MEXICO: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

[kortolano 100]

I am sitting in the business center at the Marriott Hotel in Tijuana. (now i am home)

Thursday Day One: We used alighterme.com

Left New Orleans around 8 am arrived in San Diego around 4 pm. Called Abraham To come pick us up from the airport. (person little story) We left home at 8 without eating or drinking and I forgot the snack pack at home so we went all day with just Water on the plane. By the time we landed in San Diego I was shaking and was about to pass out. So went went to a little place in the air port and some tortilla Soup and OMG it was soooooo good!!!!! But anyway Abraham came pick us up from the air and drove us to the hotel and OMG driving in Mexico is CRAZY CRAZY CRAZY!!!!!! We checked in with the help of Abraham because they did not speak much english you need a credit card to check in, if you use debit make sure your bank knows you are out of the country. I had to call to get them to let it charge. Once we were in our room Abraham ordered room service for us our free chicken broth ( the grosses stuff i have ever tasted in my life!! it was Water and chicken fat!!! and a homemade orange popcicle. The popcicle was pretty good. Turned on the TV only about 4 channels that are in English. Hope you like CSI and Criminal Minds cause it plays almost all day! we watched alittle TV and went to bed. Abraham was coming to pick us up at 7:30 the next morning.

Friday (D day) Day Two:

Woke up took a nice long hot shower the Soups in the hotel and bath and body works! packed up the room went down stairs you HAVE to Check out or they will charge you 25 dollars. Waited for Abraham to come pick us up. When he came we went to the hospital when you walk in it (to me anyway) it was kinda like omg what did i get myself into because it like the back of the hospital and you go up stairs to a little waiting room fill out some paperwork ( Abraham helped once again because of our lack of spanish and their lack of english) We were not even finished filling out the paperwork and they came get us to bring us to our hospital room. They started with my husband first all we could unstand is EKG and they handed us a hospital gown. so we took our clothes off and got in the gown there is a safe in the hospital room! we looked up or phones and etc... 5 nurses came in two for my husband and two for me and one peron that draws the blood they did the EKG wrapped our legs and drew our blood within 10 minutes! They took my husband into surgery first he was gone for about an hour and half. They then came to get me they rolled me to see my husband then i walked into the operating room got on the table met Dr. Lopez and the other doctors. Then I woke up in my hospital room sick to the stomach. I threw up a few times and was very sick to the stomach for at least 24 hours. The nurses came in the room every hour to check on me and give me meds to help with the nausea. (side note) the person that drew my blood and put the IV in was GREAT!! usually in the states it take three or more times for them to find a vain she found they both in seconds! they gave me pain meds and nausea medsin my IV every 4 hours so i slept most of the time. My husband was not feeling that bad so he was up going stir crazy. They did the blue dye leak test on us also. Later that night the doctor on call came in checked our cuts, the drain and took our blood pressure and listened to our heart and lungs. Both my and my husband's blood pressure was high so they gave us some meds to put under our tounge. Then the nurse or doctor came in like every two hours to check our blood pressure once it went down they didnt come that often so we were able tp sleep.

SATURDAY DAY THREE: the weekend nurses do not speak much english at all

Woke up feeling pretty good. The nurse came in with some ice chips THANK GOD my mouth was soooooo dry. I got up and walked around for about 10 minutes but then they started cooking (the kitchen was on the same floor as our room) and the smell was HORRIBLE so i had to go back in the room. he nurse then came to check our IV's. My husband's vain collasped so they had to move his IV into his arm. They gave us more meds so we went to sleep for a while. Woke and went walk again then just watched TV (the hospital has more english speaking stations) Edwardo from alighterme Abraham and Dr. Lopez, came check on us asked if we needed anything. The day just went on with us walking and watching TV. They came to get us for an xray for the leak test made us drink this NASTY stuff and ttok pictures. After one walk my husband went to get back in bed and his IV came out and blood was gushing all over the place. I yelled for the nurse and they came in right a way. hooked the IV back up then left for a bit. I went back out to ask them to come clean up all the blood on the bed, on the floor, on the walls, etc.... it took about 20 minutes for someone to come clean it up. After that excitment we went take a nap work up and got some apple juice It was the BEST apple juice i ever had!! We just lounged around, napping, walking and watching TV. THEN IT STARTED it was about 6pm and I heard kids yelling so i looked out the window and saw a spacewalk i was oh cool they are having a kids party. WELLLLLL the DJ showed up about 8 and started playing spanish elvis, grease, acky breaky heart, and what ever other loud half english half spanish music he could find (for those that know swamp pop it was like spanish swamp pop) UNTIL 3AM in the morning. We could NOT sleep so i went ask the nurse for something to sleep she gave us something to drink. Knocked us out until the nurse came to give me antibodics in my IV and noticed my hand was huge and red. Se told me IV broken and to replace. She left for about 10 minutes and her and another nurse came in with her phone and translated that she called the doctor and I can take oral medication. I was SOOOOO happy about that. They took my IV out and unhooked my husbands (he still had the needle in) I slept the rest of the night.

