Dr. Ariel Ortiz at the OCC

[lovelyme 21]

Cody's mom, what can you tell me about this aftercare specialist?  

I am a bit foggy on what sort of aftercare is offered with ALM. 

R

 

I'm Sept 14, but will offer you any information you need for your journey. Ronda the patient care specialist will be there when you are and will be offering classes in the eveing for all pt. there at that time.

[foutchd 14]

Cody's mom, what can you tell me about this aftercare specialist?

I am a bit foggy on what sort of aftercare is offered with ALM.

R

I'm Sept 14, but will offer you any information you need for your journey. Ronda the patient care specialist will be there when you are and will be offering classes in the eveing for all pt. there at that time.

I am two months out and down 42 pounds! You will be happy with your choice. Ronda will help you with any questions you have and will follow up by E mail. You will need to find a doctor to help you with your aftercare follow up. Blood work...... I use obesity help.com for info? Nothing serious just Protein ideas and things that might come up.. Constipation:( it's a great site for things others do or have been through. You need to know you are in good hands and YES things will be different.... Example: there are no computers in the hospital? Nurses use clip boards and notebooks. They speak little English ? It's very clean and you are safe! And taken care of! There are bumps in the road ...pick up times , waiting, nothing life threating? Boarder crossing is ALWAYS different... You can not time it! So time schedules get screwed up. Know that Dr. Ortiz is wonderful and personable !

[Cody's mom 247]

I've made an appointment with my regular doctor for after care who I'll see immediately when I return back to Canada. I go back to work three days after I return home from surgery and I work in a remote location eight hours from home and two hours from any town (and the closest one is not more than a speck). I'm not really too concerned about any problems afterwards, and if any arise I'll deal with it then, I have no choice, I work in the middle of the bush, and believe me, there is no medical care. I'll go see my doctor again when I get my first break from work (I work 16 days on 5 days off).   

[Swee_dee 10]

Swee_dee good to hear all went well. Thanks for the updates. Wishing you a speedy recovery!

Thanks Lori!

I hope everyone has a smooth process!

First day home....LOL .... Not so smooth ! Still working on it trying to find out what works

[JamieLogical 8,684]

I just realized I haven't posted back to this thread since I was still at the clinic! I am home now. Came home on Friday night. That was a whole ordeal because my flight home from Chicago was canceled, ugh!

Let's see... So I had my surgery Monday and left the clinic Tuesday morning. Only two of the five of us who had surgery Monday got to leave in that first group Tuesday morning. As Swee_dee mentioned, she had some nausea, so she and her fiance stayed a little extra. Another woman had a slight fever and thought she might be having a heart attack (it was just the same left-side cramping that all of us were experiencing), so she stayed longer as well.

Once back in the hotel I was doing pretty well until the early evening, when all of the sudden, the need to throw up rolled over me and I was making a dash to the bathroom for some dry heaving (hadn't eaten anything, so there was nothing to throw up). That happened two more times during the evening. I didn't feel nauseous prior to or after each incident. It really just came over me super quick and then was gone once I finished dry heaving.

Fortunately no more of that after that first day post-op. The main issue I had aside from that was SEVERE cramping. It felt like menstrual cramps more than anything. It started initially up under my left rib cage while I was still at the clinic and then by the time I was back at the clinic to have my leak test and drain pulled, it had migrated very low, like down near my bladder.

Wednesday morning I had my leak test. Got to see my new stomach and it really is just a tube now! Then they pulled my drain and the cramps immediately stopped. No cramping at all since then.

Since Wednesday my main challenge has definitely just been getting my Water in. It's just so uncomfortable to drink. Every time I take a sip I feel this gurgling gas bubble up my esophagus (often have to burp) and then a constriction of my esophagus that feels like a tightening in the center of my chest. That happens with every single sip. It doesn't hurt, it's just so unpleasant, that it makes drinking a chore. And since I can only take tiny sips to begin with and I go through that with every single sip, it takes a VERY long time to get any significant amount of water down.

As for food. I'm still on Clear Liquids + drinkable yogurt until tomorrow, when I can start having Protein Shakes again. The last two days I've manages about 3 oz. of yogurt. Yesterday I made some chicken noodle Soup and strained out all the solids and drank about 4 oz. of the broth. And last night I had a sugar-free popsicle. So I was maybe up to about 200 calories yesterday? I figure it will be a lot easier to get calories in once I can start my Protein shakes.< /p>

Sorry for the long post. I just wanted to get you guys all caught up since I hadn't posted in so long!

