andersonlj

My coordinator was Linda and I also spoke to Judy I believe. They were both great..... i went through alighterme.com or you can also find info on Dr f Garcia on Obesity Solutions International. I think they are one in the same thing.

I am an actual patient that went to Tijuana, Mexico and had a lapband removal and a gastric sleeve. I work in the medical profession here in the US and I was also a little leary about going to Mexico. I used to live in California and my brother still lives there and had a friend that went and had surgery in Nov 2011. After talking to her and about her experience I had little doubt about going to Mexico. I called and scheduled my surgery with Dr Fernando Garcia and had my surgery at Hospital Mi. I went through Alighterme. The cost for me to have the lapband removed which included having a scope to make sure that all was ok and the sleeve was around $6000. I am sure that if you are looking to just have the sleeve and have nothing more done then you can come close to your limit of $5000. I had my surgery on Dec 11, 2011 and I am down 27 pounds already. I have had no problems since my surgery. I am going to travel to Chicago on Jan 14 as Dr Garcia will be in Chicago doing a seminar on weight loss surgery. I am paying my own way and travel expenses as I want to see him again and thank him for giving me a headstart on my new life. I will try and take some pictures when I am there and post when I return. If you have any other questions for me please let me know.

I had my surgery on Dec 11, 2011 in Tijuana. Dr Fernando Garcia did my surgery. I had a lapband removal and the gastric sleeve. He was wonderful and I had an amazing experience at Hospital MI. It is a new facility and small but the care I received was excellent. From the admitting staff, anesthesiologist, cardiologist, radiologist, nurses and drivers. I would not hesitate to go back for other surgeries should I need other things done that insurance will not cover. I am going to Chicago on Jan 14, 2012 as Dr Garcia will be doing a seminar there and I will be attending to speak to other prospective sleeve patients and tell them about my experience. I am paying for all of my own transportation and lodging and am not receiving anything for my attendance. I feel that I owe them much more than what I paid for the surgery and my new life. If you have any other questions feel free to ask away.

sorry to hear that you have ended up in the hospital but it is the best place for you at this time. I think that everyone that has the surgery has the fear of developing a leak. I know that I did and still do as I only had surgery on Dec 11. Before I was released from the hospital I had to pass 3 different leak tests. After each one that I had and there were no leaks I was elated. I hope that they are able to seal your leak without too much surgery for you. You are in my thoughts and prayers. Hang in there and know that they will take good care of you.

2 years ago I weighed over 350 pounds. I live in Iowa so I went to talk to one of the surgeons here about weight loss surgery. They suggested that I have a lapband so after getting approval from my insurance I had the lapband surgery. I had some success and lost about 85 pounds. I finally stopped losing weight about a year ago and my weight remained the same for a year. I had reached my maximum water fill for the lapband. However this still left me with another 90-100 pounds to lose. When I went back to my surgeon here in Iowa he told me that with the amount of weight that I had to lose initially that I should have had the gastric sleeve.....nice time to tell me after I had the lapband surgery. After checking with my insurance I found that they would not pay for the gastric sleeve surgery and to have the lapband removed. This got me looking at other options as I was still having some health issues as I was still over weight.

I always weight on Monday mornings since that is the day of the week that I had my surgery. I have been very happy with my weight loss since my surgery on Dec 11, 2011. This week when I got on the scale I had gained almost 2 pounds. How could this have happened I wondered. I know that I did eat a little bit more on New Years Eve but could that have caused me to gain 2 pounds. I certainly hope not. I was looking at one of the boards and I came across what some call the 3 week stall. I have read postings by several people who seen to have suffered the same thing. I have put my scale away and I am continuing to get all of my protein, vitamins, fluids and most important my exercise. I am hoping that when I get back on that scale next Monday I will see a good number again.

This is called the 3 week stall. It happend to me also and I gained a couple of pounds and I thought it was because I ate a little more on New Years Eve. I have put the scale away and got back to eating all of my protein, water, taking all of my vitaimins and have continued to go to the gym. Next week when I get the scale out I know that the number will be a good one. Keep up the fight. http://www.tickerfactory.com/ezticker/weight_loss.php/wLHbQ7h

I never heard of the 3 week stall but I have also suffered from the apparent dark hole. I thought that it was the little extra cheese that I had on New Years Eve along with my blended chili. I too am not going to get close to the scale for another week. I am no different and can get discouraged when I am doing so well and them....bam!!!!! I am glad to hear that this has happened to other people and I am not alone in this.....thanks for sharing.

