Ready 4 A Change, Single Incision & Dr. Garcia w/ pics

[O-Town Body Rock 148]

Hi Guys,

Sorry for the delay in responding. Ive been tying to get accustomed to my new sleeve and also trying to muster up some energy from somewhere. Here is my story about Dr.Garcia and Ready 4 A Change:

ARRIVAL - Monday April 7, 2014 - Arrived at San Diego airport at around 10:30,10:40ish am. My driver Samuel Jr. was already there waiting on me. Let me tell u, Sam Jr. is sooo cool!! I loved him. I was the only one that he needed to pick up at that time, so it was just him and I on the trip. He told me what apps to download for free telephone calls, he took me on a tour of Tijuana and went over some of its history, etc. I asked him to correctly pronounce Tijuana for me and he said it is pronounced Tee-wanna not Tia-wanna. He took my phone and took some pictures of the city for me; we had a blast. I was all smiles and giggles, until he told me we were going straight to the hospital for pre-op testing. I told him woah, I wasn't mentally prepared to hear that and he laughed and said I would be ok. So we pulled up to florence Oasis which I recognized from pictures I seen. It is not a grand, big bldg like the hospitals in the US but it was clean and nice and had that medical feel to it like the US. He walked me and my luggage the lobby and said Eduardo (who is the r4ac coordinator) would take me to the hotel when I was done. So they drew blood first. Now I am horribly afraid of needles and I was scared they were going to have keep sticking me to find a vein but it only took one stick. It was sort of to the side of my arm but it worked. Second was the urine sample but I had just went to the bathroom at the hospital and was dry as a bone. So the nurse gave me a bottled Water and I starting drinking. Next was the chest xray which took all of 30 seconds. Next was the EKG which took all of 4 minutes. After that I went and sat in a small office where Eduardo (the R4AC coordinator) was at. He gave me some papers to read and explained what time to be in the lobby the next day while I finished my water. Then I provided the urine sample. After that, he picked me up from the front of the hospital in personal vehicle and took me to the Marriott. The Marriott is very nice and clean and my room was pretty big. The check in was quck and easy and I did have to provide a cc for incidentals but R4AC had already mentioned that to me weeks ago. I immediately ordered the chicken broth and popsicle which were free for surgery patients. The broth was good but the popsicle...not so much. I ended up putting it in the sink so it would melt. A few hours later, I got a call from Dr. Velazqo at Dr.Garcias office telling me that my hemoglobin was very low (8.6) and that the doctor said I would need a blood transfusion. (Surprise of the day #2) Sure was not sure of the cost because she didn't know how much I needed but she said as soon as found out she would le me know. I also got a visit to my room from Irene who is the other R4AC coordinator. She is very nice. She brought alot paperwork and we went through them all and she explained and answered all of my questions. She left the papers that I wanted to read over again and said I could just bring them with me the next day. I told her about the blood transfusion and she made some calls to try and find out the cost, which turned out to be between $200-$500 depending upon the qty. That was day 1.

