nan42's Journal

five days post op 10/16/07

10/15/07 I boarded a plane from Spokane Wa to San Antonio TX 10/10/07 at 5:50 Am when Manda and I arrived at the airport we went to baggage claim got our bags and Rosa was there about ten minutes later, got a tad nervous but once she showed up my nerves were calmer. We got in to a nice van, leather very comfortable and drove two hrs to Eagle Pass. I slept in the car a bit and talked to Rosa. Rosa is the perfect choice for this job speaks great English, nice woman! She checked us in to a Hilton and said she would be there to pick us up in the morning at 11:15, and she did. We drove about ten minutes in to Mexico to Dr. Alverez office. There were four other people in the van who were there for a fill. Driving to the office my nerves were on edge, as soon as you cross the border you know you are in Mexico it’s a little run down. Dr Alverez’s office is connected to the Hospital or it seemed that way. Nice office we waited about ten minutes and he came in the front door and greeted me and the others. I think it fair for me to say my impression of him is that he has a great heart! He hugged and shook hands with the fill patients as though they were old friends and I know one was there for her first fill. He seems to really care. He asked Rosa to take the fill patients some place and he would check me in and then meet them to do the fills him self. Manda and I went in to his office and he reviewed my health history he could see why I would want to have a band with my health history even though my BMI was 31 (I weighed 178) 5’5”. A nurse came in and he explained that he had just hired her to stay with me the entire time because not only was she a great nurse but she spoke very good English and he was right on all accounts! She walked Manda and me to the hospital and at this point my nerves kicked in again. The hospital is old and out of date for what we are used to in the stated, had an unfamiliar smell, my room was small with a small bed. At this point it would have served me as well as them to give me a valium or something, if you go ask for it at this point. Another nurse drew blood, I was taken to X-ray which I have to sway was weird! This guy pushed me up against the wall and stood there while the chest x-ray was being taken! I wanted to say dude that causes cancer you should stand behind the wall, oh and there was a small TV by the x-ray machine, seemed strange and unprofessional. Anyway I was then taken back to my room to have yet another stranger put in my IV, se did a great job no pain and got me on the first stick. Dr Alverez came in and told me he would see me in the OR. They brought a gurney in and I got on it and was wheeled to the OR. At this point they pass you through a long window on to another gurney I guess in to a sterile environment. Dr Alverez was not there yet so I was in a room with a bunch of people who did not speak English. At this point I am almost having a panic attack, I forgot in all my research to include the anesthesiologist oh my god that was stupid!! Well he turned out to be good at what he does, I was out and I woke up, two good things. Woke up two hours later in my room Manda was there reading on a small padded bench like bed that was in the room. Then Dr Alverez came in ad I asked which size band did he use I assumed it would be the 4cc small one because my BMI was small but he said I had lots of fat around my stomach and he had to use the big one 11cc go figure. I slept on and off through the night nurses came in to put some milk like substance in my IV a lot. The next morning my English speaking nurse came in and said Rosa would be ready to take me back to San Antonio at 10:00am did I want to take a shower? I asked if I could wait a bit. She came in an hour later to remove the IV and I was having a panic attack, I don’t think she knew what was going o, I brought Lorazapam with me and took some and was calmed down. I kept thinking all night WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!!! It didn’t hurt, its just I could tell something was different in side me and in my panic attack all I could think was get it out. After I calmed down Dr Alverez came in and sat next to me on the bed and explained about the band gave me the box it came in with the serial number instructions about the meds, he was so calming and great. I got dressed and we went down to the van where Rosa with her big smile met us to drive us back to San Antonio to check us in at a LaQuinta inn. Manda and I took a nap then took a cab down town to the river walk she ate I watched. Next day airport shuttle took us to the air port. In the Air port is where the gas showed up and it is a trip pain in your left shoulder you burp and it’s gone. Today I feel much better still some gas but its true the walking helps and gasX I think pills work better. I got on the scale this morning and weighed 168 TEN POUNDS!!! I am happy I had the band put in it will prolong my life. Dr Alverez and his staff are good at what they do and very professional. If I had any feed back at all to give them it would be give your patients a valium or something in the office before you take them to the hospital. Take a pillow and a get a protein drink that had them in the San Antonio airport. PS Dr Alverez is easy on the eyes the kind of guy you hope your daughter marries and has kids with. :kiss2:

