326 pounds and hate going out in public.

[lonelyandfat]

Insurance says I'm "to healthy" and won't cover procedure. I'm thinking Sleeve right now. I hear abou Mexico, but is that the only affordable country? Right now eye set on Almenza, but need more research. Please tell me your "cash paying" out of the country experience, thanks

[lonelyandfat]

Thanks for the welcome. I'm so lost and depressed, glad to have the support. I can't talk to my family about this

[natex14]

I had mine in the States, so I'm a bad example for you, but I wanted to just encourage you a little bit. Read around and look at all the people that have been successful getting this surgery done. Some were self pay here in the US and some were self pay in Mexico.

We all have a lot in common. We were miserable and didn't want to go out or even have the energy to go out. It took time and it took money but we didn't give up and we have a lot to show for it.

When an insurance denies you, you can appeal, so I would start there. Your PCP and your surgeon should help you appeal. If that doesn't work, then look into self pay here in the states or in Mexico.

This is an investment in your future and you are worth it. Stay strong, stay positive, things take a long time for a reason sometimes.

Good luck on your journey.

[Lou1955]

I am having a gastric sleeve operation in Tijuana with Dr. Almanza on July 21. Just three days left to wait. I used my credit card. A friend of mine had her surgery with Dr. Almanza last year so that's how I heard about him. She went with 3 other people who had the surgery with her. They all had Dr. Almanza and they had no problem with their surgeries or payment. I requested information about Dr. Almanza from Weight Loss Agents after getting his name from my friend. I feel very confident in his surgical skill. He has had the gastric surgery himself and actually performed the sleeve on his wife. Going through it himself he understands what we are going through. Weight loss agents creates a patient portal with all your information for you and you can call or text them anytime. They are very friendly and informative.

[lonelyandfat]

I would actually have to take out a loan, or wait 4 months or so to savr 5k. I really don't like being in debt! My heart just wants to feel normal and happy again! Thanks for the encouraging words.

P.S. scaref of the cartels ugh.....

[Lou1955]

The gastric forum site is amazing, you certainly aren't alone in how you feel. There are people from all over who have the same questions, emotions and fears. They do however have one thing in common they are unhappy overweight and are seeking answers to how they can change their lives for the better. You've come to the right place.

[Lou1955]

Weight Loss Agents offer financing. I don't think the cartels are interested in a group of overweight people seeking medical help.

[OneMoreLuckyGuy]

I was just sleeved in Tijuana four days ago (July 14th, 2014). It was a good experience overall. I paid a total of $4250 for my operation. This covered the surgery, two nights in the clinic and a night in a local Tijuana hotel (which my wife and I decided to forgo and go home early since I felt so good).

We paid an extra $180 for all of the medicine that I am required to take for the next few weeks. I am sure you can buy the medicine for cheaper in local pharmacys down there, but it was very convenient just being handed a zip lock bag full of what I needed and giving them cash.

My surgeon was Dr. Curiel. The facility was the Clinica San Juan in Tijuana. We arrived at the clinic around noon on Monday. Our transportation drivers picked us up in San Diego at my wife's aunts house where we left our car for the duration of the trip. I was the only patient there. It was very clean and orderly. There were two nurses on staff plus an assistant that helped out with various things. They were all very professional but they did not speak much English at all. I know a little Spanish so with my Spanish and their English we were able to communicate sufficiently. Even if I didn't know and Spanish I don't think there would have been any trouble, the ideas that are being communicated are very basic.

After arriving at the clinic there was a couple of hours of pre opp stuff like getting my blood drawn and getting a heart test to make sure it was safe for me to undergo the procedure. The heart test was performed by a cardiologist. I also met my surgeon and my anesthesiologist at this time. My anesthesiologist looked sort of like an old Mexican cowboy. I wasn't expecting that, but he knew what he was doing, so that was ok. My surgeon seemed very knowledgable and confident. This made me feel good about the procedure.

My surgery finally started around 4:30 on Monday afternoon. I was in surgery for 3.5 hours according to my surgeon (though I didn't get back to my room until 10:30 pm). The surgery is supposed to only take 1.5-2 hours. Mine was longer because my liver was larger than they wanted it to be (I didn't stick perfectly to the pre opp diet... stupid me... and they had to take plenty of time to ensure the procedure was done safely). My arms and butt were VERY sore when I got back to my room, but my stomach and the incisions in my belly didn't really hurt at all. I felt a very strong need to get up and walk around that night and although I was hazy with my wifes help I was able to. The nurses didn't want me to, if I fell over how were two 110lb ladies going to help pick up a 395lbs man. But I got up anyway and walked. It was good for me.

