I've been researching my options for having the Gastric Sleeve procedure done in Mexico for quite a while now and I've narrowed it down to two options - Dr. Garcia and Dr. Illan. Can anyone who has used either of these two doctors recently offer some insight? Anything to do with the surgery itself, the facilities, the hotel, the after-care, etc.

Also, I would be flying down from Ontario so I'm a little concerned about the length of the flight home after. Did anyone encounter any issues on their trip home?

I'd appreciate any advice anyone can offer. I feel like I've read so much that's it's just become information overload and I'd rather hear people's personal experiences at this point!!

Thank you

Edited February 5, 20179 yr by CanucKnucklehead

Hey there! I am a patient of Dr. Illan's and I actually used him before they started their partnership with the Oasis of Hope hospital. Which honestly... I'm jealous of. In the Facebook group when they announced the partnership a couple months after my surgery, I was like WHAT? WHY? Ugh! Because the hospital is brand new, amazing looking, and just a great facility. I had researched it before even landing on Dr. Illan as a surgeon. When I used him he was with the florence hospital, and even though I'm envious of the Oasis Hospital, it was still a great place. Dr. Illan is wonderful, kind, patient, and you can really tell he cares about his patients. His colleagues are just as wonderful.

The valets, Bill and Stacy are also shining stars. They will bend over backwards to make the trip easy peasy. I flew from Seattle, so not as far as you, but close. I think flight wise it's a 2-3 hour difference. It's really not so bad. From Seattle it was about a 2 hour flight, and everything went great. Stacy picked us up to take us to the hospital the next day (we flew in the day before my surgery), and it was all a breeze from there. I was also worried about the flight home with discomfort, or pain, or anything like that, but I had none. I think the only thing was that I didn't get the chance to have broth or anything before we left, and the airport didn't have a place with broth that I could stomach so I went without all the way until we got home, and after our flight we had a 4 hour drive as well. So that was rough, but as long as you prepare before going to the airport to head home, you should be good!

I went to Tijuana, Mexico. I went with Dr. Ortiz at ALM (A Lighter Me). They have fantastic reviews and were highly recommended to me. Best decision ever. You can find their support page on FB and look them up online.

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@@MissKay thank you for your response and information...you've eased my mind a bit about the travelling! How many days post-op did you fly home?

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@@CanucKnucklehead I had surgery Monday and flew home on Friday. I know a couple people flew home a day sooner after the doctor cleared them to be able to, but I was glad to have the time near the surgeon.

Feel free to ask any questions about the surgical procedures!!

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