Doula Lea

I totally understand where you are coming from! I struggled with WW for 12 weeks and just lost 5 lbs, yet now just at the 1 week mark with the band I have surpassed that at 7.5 lbs! Isn't the band wonderful! CONGRATULATIONS you big loser!

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! You have just made my day Karen! ~Lea 11/8 Dr. Sanchez 253/249/219 mini goal (less then my hubby)

I just wanted to add that I just got back from surgery with Dr. Sanchez and had an incredible experience! I am a nursing student and the hospital was state of the art. Rumbaut actually trained under Dr. Sanchez before he went out on his own BTW... ~Lea 11/8 Dr. Sanchez 253/249/219 mini goal (less then my hubby)

JLHoogland and Bright, You both have just made me feel SO much better! I am 6 days out from banding and am so ready for mushy food. Bright, I saw that you were having mashed potatoes and tuna salad and I almost wanted to cry! I am STARVING here! I have finally given in and started to have creamed Soups and drinkable yogurts which have made a world of difference, but this clear liquid thing is just such crap! I am salivating thinking about a scrambled egg already! I am slowly going to start trying the mushy foods, but I am concerned that I don't do anything to hurt the band. Thank you for helping to empower me! ~Lea 11/8 Dr. Sanchez 253/249/219 mini goal (less then my hubby)

I am looking very hard to try and find a new fill doc. It would be so much more convenient to stay in the states. BTW, I forgot to add two things to my original post. The first is that I would not recommend the pain meds in recovery if you don't really drink. They knocked me out for almost 6 hours (they gave me Nubain)! The meds that the nursing staff administered once I was in my room were much milder and were probably helpful in avoiding inflammation. Second, I got to see a tape of my surgery! The anethisiologist came into my room to check on me the afternoon after my morning surgery and he had 3 videotapes in his hand. I knew that Dr. Sanchez only had 3 surgeries scheduled for that date so I asked him if one of those tapes was of my surgery and it was! Anyway, My best friend (hubby stayed home with our daughter) watched the tape right before we went to sleep. Dr. Sanchez actually came to see me in the middle of viewing it and he narrated the whole deal! It was so cool (speaking as a nursing student here)! After seeing the tape, I am even more convinced that the surgery was the right decision as I had plenty of fatty deposits around my organs. Also, Dr. Sanchez is going to make a copy of the tape and mail it to me in a couple of weeks and I am going to try really hard to gross out my hubby with it . ~Lea 11/8 Dr. Sanchez 252/.../199 mini goal

I don't post here much, but I wanted to quickly post for the newbies. I just got back yesterday from surgery in Mexico with Dr. Sanchez and I am just thrilled! He is the warmest nicest doctor that I have ever met and everyone on his staff was just as wonderful. I am a nursing student so you can bet that I throughly checked out the hospital- it was state of the art and so very comfortable. The hotel staff was gracious and many of them spoke English which made the trip so much easier. I am feeling really good now, just hungry and a little gassy! I have quite a bit of bruising at the incision sites (I am a fair skinned Celt) which has helped to make them sore, but other then that I feel better then I expected to. I am just already tired of liquids and am able to drink more then expected in a sitting. I know that I have another 2 weeks of liquids and am not looking forward to it, but all in all am so happy in general with the band and with the Mexico experience. My biggest problem now is trying to convince my 2 year old daughter that Mommy is no longer her jungle gym ! ~Lea 11/8 Dr. Sanchez 253/.../199 mini goal

I got the Inamed band because I wanted to make sure that I could still get fills easily in the states if needed. Dr. Sanchez actually placed the AMI band in his daughter (he says that she is his worse patient) and that made me re-consider my choice, but at the time I already had a fill doc lined up in TX. Now, getting back from surgery I find out that my fill doc has stopped doing fills for MX patients. :angry I guess I will have to go back to Dr. Sanchez for fills, it is just more expensive and a lot of time wasted, grrrr... I am a little worried about not having a doc in this area that I can go to with problems though.... ~Lea 11/8 Dr. Sanchez 252/.../199 mini goal

My surgery is scheduled for Nov 8th with Dr. Sanchez in Monterrey. I leave tomorrow!!!! I am so excited and nervous all at once... ~Lea 253/...../153 goal

This was actually something that I have been worried about. I have a very rare blood type, I am AB- and am going to Dr. Sanchez in MX for my surgery. I am wondering if I should plan on bringing a bag of my own blood with me, "just in case".... I am going to email him to ask. Anyone else have this type of problem? ~Lea Dr. Sanchez 11/8/03

Hello all! I have just registered to join this fantastic and informative forum! I hope to be banded within the next few months and am deciding between Dr. Rumbaud and Dr. Sanchez (both in Monterrey) in Mexico. My insurance doesn't cover any WLS and I am eager to get started on a new me. ~Lea

Alexandra, Yes I am a Doula and am studying to be a Midwife! Becoming a doula while I am a student is a way for me to get my birth fix and to refine my labor support techniques. One of the things that spurred be on this WL journey was a 2 day long birth that I attended as a doula. This mom was so strong and ended up with the natural childbirth that she wanted but by the birth of her baby my whole body was in such pain. My joints, my back, everything. I knew then that if I really wanted to be a homebirth Midwife I would need to lose weight first AND keep it off forever. After her birth I began yet another round of dieting which failed and ended up here as my last resort. I am so excited to be banded and to be as close to pain free as my body will allow me to get! Doulas help to create better birth memories! Lea