Hi there,

I'll write more of my experience in Mexico later, but right now I wanted to say that I had my surgery 4 days ago, and I could literally hula-hoop, if I could keep the damn thing on my hips.

I flew from Vancouver to Puetro Vallarta on Friday, by myself I might add, and had surgery that evening with Dr.Joya. I can't believe what a smooth pain free operation it was. I never expierenced any gas pains, though I brought two boxes of Gas X with me that I never opened. I also never had to use the heating pad I faithfully packed.

That evening I slept peacefully in the hospital on my side with a pillow tucked under my tummy. The next night at the resort I was back to sleeping at my stomach like usual. I could put lotion on my legs and tie my shoes, though I was in Mexico so I had flip-flops!

I have 3 insicions about a centimeter long and 1 about 4 cm. There is slight bruising around them, but I was able to wear my big old wire support bra home from the hospital.

I spent a couple days at a resort and got some sun, and have felt no discomfort.

I made the long trek home to Canada today, and I'm sitting here tonite and absolutely amazed at how quick and pain free this has been.

Of course going to Mexico, for my first time and staying at an all exclusive resort where I couldn't swim in the Ocean, relax in the hot tub, have a Maragarita in the pool bar, or stuff myself with all sorts of yummy dishes, is a whole nother story!

I hope that everyone has such a great lap-band experience.

Wendy

Thank you for your reply flowers. This is very important information for me, as I will be travelling alone and want to make sure I'm ok to travel back. I've never had surgery before, so that's another unknown, in terms of how I will feel after. It sounds like your journey back home was quite the challenge; hope it didn't complicate your recovery.

Hi all I had my Lap band on Friday 10th Oct. Came home Saturday 11th I'm having trouble with what to eat, or should I say drink. water goes down well, but everything eles tastes revolting, can anybody tell me what they survived on?:thumbup:

I've never had surgery before, so that's another unknown, in terms of how I will feel after.

The only surgery Id had before was when I was about age 5 I had my tonsils out, so I dont remember it very well. I did walk and walk and worried that the weight of the bag might have been too much but the doctor said it was fine. Just make sure your bag is less than 30 lbs. and they do tell you to walk walk walk after surgery to get rid of the gas.

As far as food tasting bad afterwards, I cant say that was true for me, I was hungry and nothing tasted bad to me. Not sure why surgery would make food taste revolting, maybe others can relate to that.

To those who went to Mexico on their own, how did you come back? I'm curious about logistics such as moving around, hauling luggage, and sitting on an airplane for x number of hours, customs, etc.

If at all possible, fly home on First Class. I'm sure most everyone can agree that regardless of the airline or the plane itself, a normal seat in Coach is just plain uncomfortable for us "bigger" folks. It's bad if it's a full flight and you've got someone beside you, and even worse if you've got someone on both sides! First Class seats are much bigger and you have more room to spread out. When you are less than 5 days post-op and getting on an airplane, First Class is the best choice you could make!

Mind you, I haven't had surgery yet (22 days and counting :laugh:) but when I asked for advice from people who flew out of town for surgery, one of the things that everyone said is FLY FIRST CLASS. They also informed me that Day 3 post-op is the worst of all (but no one really knows why, haha) so if at all possible, avoid flying on Day 3.

Thanks for the advice flowers and jmegirl,

I actually have been thinking about the first-class flight too, because I've always been horribly uncomfortable in economy, and post-surgery would be unbearable.. That does factor into the overall cost though.. So much to consider!

Thanks for the advice flowers and jmegirl,

I actually have been thinking about the first-class flight too, because I've always been horribly uncomfortable in economy, and post-surgery would be unbearable.. That does factor into the overall cost though.. So much to consider!

Yea, the first class flights were literally 4x the cost of the coach flights! But I sprung for the extra cash coming back because I wanted to be as comfortable as possible. When we applied for our medical loan, we applied for an extra $2k than we needed, to cover flights and hotels. It worked out perfectly!

Good luck!