I also had some nasty rumbling and a feeling of nausea for the first 2 weeks after surgery. On day 3 post op I called my doctor and she started me on Prilosec as she said that is was probably stomach acid and that it also could be due to the high dosage of antibiotic that I was taking. I finished with the antibiotic and then my script for the prilosec ran out. I have not had any problem with that feeling since that time.

I know the first week since I was unable to do much except sip on Water, gatorade etc I did feel a little weak. I did however not drink much water and did mostly either gatorade or a Vitamin water to help sustain what I was not getting from food. I had my surgery on Dec 11 and am just starting to eat some small portions of ground food. i have been on the Protein shakes and babyfood for the past week and it has not bothered me at all. Do you get dizzy when you get up and stand??? If so you could be dehydrated. I used to combat this with chicken broth or chicken Soup and then add extra salt as the salt will keep Fluid in your blood system longer thus decreasing your dizziness. I can also tell when I get a little dehydrated as my voice starts to change. I am coming up on 4 weeks post op and feel as though I could go back to work at this time. I am not sure I could have gone back after 2 or 3 weeks. I needed to rest and started to get some exercise. What are you doing for exercise? Also what are you eating for protein and how often. In an 8oz serving of your protein mix how many grams of protein are you getting?

My doctor was Dr F Garcia. I had my sleeve done in Tijuana and I was very impressed with the doctor and all of the medical professionals that took care of me, I had my lapband removed and the sleeve performed. I had spoken to several patients that had gone to Mexico before I made my decision. I do not regret it for one moment.

I agree.....get back on liquids for a day or 2 and see some of the weight drop. Then get rid of everything in the house that you have been enjoying a little too much. It makes it much easier if the food is not just laying around especially after the holidays.

I am 3 weeks post op and have some trouble with constipation. I have started to take a stool softner daily and it seems to have helped me a great deal.

If you had the sleeve you should be concentrating on getting your protein and not so much of the carbs. The protein helps you keep your energy and prevents you from losing muscle. You should be eating your protein first, then vegetables and fruits and carbs last. Also remember to take your calcuim, vit b12 and your multivitamins. I am just approaching 4 weeks post op and I am taking it slow and still eating babyfood and not much meat and no spicy foods yet. Maybe you need to take a look at what you are eating. I have not vomited since my surgery.

Since arriving home I have not had any pain or discomfort. I have been following the diet instructions and today I am 3 weeks post op. I only weight once a week and as of this morning I have lost a total of 28 pounds. i have gone from wearing 2X-3X down to a XL. I have already started to get rid of many of my large clothes. I feel fantastic and my incisions on my stomach are healing well. I did start backto the gym the middle of last week and have been walking mostly on the treadmill. I have not started to do any weight training as heavy lifting is discourage for several weeks after the surgery. I am actually enjoying some of the baby food that I have been eating over the past week. My mother did not think that she feed me baby food when I was a baby so this is a first for me. I am so excited about my results and people that I have not seen in some time can not believe the change already. Since I am still off work from the surgery I am going to be traveling to Chicago on January 14, 2012 to see Dr Garcia who will be speaking at a seminar at the Marriott Chicago Midway Airport Hotel from 2pm - 5pm. It will be great to see him again and to be able to talk to those who might have interested in having surgery with Dr Garcia. I will keep you all posted on my progress.