Edited September 7, 2014 by JamieLogical

[Kindle 8,667]

The drain gave me cramps, too. Didn't know that was it until they pulled it....Aaaaaaa! Drinking is definitely a chore in the beginning. All you can do is sip sip sip. I started when I woke up and never stopped until I went to bed. Had a glass or bowl of something with me at all times. And once I started puree's and then soft food it was even worse because just a tablespoon or two would make me full for hours. Don't worry about calories, just do what you can do. Everything will eventually normalize. It took 3-4 months for me, but it has been more than worth it!

 

Congrats to all the new sleevers!

[JamieLogical 8,684]

I don't know that there was anything they could have done for me in the clinic that I couldn't do for myself in the hotel. They maybe could have given me something for the dry heaving, but it came on so fast without any warning that they probably wouldn't have.

[NiecyBelle12 5]

Hello everyone, I would like to know how much Dr. Ortiz charge these days. I Know he is one of the more expensive surgeons but not really sure how much.

[Kindle 8,667]

Hello everyone, I would like to know how much Dr. Ortiz charge these days. I Know he is one of the more expensive surgeons but not really sure how much.

You should give them a call or fill out their info request form....

 

http://www.obesitycontrolcenter.com/contact/

 

They were super helpful with all of my dozens of questions and never once pressured me to book with them or pestered me with unsolicited calls or emails.

[BrendaBixler 5]

My husband and I are both being sleeved (me - lap band revision) the 29th at OCC. Anyone else getting sleeved the same time and surgeon?

[Swee_dee 10]

Hi all.

Been a while to post, back at work and I feel like I'm dragging my butt everywhere!

Pretty tired , think it will be better now that we can take the Vitamins again.

Still bathroom issues but working through slowly. Hard to get all the fluids in when you feel so full off just a few sips.

 

No real pain just some cramping , not sure if its due to the surg or my guts or my time of the month.

 

Wish I took more time off work but I have a lot if alone time so I'm going slowly and at my own pace

[BrendaBixler 5]

Anyone getting sleeved at OCC September 29th. My hubby and I are scheduled for that day. I currently have a lap band and I'm having it revised to the sleeve. I'm excited and scared at the same time. I only took a week off from work so I'm really hoping that will be plenty for me.

[Nurselori 37]

Yes Brenda, I am having my surgery at the OCC on the 29th as well. I am a revision also, My band was removed several years ago though. I was originally scheduled for an October date but was going crazy so I got it changed. I have been on a huge roller-coaster of emotions and I just want to get it done already. I'm so excited yet scared too. That's to be expected I guess. My husband is not supportive of the surgery but so far he is planning on coming. We live in WV and will be flying in to San Diego on the 28th. What about you guys? are you coming in the 28th? Great to meet someone with my date. It'll be nice to have someone on the exact same timeline to chat with and compare notes so to speak.

[BrendaBixler 5]

Oh my gosh that is so awesome!! Yes, we are flying into San Diego at 11:53 am Sunday. We are from New Mexico. My hubby met me a couple months after I got my band so he has never been a fan of my ups and downs and refused to do any kind of surgery to help with his weight problem. Until a friend of mine went to Dr. Ariel Ortiz in December 2013 for the sleeve. She had nothing but wonderful things to say about Dr. Ortiz and OCC. She went from weighing almost 280 to now at 160 and looks fantastic and feels even better! Husband finally decided this was what he wanted to do. Beings I haven't had the best of luck with the band I decided we could do this together. It's going to be such a great new beginning for both of us and I'm so happy we are doing it together. I'm more nervous about going to Mexico more than anything but I have to get past that. I would love to be in touch with you through this journey and can't wait to meet you!

Edited September 10, 2014 by BrendaBixler

[Kindle 8,667]

That's so cool that you found each other! I, too found a fellow OCCer on here and we were actually on the same flight into San Diego.

 

Brenda, don't be nervous about Mexico. You will be very well taken care of by the OCC and Marriott staff. The drivers were attentive and even took us shopping one days. Everyone was so nice and so helpful. Even the employees at Walmart and Starbucks and were super nice. My sister and I were kind of "regulars" because she's a Starbucks nut. The guys at Walmart asked us lots of questions about how their store compared to US Walmarts and one of the checkout guys was very concerned about making sure we handled our money properly and didn't look like "suckers" or venture into any bad neighborhoods.

 

Good luck to all of you....you won't regret any of it!