My VSG Journey - Discharge Day!

After two nignts in the hospital, it was time to leave Endobariatric and Piedras Negras and head back to San Antonio.

The morning of discharge, the nighttime doctor and Dr. Rosales and Dr. Alvarez came to see me as did the nurses.

I must say, they gave me everything I needed: paperwork for my doctor here, vitamin/mineral panel recommendations, pain meds, acid reflux meds, antibiotics, instructions, a copy of Dr. A's helpful VSG book, a backpack and folder in which to keep everything, and personal contacts in case there were any issues or questions.

Here's a picture of me with Dr. A right before I got on the van. I am so happy that I chose to come to Mexico for my surgery. Down with any naysayers and all the skeptics! I received better care here than most of the US medical experiences I have had in my whole life combined. In addition, the doctors are extremely skilled, very caring, and concerned with your well-being. They took the time out to talk to me, answer questions, make me comfortable, and explain procedures. I have also been able to ask Dr. Alvarez my questions (via Twitter as well) and he gave me quick answers and asked me how I was doing!



They signed my pillow :-) (the Endobariatric signature stomach pillow, LOL). The pillow made me laugh, but I sincerely needed the support for the two-hour return trip which was BUMPY BUMPY BUMPY!

After crossing the border, we dropped off the other patient at the Holiday Inn and then got on the road. halfway through, we stopped at a convenience store for some water. I was sipping, sipping, sipping. It seemed like I sipped constantly, but the level didn't go down that much. When we got to the La Quinta airport, we went down by the pool for some sun and rest and SIPPING WATER. Then, in the room, I took a nap. It was HOT. I checked my Weather Channel app and saw that it was 106 in Piedras Negras! Yikes! Later, in the early evening, I was feeling less nauseous so we went to the mall to walk around and I did some mini-shopping and had some apple juice!

The next morning, we had a SUPER EARLY set of flights back to NOLA, but that was ok b/c we were back by 10:30 a.m. and I was back in my apartment by around 11:30. Kudos to Meg for being such a trooper on this whole journey and for taking such great care of me. Her husband picked us up at the airport and then drove me to my car. I stopped by GNC on the way home to see what a protein bullet was and to buy an Isopure drink to try it out. Sasha kitty was so glad to see me and she was LIKE GLUE, stuck by my side for the next three days!

I slept most of Friday and tried to sip water. Tthe next day, I tried the protein bullets and they were WAAAY too sweet. I tried apple juice and that was much better, though also sweet. One week clear liquids, Ugh! I failed in attempts to get my water in and to finish the protein bullets every time I tried one. Blech! Sunday, I decided I needed to go to church....not just to be there for my job, but I really needed to be there. I also needed some fellowship and normalcy. Everyone was so nice! It helped a great deal and I was able to also attend the NOVA rehearsal that evening. That was a lot harder than church and I sat down for most of it, but I wanted to see how it was to sing! That was also hard, but I figured that it would help. In between these activities and naps, those first few days involved reading various ObesityHelp.com  forums and Sleevetalk forums, and watching several movies. I took myself to watch the new Star Trek Into Darkness movie, t'was great! "Khaaaaaaaaaaaaa!" My next post will be an update as to where I am along the path now. I leave you with another picture of my dear Sasha kitty :-) 

My VSG Journey to Endobariatric

Wow, I'm a pretty terrible blogger with such giant gaps between happenings, but....oh well and Le Sigh on that. Finally, here is the 411 on my trip to Endobariatric for my VSG surgery! :-) There are lots of pictures so it may be a lengthy post, but you can handle it. Oh maybe I might split it up....who knows.

April 30 - May 13  Two-week pre-op diet -  I did pretty well, lost 14 lbs and cheated twice. One was a tiny cheat and one was huge. I basically got too hungry and couldn't stand it anymore. I made sure the last four days before surgery were fluids only, not even any puddings etc.

May 13 - My dear friend Meg and I left NOLA and flew to San Antonio. Check it out. We had more "legroom"....(LOL at United Airlines, but it is actually a word). We took a fast & free shuttle from the airport to the La Quinta hotel and waited there until our driver Rosy (Rosantina) arrived. She had just come into the area so needed a break before heading back for another two-hour ride! She was so nice and has been driving the route for about eight years, meeting tons of hopeful WLS patients.

I was greatly relieved to see that the van no longer had a picture on its side of a woman holding up a giant pair of pants.

The ride was SO EXTREMELY BUMPY, OMG. I had to take two motion sickness pills and by the time I got to Eagle Pass, I was EXHAUSTED. There, we checked into the Holiday Inn and went out a little bit later for some dinner. I had egg drop soup at the nearby Chinese restaurant and it was DELICIOUS! Funny feeling like it was a last meal even though it obviously wasn't! Then, we went down the precaiously-placed sidewalk filled with gigantic scary ants until it ran out and picked up some gatorade etc. from the gas station store. It was quite a happening place. Eagle Pass, TX appeared vast, dry and largely empty. Whole new-looking apt complexes looked deserted even tough they weren't.