nan42

October 15, 2007

Ready set go 3 weeks to the band

Ready set go………… September 27th 2007:whoo: I scheduled the band today! I have asked myself for weeks now is this too drastic a measure? Its funny how when I signed up to take Phen Phen, a life threatening drug, I failed to ask my self that very same question or during all of the crazy diets and the bouts of bulimia in my 20s. Here I am 45 and have always had a weight problem. I’ve never had a BMI of over 34 but so what, fat and miserable is fat and miserable at any BMI that is over normal. I chose Dr Alverez for a few reasons his price is one he is about $1500 cheaper than most MX doctors. He specializes in sleeves and revisions from bands to sleeves, so in my thinking he knows what goes wrong, how to fix it, and he does fills personally and they are free for life. I like his patient coordinator Susan a home grown American woman who has had a band and had a revision to a sleeve. She is very available and easy to talk to. I will officially become a band member on the 11th of October 2007. I will fly in to San Antonio and will be picked up from the airport; one night in a hotel next day to the hospital and wham bam I have a Band!!!:bandit Hope it’s that easy. My fears? Well because this is such a personal decision I am not telling anyone except my 22 year old daughter. I don’t want other people influencing me. I don’t want to explain my choice or my personal battle, the fat war, that every day I have to don the armor for. I will choose for me and live with the consequences of that choice. It is sad in some way that I can not share my fear and anxiety with Gary not because he would be upset or try to change my mind. Sad because for what ever reason I feel the need to do this on my own with out him. I am 100% sure he would be supportive of what ever I did, so it’s not about him. I just think that people who have not lived their life fighting the fat don’t get it; to them it would be as simple as making different food choices or better decisions about exercise. If only it were that easy. I am nervous to go by my self but excited about going solo also. I am going to keep a detailed journal through out this journey. I want to keep track of my progress and I want to keep a close account of my mental state, I know that the weight is there for many reasons.:mad: ready to be on the road to a new me.

nan42

September 26, 2007

Help what do I do??

I had my band put in Oct 10ccband. First fill blind poke three tries 3cc in. Second two pokes dig dig 3cc in, third three pokes dig dig 1ccin RESTRICTION!!! Ya good weight loss happy. Fourth wanted to tweak a little only had restriction in the morning fill 1cc five pokes dig dig. Next day no restriction I think I have a leak. Drive another 200 miles for fluoro and she is able to get 5cc out I should have 8cc plus doc put in 2cc at time of surgery (that is 10 in a 10cc band) she adds 1cc more Fill # Five now I should have 11cc no restriction at all I have a leak. She said sometimes the tube collapses and you can’t get a true read. She said you don’t have a leak because I got something out. They don’t want to take any responsibility for f-ing it up. The obvious problem with having bands in Mexico is the after care. I knew this and yet chose to go for it. If I go back to my doc it is $2500 to replace port and tube. Then what who do I have do the fills? I should have had a sleeve that is what my doc is famous for and there would have been no fills, no leak and it was $2000 more than a band so in the long run cheaper after you factor in the cost of fills and heart ache!! ANYONE OUT THERE DO NOT HAVE NORTH WEST FILL CENTER IN ARLINGTON WASHINGTON DO YOUR FILLS. QUACKS!!! So where do I go from here?? Right now after I beat myself up I am doing nothing can’t afford it so I am trying on denial to convince myself that I have restriction. Any suggestions???

nan42

April 18, 2008

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