July 26 plastics... Updates:)

[sarsar 824]

Thanks for posting all of this information and pics! How was the pain handled with the doctor you went with? Did you have a pain pump? Also, how long were you in the hospital and how long in the hotel? Who did you contact if you had concerns while you were in the hotel?

[CowgirlJane 14,259]

sarsar, I can share general info about Dr S since I am planning on heading there this fall. For people having multiple/bigger procedures you generally stay in the clinic 3 days and then go to the hotel where the doc and nurse visit daily. the TOTAL (including surgery and clinic days) is 12 days down there.

I keep reading that people have little pain, and i don't know why....

A key thing to know is that his anestheisialogist uses twilight sedation whenever possible. That makes recovery so much easier according to people who have done long surgeries under general and the twilight. USA docs say twilight sedation is bad for long procedures, so I don't know what to think, but, I get sick as a dog with general anesthia so I view it as a plus.

There is a Facebook group for Dr Sauceda patients AND there is a dedicated forum on obesity help. Google both of those to find the links if you want to really learn about him.

[A_New_Lily 39]

Well those pics terrify me. Awesome.

I'm afraid of sagging skin even more than i already was. Can't go back now, surgery in 2 days.

[xenafnp 54]

I am 18 days post op, I had very little pain. the most pain was from the compression garment the first few days because of the swelling. Immediately post op you still have pain management onboard from the OR, I had one dose of IV toradol (an anti-inflammatory) and managed my pain from there with motrin and tylenol only. He sends us to the hotel with tramadol. He is easily accessible on his cell phone, i had to call him for something, and he answered immediately and dealth with it. We all helped each other, there were 4 of us there overlapping one another. I had everything done and I have not made much pain, I have been uncomfortable, but not pain. Now I will say, I did not have Lipo, and those girls seem to have more pain than I had consistently. I felt well managed.

[sarsar 824]

sarsar, I can share general info about Dr S since I am planning on heading there this fall. For people having multiple/bigger procedures you generally stay in the clinic 3 days and then go to the hotel where the doc and nurse visit daily. the TOTAL (including surgery and clinic days) is 12 days down there.

I keep reading that people have little pain, and i don't know why....

A key thing to know is that his anestheisialogist uses twilight sedation whenever possible. That makes recovery so much easier according to people who have done long surgeries under general and the twilight. USA docs say twilight sedation is bad for long procedures, so I don't know what to think, but, I get sick as a dog with general anesthia so I view it as a plus.

There is a Facebook group for Dr Sauceda patients AND there is a dedicated forum on obesity help. Google both of those to find the links if you want to really learn about him.

Thanks! I will look into those groups.

It's interesting that many don't complain of pain. I need to have a LBL and can't imagine not being in pain being cut open all the way around. I'm not scared of the pain, I handle it pretty well. I have heard that in Mx pain management is different than here in the US. I had my sleeve done in Mx but I didn't experience pain from the surgery, I was sore but not in pain, so managing the pain wasn't a concern for me while I was there.

[calnala2010 10]

I figured I would start a new thread to give updates on how surgery went for me and my progress. I had a lower body lift' date=' small inner thigh lift, outer thigh liposuction, breast lift an augmentation. I traveled alone to Mexico for these procedures to see dr. Sauceda.

I'm going to post some before and after pics, I know that when I was researching that I wanted to know what to expect, what I would need and really what to do. I'm open to answering any questions:)

This is by before and day 6 post op.

This was by night before and day 4 post op.

2hrs out of surgery.

Drains and incisions day of surgery

A drain in each thigh and then three in the pubic area.[/quote']

I'm planning that surgery for next year , I can't see your pictures. Can you repost them?

[Ballermom 803]

Michelle, Wow you look great! Brave too. I was wondering about pricing for your procedures thanks.

Edit

I was able to find the website and prices.