Amazingly, it was getting ready to rain. I got the feelling this doesn't happen that often. It helped in cooling the place down though and that was a nice benefit. Meg and I went out to the pool area where there was a great breeze and we played Scramble and other ipad/iphone games. This really helped me be less nervous. We also met up with Fabienne, a patient who was going to have her surgery the same day. We had met via email and been in communication a bit so it was super nice to get to know each other a little. This also helped me be less anxious for the next day!

THE MORNING OF SURGERY

Wow, it was really time. After months of waiting and years of thinking about it, here I am about to be picked up for the long-awaited VSG. I was both excited and nervous.

 
We drove through the rest of Eagle Pass
(larger than I expected) and across the border.
I had forgotten that we would actually cross the
Rio Grande in the process so that was cool.
The drive to Piedras Negras and the
Endobariatric clinic did not take very long and
before I realized it, we were there! It was very
early so the parking lot was empty. The clinic
is attached to a hospital, but I guess their
parking was around the other side because
they seemed to have more action going on.

Once inside Dr. Alvarez's office, Dr. Rosales, another surgeon came out to greet us and said we would meet Dr. A in a few minutes. Then, Fabienne and I decided to take a picture. Just as we were smiling, Dr. A came up behind us and got in the picture! :-) That was great!

While they met inside his office, I saw a sign that said "Let us know if you check in using Foursquare and receive a gift" heheh so I checked in, of course! When I met with Dr. A, I told him that and he gave me a very nice, fancy water bottle! Cool :-)


I weighed, met the anesthesiologist (very happy about that), and talked a bit about the procedure, how long it would take, recovery, bougie size used, etc. I was very impressed that Dr. A suggested on his own that they use a pediatric intubation tube because
I'm a singer! I was going to suggest it and Meg was there and had mentioned that I suggest it, but I was happy I didn't need to.

So, now we were excorted to take a pre-surgery photo for records and then taken to our room. We entered the hospital and it was shiny, clean and well-built. The room was in the clinic side of the hospital. Outside our doors was an area of tile that was under construction. This was kind fo sketchy, but not bothersome. The room itself was next two a nurses's room and two patient rooms. It was VERY NICE! Huge actually. It had its own shower, window, air conditioning unit, TV, sofa (large, folded down to make a full bed), a refridgerator, and a big sturdy leather chair on the opposite side of the room. The shower had an enclosed bathroom as well. Here is a panorama shot of the room.

Certainly better than some of the hospital rooms I have stayed in.
Within 15 minutes, nurses were coming in and one took me downstairs for blood tests and a chest X-ray. Then, I came back upstairs, started my IV and chilled out until they were ready for me to go into surgery. I hate that important IVs have always gone into my hand. IT HURTS. I also hate that IVs cannot be butterfly needles as that is the size I need. It was nice to talk with two sisters from Canada who were being discharged that same day and to find they had a good experience and were feeling good. Soon, they came and told me to slide from my hospital bed onto a gurney and said something about giving me "happy juice". I actually do not remember ANYTHING after that moment. So funny that I aparently started saying "I love you guys" to everyone! When I had my wisdom teeth out, I remember seeing the lights go dim. I remember when I had a cyst out, the IV infiltrated and I was awake in the OR as they were getting ready and the surgeon said "get her to sleep, use the other arm" and that was it, LOL.

ALL DONE
So, THAT WAS QUICK! I woke up with an Oxygen mask on and within a few minutes (it seemed) someone removed it and I remember being super groggy and somewhat nauseous after a while. No water was allowed that first day and I mostly stayed in bed.

I do vaquely remember them trying to make me walk laps down the hall and back and that after one lap, I had to sit down from being dizzy and nauseous. I thought I was going to throw up,but I didn't and they gave me a shot "where the sun don't shine" so I felt better. Here I am trying to walk.

I also recall that the night was full of nurse and doctor visits. I think the assisting surgeon, the anesthesiologist, and Dr. Alvarez came to see me that day and in the night, all the nurses, one or two doctors etc. came every hour. I just wanted to sleep.

Tthe second day was much better and I was fully alert, though still nauseous when I tried to do much walking. Today, I was allowed ice chips (YAY!) and walked a lot. I even went with Meg to the neighboring coffee shop, in my pajamas, and sat there to eat my ice chips for a while. In the room, we had just been reading and doing emails....maybe watching a little TV - the "Border channel" (view of the Rio Grande bridge border and traffic) because it had music. It felt great to be "out and about" and Meg was awesome in taking care of me. I'll end this post with a picture of the tweet I wrote about the day :-)

A Day & and Half.....

Well......ONE DAY AND A HALF to go before VSG surgery!

Yikes! I'm super excited for all the lifestyle and healthy living changes ahead, but also have a case of pre-surgery jitters. I suppose that is understandable considering general anesthesia is involved. It was awesome to be able to communicate with the doctor about antibiotics (explain my bad reaction to Cipro after the Haiti trip last summer) and anesthesia. Made me feel more confident overall.

Everyone's been extremely supportive and I truly appreciate that. I also appreciate the kind words about my posts and the prayers. I received several notes after my FB post and I am greatly moved by them. We are all in this life together!

