I dont have any insurance, so Dr. Sanchez in MOnterrey Mexico seems very appealing. Has anyone else had their surgery done by him?

Laurel

That's great to hear that everything went so well for your husband. Men are so lucky, thier metabolisms always seem to allow them to lose weight faster than women can! 17lb is great! I am losing a lb a day, which is extremely encouraging, so I've lost 7lb in the first week. I know it's just because I am on liquids, but it's still good to see! I am officially one week post op now, and feeling pretty good!

Hey I am going to go see him on the 28th now instead of the 29th it closer. I have heard nothing but good about him. I am so pumped.

Nicole

Hi Laurel, It's me Barb. How is your husband feeling? I feel great. Maybe we can keep in touch.

Barb

Hi Barb,

He is doing soooooo good! How are YOU ???

At first he had a sorta, "going along with me" attitude, but after Dr. Sanchez told him about the high visceral fat around his internal organs, he has "smelled the coffee".

Here is a good link to story on visceral fat:

http://216.239.37.104/search?q=cache:TrFbyQ4D6ZMJ:abc.net.au/dimensions/dimensions_health/Transcripts/s556039.htm+visceral+fat&hl=en&ie=UTF-8

He has lost 20 lbs in 12 days, I keep telling him this will slow down after he goes on a regular diet,,,,,,, but he is so pumped from this initial loss I believe it will keep him going! He says he feels better already!!!

Laurel, Very glad to hear about Wayne's progress. Let's keep in touch.

Do you know if Rosemarie belongs to this group? I would love to see how she is doing too.

Barb

Hi,

I'm new here and doing all kinds of research on lap banding. Since it looks like I have lousy insurance I am exploring self-pay options. Does anyone have a web address for Dr. Sanchez. He certainly sounds like a doctor I'm interested in researching.

Thanks!

Becky

You can find information on Dr Sanchez and how to get in touch with him on his website here: http://www.belighter.com/

I was banded by Dr Sanchez on August 5th, and have lost 17lb so far. I was very happy with the whole experience, and can highly recommend him and his team. I was also self pay. Good luck, and let us know how you go!

Hey there well I just seen your question regarding Dr. Sanchez and wanted to assist you with some information.

As you can see earlier when I first joined the forum I was going to go see Dr. Sanchez, I opted not to. But the site you can find his information at is belighter.com. Now when I was trying to go through him in the beggining the surgery cost was $10,190.00 and after actually purchasing my airline tickets to go to Mexico the surger cost for some reason got increased to $10,850.00. This is a little steep, because although all of my surgery and travel expenses were paid for that is quite a jump in price.

So I am going to present you with another option, I just got back into town on 8/31/03 from seeing Dr. Rodriguez at Santa Engracia Hospital and have now been banded for 6 days. My surgery cost was $9,900.00 which was down from $10,500.00 and the higher cost is as high as the doc goes on cost that is the full montey and is still $300.00 cheaper than Dr. Sanchez. Dr. Rodriguez's site has a ton of info on it and the cool thing is he will call you if you email him and ask him to, from Mexico. There are two hospitals he works out of, one is a smaller more community orrientated hospital and the other is where I went. A friend of mine said that the smaller one was beautiful her surgery was only $8,500.00 due to being in a smaller hospital and I can vouch for the bigger one which is owned by a company in Texas whom I beleive is going to double the size of the hospital soon, both are state of the art. While in Mexico my Dr. came to see me on several occasions, while at the hotel pre op at the hospital post op and at the hotel post op. He answered all of mine and my family's questions and my mother even trusted him. My anasteisiologist Dr. Edwardo (spelling?), my Dr. Rodriguez, and the hospital Director whos name is David L. came to see me on seperate occaisions. And David is an American. I have someone else who can vouch for Dr. Rodriguez if you would like an assistion recommendation. www.thebariatrics.com

Let me know if you need anything.