I flew into San Diego, and was picked up by one of my surgeons staff, and taken to the hospital for some pre op testing, and then taken to a very nice motel to spend the night. My SIL and I went to be banded together, and my DH went with us as support.

My Dr. keeps patients longer than most, but I flew home on the 3rd day. I had 5 hours of traveling by car and 5 hours in the air all total....and survived it without any problems. I had to take a dose of liquid Tylenol during my layover in Phoenix, for a headache.

I suggest loose, comfortable clothing, as you do not know until after surgery if you will be one to suffer the discomfort of residual gas pains. You also often do not know where the port will be placed---that will be determined usually during surgery, and which muscle looks best for stitching it in, so with that in mind I would avoid underwire bras. My port incision is not high enough for underwires to be a problem, I DID have high incisions, one almost between my breasts, and an underwire would have hurt....just a bra band was not pleasant. I would wear slip on shoes, so you do not have to bend over to take them off and put them on to go through security, it is quicker as well!

Pack VERY lightly! Plan to wear the same outfit going and coming home, anything to lighten the load! And as has been said, use a rolling suitcase or duffel---but keep it light!!

As for the flight itself, if you feel you will need a seat belt extender, ask for it as you board the plane. When the attendant is greeting you, just ask her/him for it. They are usually stowed right there, they hand it to you and off you go to your seat. The people already on board are settling in and stowing luggage, not paying you any mind, and those waiting to board are in line behind you, and cannot see anything. If you wait, til you are seated and realize you need it....you will have to ask, and she will go to the front and carry it back in front of everyone waiting to take off!!

Your flight out will tell you if you will need the extender coming home. I did not use one going out, but the belt was snug, so I ask for one coming home, because my belly was tender, even though my incisions were much higher than the lap belt affected.

The shoulder strap in the car is another story---it come right across 2 of my incisions---and was extremely unpleasant!!! Since I had surgery, my DH has had to have heart valve surgery, and we discovered a way to keep the belt from tightening and rubbing on his chest. They sell large plastic clips, many with magnets for holding things on the fridge----if you pull the shoulder strap out to where it is a little bit loose, and clip it right at the top, it will not tighten down....and yet it is not strong enough to restrict the belt in the event of an accident.

During the flight or a long car ride like we had, keep your feet moving! Raise and lower your feet and even your leg, lift your foot off the ground and rotate your ankles----anything to keep the blood moving well! Motion helps prevent blood clots! Also drink lots of Water, sip steady---keeping well hydrated also helps.

It is a VERY doable thing, just plan ahead! Do your laundry before you leave, buy Protein drinks---the clear liquid type, by the time you move to full and need Protein shakes you will be fine going to the store again. Just have things ready....freeze a few meals for the family, anything you can do that will make coming home after surgery a bit easier!

If you have a problem getting in and out of bed, put a dining room chair next to your bed, you can use it as a leverage to help you lie down and rise up....and the seat can help keep things close at hand....your ever present water to sip, your meds, kleenex, etc.

I was up and shopping in a few days, it was an easy surgery for me, but I had really planned and made it easy for myself as well.

Good Luck to those of you heading for surgery, and continued comfort and healing for those of you who just had it. I hope you love your bands as much as I love mine!!!

Kat

Thank you Kat817 and all the others who have shared their experiences. All of this is really important stuff to know about, and much of it I wouldn't have considered. Unfortunately due to large breast size, an underwire bra is a must for me, but I could try to wear a sports bra over it, so I have some cloth that protects the skin from the bra.

All of these details are really helpful to know about!

Hi, i'm a newbie to the site. I was banded 11-21-08 by DR. Jose Rodriguez in Juarez. My experience was absolutely wonderful. They treat you like royalty. Hospital Angeles is one of cleanest hospitals i've ever seen. The staff was very nice. My husband and I drove 12 hrs. to El Paso, I have a thing with flying. We were then put in a hotel. Very nice also, before being picked up by the hospital's drver the next morning. Everything was smooth sailing. I would recomend anyone to go to Mexico. Price-7,000.00. Hotel included.:whatchutalkingabout