I've lost 14 lbs on my liquid diet  so far.....which makes me think....."hmmm. do I REALLY have to go through with actual surgery?......or can I simply do a longer liquid diet etc.?"

I know the answer and it is "yes" I need to go ahead with surgery. It's a longer lasting change than a fad diet and I would know because I have tried most of them and the weight came back on....plus a few lbs. Tired of yo-yos with the same pounds. So, all hail to the new stomach...er....sleeve that I will have. I hope it's not too picky and that it will tolerate most foods and I hope my capacity will not be impossible to deal with.

Here is my itinerary for the trip to Endobariatric in Piedras Negras, Mexico:

- Flights to San Antonio, shuttle to La Quinta hotel where Rosy, the driver will pick us up.
- Two-hour drive to Eagle Pass, TX where we'll send one night
- Tuesday: morning pickup, cross border, meet Dr. Alvarez, do tests, have SURGERY
- Be in recovery (we're hoping, LOL) and then will probably be walking and sleeping
- Wednesday: at the hospital, leak test, may graduate to ice chips, REST
- Thursday: discharge, Rosy drives us back to Eagle Pass, spend night
- Friday: Flights back to New Orleans and alternate between resting and walking
- Saturday: REST / WALK / sip on water
- Sunday: I am hoping to be back at the church on Sunday, but we shall see......

Wish me luck! :-)

My Choice for VSG Surgery: ENDOBARIATRIC

An Easy Decision

I am going to have my VSG surgery at the Endobariatric clinic with Dr. Guillermo Alvarez in Piedras Negras, Mexico. It was an easy decision to make after months of research and literally years of insurance issues etc. and I am fully confident that this is the right place for me. The more I see, the more I feel this way.

The very first reaction of many of my friends and colleagues, however, includes:

1. Facial contortion with raised eyebrows
2. A gasp
3. The questions: Is it safe? Are you sure about this? Have you looked into this place?

Really?
AS IF to imply that I haven't researched this or that somehow they have insights into the clinic they've never heard of. It's interesting how some are open-minded about it and how others absolutely feel they know more than I do. Now, I totally do understand that they mean well, but seriously.... I even asked one person who was acting as if I were crazy, if he had ever been to Mexico or if he knew what kinds of medical instruments the clinic used. "No" on both accounts. I am grateful that folks worry about my safety, but I will be fine! It's a FANTASTIC clinic with a world-reknowned doctor at the helm.

We've all experienced naysayers throughout our lives at one point or another. I have two things to say about that:

1. The last thing we need when making giant decisions and lifestyle changes is people undermining the validity of our choices. Be more supportive and less critical instead! They often do not realize the shoes we wear or how difficult our paths may be. It happened when I went for my MM, my DMA, and when I made the decision to take a job in Milledgeville, GA and happened a LOT from TONS of people when I decided to move to New Orleans after hurricane Katrina. Moving here has actually proved to be one of the absolute best decisions of my life. Some folks went as fars as to say that New Orleans was a worthless city and that I'd be throwing my career away if I moved here. BREAKING: They were wrong.

2. “When someone tells me "no," it doesn't mean I can't do it, it simply means I can't do it with them.”  - Karen E. Quinones Miller

A couple of years ago when googling VSG and other types of bariatric surgery, I found tons of helpful blogs, YouTube videos, and forums. One such forum was the VSG SleeveTalk site. It didn't take long to see Dr. Alvarez's name popping up along with mentions of surgery in Mexico and whole discussions of medical tourism. I visited hs website and was immediately impressed. In addition to that, it was the tons of positive testimonials (written and in video) from real people who had undergone VSG surgery with Endobariatric.

One of my reasons for choosing Endobariatric is that VSG surgery is not covered by my insurance company. I did research into this for several months and talked about it to state level and national level company employees about how to file a petition or how to file an appeal.
I did not want to do either. I was one of the first people to apply for the office of group benefits Head's Up program with Pennington Biomedical Research Center and OGB Partnership Benefitting Louisiana (which is an awesome start for state-level study of bariatric surgery and its effects). This program consists of a lottery and they will do 400+ surgeries over a period of several years. So far, I have not been chosen for the bariatric lottery and frankly, I am tired of waiting.

I took nutrition classes at a bariatric clinic and then paid $350 out of pocket to have a consultation with the surgeon directly. He basically gave me eight minutes of his time and was nice, but very busy, shuffling papers and the like. I noticed he gave me little eye contact. I FREAKED OUT and decided that I was NOT going to try and raise or borrow the 17-18,000 $ needed for this clinic. Instead, I'd save for a trip to Mexico!

SAVING. WAS.  HARD.
This past year, I chopped my paycheck by about $1,000 per month and had to move to reduce my rent etc. Worth. It. Now, I have the $8700 for the whole surgery package which includes two nights in hotels and transportation (two hours each way), and the care and concern of a staff that has already proven several times to be excellent and on top of things.

My doc here in NOLA will do any follow-up and she has had several patients go through bariatric surgery. One of them also went to Mexico.

Y A Y !  I'm excited Y'all :-)