Nicole;)

Jeannette & Nicole,

Thank you both for your posts. I appreciate them. Every bit of information I can get is helpful. I was so discouraged when I found out my insurance would only pay for open RNY from a general surgeon after a two year wait, if I was lucky.

So the possibility of going to Mexico to have this surgery is very encouraging! I am getting excited at the possibility that maybe this dream can actually come true! All the posts on this board really help to compare, contrast and hear what the real story is.

Thanks,

Becky

I had my surgery done by Dr. Jose Rodriguez in Acuna Mexico ( just over the border from Del Rio Texas. His cost is $7000. I was TOTALLY pleased with my experience. He is the kindest nicest man. If anyone is interested, his website is: www.joseband.com Hope this is helpful to someone! Again, I would refer him 100%. If I had to have another surgery that my insurance would not cover, I would go to him! You become one of his family - it is a great feeling! Have a great day guys!!

I too had surgery with Dr. Jose Rodriguez in Acuna. I would recommend anyone to him also. My experience was wonderful. He is a very intelligent man. The hospital may not be as fancy as some of those others but it was fully staffed and very clean. The hospital is small (10 rooms) but that is what keeps the costs down. My surgery was $6500 but I do believe he is going up due to the hospital charge is going up. Good luck in your search and feel free to e-mail anytime with questions.

the_mills@charter.net

I'm still in the pre- pre band stage. I'm 95% sure my insurance will cover everything, but being the researcher that I am, I like to have a back up. Would any of you mind sharing the cost of the procedure if it's done in Mexico? What do you do for fills after you return?

Thanks!

Megan

My surgery was $6500 and that included all hospital charges, tests, and doctor fees. It did not include travel. I do believe that Dr. Rodriguez is going up to $7000 due to increased hospital charges. My hubby and I took the Greyhound bus which was $288 for both of us. We stayed at the Best Western two nights (night before and night after surgery) and that was around $100. We used the taxi service to get back and forth across the border, to the bus station and to the Wal-Mart ($60). My meds (no antibiotic) were about $30. Hope this helps.

Hi Megan,

Well my doctor charges in between $8,500.00 and $10,500.00 depending on which hospital, this includes all hospital costs, Dr.s fees, anastesia Dr., medication, hotel for 2 nights he makes the reservation for you, the only thing I had to pay for was my food pre op (I went down for a week, 3 days before surgery to vacation and 2 days after being released from the hospital) and post op.

I stayed in the Fiesta Inn Monterrey Valle which is about a block and a half from the hospital. Dianna is a woman who works with Dr. Rodriguez and drove us around Monterrey to see the sights and so that we could buy stuff. (my mom and sister came with me) Dr. Rodriguez came to visit me several times during my stay at the hotel to make sure I was doing ok. Funny thing is My lil sister does not like pictures and when me and the Doc were taking pictures I had asked my sister to get in one and she said no, Dr. Rodriguez has a daughter her age and jokingly said My patient wants a picture with her sister she gonna get it and just took off running after her downthe hall, it was so funny. I received the best treatment from a state of the art hospital (SANTA ENGRACIA HOSPITAL) you gotta see these bathrooms. your honey can sleep in your room. I had a great expeirience except for sleeping that is the one thing you really don't do to well after surgery for at least a couple of nights. If you need more info email me and I will fill you in also check out Dr.s and Hospitals and a post started be isabella aka Kim. She stayed at the small hospital cause it was cheaper. Tata

Hi Megan

My lap procedure cost 10,850 plus 580. airflight from San Jose CA to Monterrey Mexico RT. The price includes everything from airport pick-up/drop off, hotel 2 nights, Santa Engracia Hospital 1 day, staff/surgery and meds. This is with Dr. Sanchez.

I have my first fill scheduled for 9/24 about 30 miles from home, for estimated 300. FYI Dr Sanchez will give free fills there in Mexico if your his patient.

Vera