• Name: Lisa O
• Age: 47
• Surgery: Gastric Sleeve
• Surgery date: May 21st, 2013
• Testimonial date: August 13th, 2013
• Surgeon: Dr. Almanza

My experience was for sure a good one. I arrived on a Monday afternoon, was picked up by van with 4 other people I met at the San Diego airport. We were taken to the hotel where we checked in and paid for our one night stay. (I was alone on this trip but many others had friends or family with them). Later that afternoon we were taken to Jerusalem Clinc (yes the hospital is in a strip mall but just as clean as a hospital here in the states). Here we had our blood tests done and an EKG by a cardiologist. We were taken back to hotel and told to be ready in the morning to go back for surgery.
The next day we were picked up as promised. At the hospital we got our IVs started and signed our paperwork and waited for the doctor to come talk to us and answer our questions. (I'd like to add here that I appreciated the way they did things here, everything was prompt and there was very little waiting...unlike the U.S. where we are always made to wait.
I was one of the first in to the operating room and I walked in and got on the table myself. Next thing I knew I was being helped to the recovery room where I was given a cozy bed to lay in. I took a short video of myself before taking a nap to sleep of the rest of my anesthesia. There were many surgeries that day so we were moved to the cosmetic surgery center later that evening. I'm not going to lie and say everything went well that night. I did end up with a bout of vomiting which worried me with just having my stomach cut on. I do think the vomiting (which was really just dry heaving and saliva) was due to the anesthesia. The next morning we were taken back to our hotel and I couldn't wait to get into my room and relax. I met my new roommate who had a tummy tuck done. We decided we were bored so we went for a walk around Tijuana. It was nice to get out, we walked over a mile. We visited local shops and I bought some silver for me and souvenir's for my family. The staff at the hotel were great, the people in the streets were very nice, I felt comfortable and not at all worried about walking around the streets there.
Whenever I wanted to take a shower and have my bandages changed I would just call the nurses station (in the hotel...part of the surgery team and support)and they would come change my bandages for me. I even got a wonderful massage in my room (included!)
When I was hungry room service would bring me broth, popsicles, juice, whatever I needed. The hotel was very modern and comfortable. The second day the clinic came back to pick us up and take us to get some IV fluids and dispense antibiotics, this only took an hour and the rest of the day we had to ourselves. the third day I was there we were given a purple liquid to drink (for our leak test) we were then taken to the imaging center and waited our turn for the upper GI test. If you want a copy of your x-ray (which I did) you could pay a small fee (I think $25) to take yours home. the imaging center was state of the art...just like in the states. Friday morning they took out my IV and drain so that I could go home. I had surgery on Tuesday, left Friday morning. Others from my group left even earlier than I did.
Some things I remember very well are the way we were treated...I remember the van driver going over speed bumps very slowly (intentionally) because he wanted us to be comfortable. The drivers are very good and very personable. Everyone is very helpful. It's not a cake walk, it IS surgery people, but it's doable! Would I do it again? That answer would be a resounding YES! I'm only sad that I did not find Dr. Almanza sooner. Like many of you I had several health issues. (high blood pressure, High cholesterol, liver damage, herniated discs etc.) I tried several times to have surgery here in the stats but my insurance would not cover a dime of it (even though they would have saved themselves money in the long run with all my medical visits/meds, MRI's etc.) When I looked into paying for it myself I was met with red tape, seminars to take and other BS, not to mention the fact that I could not afford $18-$26,000 for the surgery here.
I am 12 weeks out (today) and I'm down over 40 pounds (of which I lost most in first two months)I started out at 208, I now weigh 164 and I feel great. I take no more blood pressure medicine or high cholesterol meds. My back feels better and I'm out walking/exercising as if I was 25 years old! If you can afford it...DO it! (I actually did not have the cash...but if there's a will there's a way! I took out a $5,000 cash advance on a credit card with a special no interest for 2 years! YEAH me! I am actually mentoring another lady I met at the nail salon! That was also a goal of mine is to help others get their health back. She is scheduled for Oct 8th!

• 

• GastricSleeve.com Profile

* This is an actual testimonial, however, your results may vary. For more information, please read our Testimonial Disclaimer and Risks of Surgery.