The day started out having my blood drawn and then an EKG done by the doctor. After my blood work came back within normal limits and I was cleared by the cardiologist I was ready for the next step. I had to have a scope as they had to make sure that I had no damage from having the lapband which would have to be removed. I was taken to the area where the procedure was to be performed. It was all new equipment and very clean. I waited for the doctor to arrived for the procedure. After he arrived I remember them giving me some medication through my IV. The next thing I remember I woke up and the procedure was already completed. I was told that everything looked good and that I would be able to procede with the removal of the lapband and the gastric sleeve. I was taken back to my room and I think I dosed off for a bit. Soon it was time to go to surgery. I was taken into the surgical suite and placed onto the surgery table. They placed my arms out on padded areas for support. I remember meeting the anesthesiologist and then I was out. The next things I remember was waking up after the surgery in recovery. I had very little pain....I guess that I would describe it as more of discomfort. I was taken back to my private rooom and moved into bed. They were very attentive at keeping track of my vitals and watching my IV. I had a drainage tube from the surgery which is common and also i had about 4-5 other areas on my stomach that were covered with some large bandaids or dressings. I had a very comfortable night and the next morning I was feeling good. They told me that I would need to get up and start walking the halls. I took my time walking but soon was walking more and more each time that I got out of bed. I was even allowed to get up and use the bathroom. I was even allowed to take a shower which felt so good. The day after surgery was pretty uneventful and I was given some medication for the pain and several doses of antibiotics. So after surgery on Monday afternoon I was released after they had done 3 different leak tests on my new stomach to make sure that there was no leakage. My IV was removed and I was given pain medication and antiotics to take after I was released and taken back to the hotel. So after having surgery on Monday I was released and went back to stay at the Hotel Pueblo Amigo on Wednesday. The hotel was more than accomodating in providing anything that I needed.....crushed ice and bottled water. Wednesday I did not do much but walk around the hallways and did go down to the casino and play the slot machines a little. I never felt unsafe no matter where I went. On Thursday morning I decided to take a taxi out to tone of the shopping centers and do a little shopping. I did a lot of window shopping and walking without any problems. I returned to the hotel. Thursday afternoon my stomach started to feel upset and I called the hospital and I was put on another medication as they thought that the antibiotic might be upsetting my stomach. After that my stomach settled down and I went to bed early on Thursday night as they were going to pickme up to take me to the airport in San Diego early Friday morning. My driver, Hector, arrived right on time and delivered me safely to the airport. Hector was very friendly and informative with any questions that I had.

On Dec 10, 2011 I boarded the plane for San Diego and decided to go alone as I often travel alone and have very little fear. I had also been into Mexico about 5 times prior to this and was not nervous about Mexico or the surgery. I arrived in San Diego and meet the driver that took me to Tijuana. I arrived on Sunday and was taken to the Hotel Pueblo Amigo. They got me all checked in and made sure that I had everything that I needed. I took my luggage to my room which had 2 queens beds, internet service and was very spacious and clean. I then headed out to do a little shopping as I did not know how I would feel after the surgery. After shopping I came back to the hotel and had some chicken broth for supper and then decided to get a good nights sleep before heading to the hospital early Monday morning for surgery. The driver arrived at the scheduled time and I check out of the hotel and was taken to Hospital Mi. The hospital is very new and I was impressed as I was taken into the lobby and then to the admissions office. They were all so friendly and accomodating. After getting checked in I was take to my private room. I put my luggage away and changed my clothes into a hospital gown. After I got into bed a nurse, I believe her name was Anna, came in and said that she would be taking care of me and would be starting an IV. Being in the medical profession and starting many an IV myself I watched as she prepared everything that she would need. I was extremely impressed with her and all of her preparation and cleaning my arm for the procedure. The IV was placed on the first attempt without any diffuculty. The IV was started and I waited for my next procedure.

After doing some research about the gastric sleeve I checked into having the surgery in Mexico as the cost out of pocket here in Iowa would have been about $30,000. I knew that I could not afford that. I had live in California up until about 5 years ago and I still have a brother that lives in Vallejo. He told me about a friend of his who had been to Tijuana and had the gastric sleeve surgery and was doing great, was having no problems and was very happy with the service that she received. i spoke to her several times on the phone and decided to contact Alighterme regarding the possibility of surgery. When I emailed them I received a response from Linda Preciado. She sent me the information on the surgery and I went though all of the information. Lori from California who had the surgery had a different doctor and when I asked about having the surgery with him he was booked at the dates that I was looking at. She told me about Dr Garcia and I looked at his references on the internet site. I have worked in the medical field for over 35 years so I have medical knowledge which sometimes can be dangerous but everything I read about Dr Garcia and Hospital Mi seemed to impress me. After thinking about it for a couple of days I decided to go ahead with the surgery and contacted Linda and she set it up. I purchased my plane ticket for San Diego and began to make plans.