I slept the rest of that night and then spend the next day in my room being tended to by my nurses. I felt very cared for and important. They did a good job. We slept in the room (my wife curled up on a recliner they had in the room and I slept on the hopsital bed) again that night and the next day, Wednesday, we went into town for an xray and a what is called a "dye test". In this test I had to drink some pretty terrible tasting dye and the xray tech had to verify that there was no leak in my stomach. After downing a couple of ounces of the clear liquid the x ray tech told me everything was good and we could go, no leaks in my stomach. Yeah!

We went back to the Clinic where we said goodbye to the staff and where the main surgeon removed the drainage tube from my stomach. I was thrilled to get the tube out. It didn't hurt to have in, and it didn't hurt to have out (it did feel strange to have it removed, but "hurt" would be the wrong word) but it did limit my mobility while it was in. After the drainage tube was out we were loaded up into the van of the transportation specialists and sent off to our hotel for on last day of relaxation.

My wife and I however decided we didn't want to stay an extra day so we asked the driver to just take us back over the border. They were very willing to. We waited the three hours at the border to cross back over into the states and soon were dropped off at our car.

The only negative aspect of the experience is that my wife left her phone plugged into the charger in the drivers van and he left before we could get it out. We realized he had the phone withing just a couple of minutes of him leaving and tried calling the phone to notify him, but no one answered it and he didn't answer his own phone either. We tried getting in touch with him for a few hours. It seemed to me like he was hoping to be able to keep the phone and was just waiting for us to stop calling it. We drove home that evening and finally, 11.5 hours of driving later we pulled into our driveway at 2am. Needless to say I was very tired.

The next morning I sent a email to the company that facilitated my procedure and told them about the driver and the phone, plus a sent an email to the clinic and an email to the two surgeons. Within an hour I received a call from the driver telling me it was all an "accident" and that he didn't know the phone was there. Whatever... maybe it was, maybe it wasn't, but he said he left the phone with the clinic and that they would be mailing it back. This was yesterday.

We still haven't got the phone back, but I think we will. When I did I will try to update this post.

Overall it was a great experience. The clinic was peaceful and quiet in the evening. I was the only patient for the three days I was there and had the nurses and the facility to myself.

I would suggest it to anyone that is considering the procedure. It's strange having the sleeve, and I think I will document what that is like in another post, but I wanted to at least share with you my Mexico experience while it was fresh in my mind.

Whatever you choose, I wish you the best.

[Ann2]

AWESOME POST, Lucky Guy!

Just AWESOME!

Congratulations on being on the sleeved side.

Ann

[Peachybroo]

I had my sleeve done by Dr Almanza and HIGHLY recommend him to others. He has done literally THOUSANDS of this exact procedure and in my opinion you can't pay enough for that type of experience. We had zero issues and Ive had zero complications. You are welcome to check out the specific details about my experience on my blog if you'd like.

MommyCEOs

Good luck in your research.

[OneMoreLuckyGuy]

Thanks Ann! I am lucky... and grateful for having this wonderful tool to help me change some of the things I don't like about myself. =)

AWESOME POST, Lucky Guy!

Just AWESOME!

Congratulations on being on the sleeved side.

Ann

[lonelyandfat]

Wow, so much to digest lol. I'm getting excited! I have so much to think about!

[Lee6Lee]

I used another doctor, but did go to Tijuana. Don't be afraid of Tijuana...it was wonderful in every respect.

[Ima Fox]

Thanks for sharing this, Lucky Guy. I have the surgery with Dr. Curiel this upcoming Thursday. I'm excited about it! Please tell me the names of the medications he gave you. I'd like to get mine from the pharmacy. Luckily, I also speak a little Spanish & look forward to practicing it on the nurses. I would be very happy if I was the only patient as well. That was quite a lucky break (for a lucky guy). I prefer a Dr. who limits the amount of daily surgeries. I'm glad things were great in spite of your liver. I hope Mrs. Lucky gets her phone back as well. There are a few more people on this forum who have gone to Dr. Curiel. So far as I know, no one has complained. I hope things remain uneventful for you. Wishing you a speedy recovery.

[OneMoreLuckyGuy]

Here is the list I was given:

- Anitbiotic SIBOFIX 500mg, 14 tablets (1 tablet every 24 hours for 14 days)
- Analgesic MAVIDOL tablets (pain meds, 2 tablets every 6-8 hours for 5-7 days)
- Anti-acid OMYGEN 20 mg tablets (1 tablet every 12 hours for 6 weeks)
- ULGEL solution (one ounce every 8 hours for 10 days)
- Procinetic CIRULAN 10mg (1 every 8 hours for ten days)
- Antispetic Spray (no name) plus sterile gauze pads and tape to clean and treat the injury sites.

There you go!