SURGERY DAY - Tuesday April 8, 2014 - I got down to the lobby at 6:40 since we were supposed to be picked up at 6:45. I met 2 other ladies there who were also getting sleeved that day. I checked out of the hotel and we were shuttled to Florence Oasis. When we got there, we waited in the lobby and I was immediately called to the back. I said my "see you laters" and went with the same male nurse who escorted me around for preop the previous day. He took me to my hospital room and said someone would be with me shortly. I was brought a gown and a pair of thigh high compression stockings and was told to change into them. Shortly after, Eduardo came by to see how was I doing and to give me a pair of Florence Oasis slippers and the remote to the tv. Later Dr.Velazgo came in to talk to me to discuss the blood transfusion and why it was needed. Then the anaesthesiologist came to talk with me and I told him to make sure I was all the way under so I didn't wake up during surgery. He was a funny guy. Then I met another doctor, i forgot her name. She was very nice and said she had also been sleeved too. She was very peaceful and told me how beautiful I was. It was like a conversation with your grandma. She was very comforting. Soon after that they started my IV. The only did the IV was once which I was happy about. I was scared they were gonna screw it up. All of the nurses were very friendly and spoke very good English. I was originally scheduled to go first but ended up going last. A guy from the Red Cross came in to draw blood to confirm my blood type for the transfusion. The blood for the transfusion didn't arrive until maybe 2-ish. (Cost was $200) After that they had to monitor me to make sure I did not have any kind of reaction from the blood. Dr. Garcia came in and talked to me about the procedure and to see if I had any questions. He said my surgery was going to take 2.5hrs since I was doing the single incision. He did warn me that if for any reason he seen that he may need to do the regular 5 incision, he would. It was late afternoon before the came to get me. As I was being wheeled down the hall o the surgical suite, one of the other ladies was out in the hallway walking with her IV stand and husband. She had already been sleeved and everything. She was like you'll be fine, look at me! I smiled at her and felt better. Once I was in the operating room, the anesthesiologist was comforting me and making jokes with me. He was so funny! He said let’s get some music going in here and he played "Everybody Dance Now" over the speakers. He was dancing and they were all laughing. It calmed me down alot. Then I remember him saying, ok count to 10 and that was it. I didn't even get to 1. Next I heard a female voice calling my name and trying to wake me up. I was in my room and they were trying to move me to my bed. I remember being panicky and feeling a horrible pain in my shoulder. I was having a hard time breathing (I think) but I felt better when I was fully awake and calmed down. The nurses were checking on me constantly to make sure I was ok. I was fine but that gas was a beast. I threw up some blood but I expected that. It was dark blood and not fresh red. Then I started dry heaving. I pushed the button for the nurse and she came and rubbed my back and tried to calm me down. She emptied the little container of the mess and cleaned it for me. Whenever they administered medication into the IV, they always told me what it was for. Later that night, they told me to try and walk if I could to help with the gas. I walked around my room the entire time I was there. I would set my stopwatch on my phone and walk for 20 minutes and pray. I learned how to not throw up. Anytime I would start to feel nauseous and feel like i had to vomit, I would make myself do little burps and the feeling would go away immediately. The only time I have thrown up was the immediately after surgery and that's it. The nurses came and checked on me every few hours. Every day they would give me an anti-coagulant shot in my side. It wasn't too bad. On my last day, Dr.Velazgo came in to remove the drain. She looked at me and told me to take a deep breath and I was like ok wait im not ready. By the time I took the deep breathe she had already threw the drain in the garbage. I didn't feel a thing. Dr. Garcia came in to talk to me and make sure I was ok. He was very nice. I had to get more blood drawn to do a final lab test to make sure my levels were ok. All in all my hospital stay was a positive one. I went in on Tuesday and checked out on Thursday. They assured me that I would never be alone and I wasn't. They were there if I needed something and were always at my disposal. When Eduardo came to get me he brought me a Ready 4 a Change goodie bag that had my medicines (pain, gas, antacid, antibiotic), a stomach shaped pillow, all of lab results, my chest x-ray, a video of my leak test, a R4AC folder of all pre & post op paperwork, etc., 2 small bottles of water, a bottle of coconut water (yummy), my breathing apparatus thing with balls, packs of gauze, a bunch of band-aids, roll of tape, antiseptic spray for my incisions and R4AC chapstick. (I love goody bags!!) The day I was released from the hospital I felt %100! So much to where when Irene came to visit me, I asked her did Dr. Garcia cut enough of the stomach. Like, I was seriously concerned because I was feeling fine. She told me to try and u back on the pain meds that were given to me. She said that pain meds can affect the liver, yadda, yadda,yadda and if I could, to try not to take too much. I was like I’m good!! And I was...until the pain meds in my system from the hospital wore off. Good lawd, I was bent over and could hardly walk, eat, sleep, anything. I should've just taken the pain pill!

SINGLE INCISION: The only scar that is visible is the drain incision. I have a deep belly button and you can barely see the incision where the port was inserted. I will attach pics. All in all Ready 4 A Change and Dr.Garcia and his staff were completely awesome!!! The coordinators came to the hotel everyday before and after the surgery. I traveled alone and I told them that I was concerned that I was by myself and they told me they would be right there for me and they were.

My experience was top notch. I definitely recommend them to anyone!!!

Oh yeah, I am down 11 lbs from my surgery weight.

Edited April 16, 2014 by O-Town Body Rock

[O-Town Body Rock 148]

Shout to @@newnicole who also traveled from Orlando and had her sleeve done with Dr. Lopez the same day. Thanks for being there chica!! And tell your cousin I said Hello!

Edited April 16, 2014 by O-Town Body Rock

[O-Town Body Rock 148]

One more thing, single incision was $1000 more. Just in case someone wanted to know. If I think of anything else, Ill let you guys know.

[BigGirlPanties 957]

Cool! So glad to hear all went well...congrats to you!

[Patricia Tate Johnson 43]

Thanks for the information! I'm scheduled for August 4 with Dr. Lopez in Puerta Vallerta and love reading about other's Mexican experiences.

[O-Town Body Rock 148]

No problem! These boards are God sent! Just trying to pay it forward.

[RoseFlorish 19]

Very happy for you . Glad everything went well

[BackToHot 59]

Im so glad ur fine ! I'm having mine with dr Fernando Garcia too on May 8th. Just like you I'm going some. Thank you so much for sharing your successful story

[BackToHot 59]

Some=alone

[O-Town Body Rock 148]

You'll be fine. I guarantee you will meet surgery buddies the morning of your surgery when u all are in the lobby waiting for the shuttle. If you have low hemoglobin, be sure to try and get your levels up prior to your surgery to avoid the blood transfusion and multiple lab work which = having your blood drawn multiple times.

[O-Town Body Rock 148]

Thanks @@RoseFlorish! I did a whole lot of praying during my trip!!! God is good!!

[mgolden1984 13]

Thank you for sharing!