of accepting money from my insurance company touched me while I was under anesthesia. That is what the bill was for. But hey, guess what? Some federal legislation was enacted last year to help patients out when they cannot consent to being touched by someone out of their insurance network. These types of bills fall under something called, "surprise billing," and you don't have to put up with it.
      https://www.cms.gov/nosurprises
      I had to make a lot of phone calls to both the surgeon's office and the insurance company and explain my rights and what the maximum out of pocket costs were that I could be liable for. Also had to remind them that it isn't my place to be taking care of all of this and that I was going to escalate things if they could not play nice with one another.
      Quick ending is that I don't have to pay that $7,000+. Advocate, advocate, advocate for yourself no matter how long it takes and learn more about this law if you are ever hit with a surprise bill.
      · 0 replies
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    • BeanitoDiego

      Some days I feel like an infiltrator... I'm participating in society as a "thin" person. They have no idea that I haven't always been one of them! 🤣
      · 0 replies
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    • ChunkCat

      Thank you everyone for your well wishes! I totally forgot I wrote an update here... I'm one week post op today. I gained 15 lbs in water weight overnight because they had to give me tons of fluids to bring my BP up after surgery! I stayed one night in the hospital. Everything has been fine except I seem to have picked up a bug while I was there and I've been running a low grade fever, coughing, and a sore throat. So I've been hydrating well and sleeping a ton. So far the Covid tests are negative.
      I haven't been able to advance my diet past purees. Everything I eat other than tofu makes me choke and feels like trying to swallow rocks. They warned me it would get worse before it gets better, so lets hope this is all normal. I have my follow up on Monday so we'll see. Living on shakes and soup again is not fun. I had enough of them the first time!! LOL 
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    • BeanitoDiego

      Still purging all of the larger clothing. This morning, a shirt that I ADORED wearing ended up on top. Hard to let it go, but it was also hard to let go of those habits that also no longer serve my highest good. Onward and upward!
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