[michelleandcolten 87]

Sorry it took me so long to respond.... I know that when I was looking and researching, I wanted to see pics of real people and what it looked like and what to expect. I am one of those people who needs as much info as possible. (I think I googled all my procedures 2-3 times a day for 8 months before I had my surgery) As far as price it really does depend on what you are needing done. Dr. S also will combine procedures which he also gives you a lower cost than paying full price for each one. So as I had researched and talked to multiple drs here in Canada I can say that just for a LBL here would have cost me closer to $20,000 and would not include hospital stay longer than 2-3 days and no hotel....ect. I will say my cost to go to Mexico and with the LBL, BL with BA, small inner thigh lift was around $14,000. (Not exact cost as I pd for some meals and had to pay to change one of my flights). Dr.S also did Lipo on my saddle bags at no extra cost. Also included in that cost: ($600 toward flight, hospital stay which includes all medical personnel and room, anesthetic ect. , all medications in and out of the hospital, gauze pads for daily dressing changes at hotel, ointment, antibiotics, 2 sets of compression garments, hotel for 12 days, transportation from the airport to the hotel, and hospital and then back to hotel and airport, daily visit from Dr.S and from "Patty" nurse to help with all your dressing changes. .... Did I mention the hospital has a "chef" that will take your order ( they had 3-6 choices for meals .... like a restaurant ...lol) cook it and actually bring it to you (personally brought it 3 times). I'm sure I'm missing a few things... But there is alot included for the price!!!! I don't regret getting my surgery done in Mexico one bit!!!

I have more in depth post about my experiences under the heading "Traveling for PS alone".

[michelleandcolten 87]

This was my before and my 10 day post op picture. Swelling going way down:)

[michelleandcolten 87]

This is 8day post op and 2week post op:) slowly getting smaller. Lol

[michelleandcolten 87]

3 weeks post op am able to put on my bigger size of jeans.

[michelleandcolten 87]

As I had mentioned in my other thread I had my stitches removed at 2 weeks and at some point in the middle of the night I had the skin pull apart slightly and it was to late to get it restitched or to put steriestrips on. ( so I suggest that you ask your dr to put them on as a precaution).

[michelleandcolten 87]

3 week post op.

[michelleandcolten 87]

Thank you for posting all this good info. I am 8 pounds from my goal so really starting to look into plastic surgery. I was wondering how many pounds of skin did they remove? Trying to see how much additional weight I will lose. I have lost almost 160 pounds. Really can't wait for abdominal skin to go bye bye and breast lift' date=' I am thinking about thighs and arms. I am scared about having surgery in Mexico but really need to research to educate myself. Open to anything. Thanks![/quote']

It is hard to say as to how much you will lose during surgery. Really it will depend on your build, how much is just skin, how much is fat, where it is located. For me I carried my weight on my hips and thighs. With a LBL and inner thigh lift he took off just over 7lbs of skin and fat. He also did Lipo of my hips/saddle bags which was around a litre in total (close to 2.5lbs). ( so I had almost 10 lbs taken off) but had implants put in and I have no idea what the weight for that is.

I stepped on the scale a few days ago out of curiosity and I weigh the same as I did prior to going for surgery. Now this does include the swelling that is happening. And it is sd not to weigh for a while as you will fluctuate.

Some lady's had lost any where from 3lbs- 12lbs of skin and fat while I was down there.

I would say not to rely on this as a weight loss tool as you cannot guarantee what if any you will lose.

I also want to say that surgery in Mexico in my experience has been 100x better than the surgeries I have had in Canada. (I have had 2 in Mexico and about 11 in Canada.... No not plastic surgery.... They include c-sections, laproscopies, hysterectomy, ect) after every surgery here in Canada I have ended up with severe infections leading to hospitalization, or IV antibiotics 2-3x a day and up to 15days. I have had them severe enough that the infection has gotten into my blood stream and just about dying.

But Mexico (one in puerto Vallarta for the Sleeve and then this past plastic surgery in Monterrey ) I have had NO sign of infection from either. With the Sleeve I had never in my life seen a hospital so clean.... The OR had nothing but the stainless steel table and you watched them open up every piece of equipment from new sealed sterile packaging. It was amazing. The hospital in Monterrey was clean as well and I had no concerns with any of the equipment or cleanliness.

So in my personal experience I would any day travel to Mexico for surgery.

[xenafnp 54]

Girl look at you in those jeans!!!!!