Sunday Day Four:

I woke up the only one male nurse on the floor. I went ask him If i could take a shower. He said yes so I went take a shower it felt GREAT! got dressed and walked around the hospital floor. I asked the nurse for some apple juice for my husband and I. My husband went take a shower and then Abraham came pick us up from the hospital and brought us to the hotel. We checked in the hotel and ordered some tortilla Soup broth fom room service because that chicken broth was soooooooooooooooooo gros!!! you get three cups and broth, 2 popcicles and 2 bottles of water a day. The tortilla soup broth was VERY VERY good. we ate that went walk around the hotel sat by the pool for a while then came back to the room and watched TV. I had to lay down because where my drain was placed i could not sit up comfortable. My husbands was a little higher so he did not have a problem. We watched TV and walked around the hotel for the rest of the day. Abraham called us to tell us he was coming to pick us up tomorrow (Monday) to go shopping and I asked when were theycoming to take teh drain out. He said he would find out. He called us back in like 20 minutes and said that Edwardo said he or the doctor will do it Monday after 6. We just hung out in the hotel for the rest of the day. OH the TOWELS and SHEETS are like sandpaper!!!!! i have brush burns on my legs from the sheets!!! and the Towels when i was drying off pulled shin off! Went to sleep and slept very well all night. Before you leave the hospital they give you a goodie bag. In the bag is your medication, a copy of the all the blood work (its in spanish), ear plugs, chap stick, gatoraide and a dvd of the surgery.

MONDAY Day Five:

Woke up took shower pulled skin off my body haha. ( i bought my own dial soap and bandaides so twice a day I washed our cuts and put bandaides on them. I also brought gas x strips started taking them every 4 hours after day 2! ) got dressed went down stairs in the hotel looked around went by the pool then business center and just waited for Abraham to come get us. He got to the hotel around 1 we went shopping for about four hours. Everyoery very one was very friendly then we went to the pharmacy we bought some acid reducers they were pretty cheap and the BEST popcicle i EVER had in my life!!!! OMG it was soooooo good!!! we went back to the hotel we were wiped out so we took a nap. About 6:30 Edwardo came to remove the drains. It did not hurt at all just felt funny. Then we watched somemore TV and about 8 oclock the doctor came to check us out make sure we were doing okay and went over the post op diet with us etc.... then we went to sleep for the night because we were being picked up from the hotel at 830 to go to the airport.

Okay so this is brief maybo not so brief description of our surgery with alighterme in Mexico. if have any question feel free to ask.

In closing I would HIGHLY suggest using alighterme everyone was great very friendly and helpful!! Illok forward to the rest of my journey, Just to give an update to how i am feeling we got home lastnight around midnight and I woke up this morning and mopped my floors!

[920amy 409]

I am glad you and your husband had a great experience. I used ALighterMe in Nov and also had very little to complain about. Congrats on your surgery, and welcome to the Losers Bench!!

[mariamitani 405]

Wow that sounds great congrats to the both of you

[Diamondeyed 399]

Wow!

[Keepgoing247 116]

Congratulations!! I'm glad you and your husband are doing well.

[pandashazz 12]

I hvae just got approval from alighterme and was a bit worried as I would be travelling from Australia, but after reading your experience you have really put my mind at rest. THANK YOU! XXXX