40+ Finally Doing It! - Dominican Republic, DO

Hello everyone,
So I'm 8 days post surgery and I've had some ups and downs. On Thursday and Friday, 3 and 4 days post, I felt great! I started stretching the time between pain pills and I was very mobile. I had a check up on Saturday morning and the doctor said I was healing very well. The doctor removed the drain and some small stitches at Lipo cannula sites. I had our driver take us to a local restaurant to pick up some takeout so I could see more of the city and we sat out by the pool at the hotel. Then Sunday came and I felt terrible! Clearly I overdid it on Saturday, so learn from my mistake:(

Hello RealSelfers!
First, a correction. Dr. Tactuck's clinic is Plastico Centro, not CIPLA.
My surgery was Monday 7/10. There was a bit of a scare because I didn't wake up from the anesthesia right away, but it's all good now.
When I arrived at SDQ Dr. Tactuk had a driver meet me and take me to the clinic even though it was 5:30 am on Sunday! My room was ready but I opted to go my hotel with my mom and a friend I brought with me.
Dr. Tactuk was amazing! He explained everything and answered all my questions in English and made me feel completely at ease. My only complaint is that while all the doctors I interacted with spoke fluent English, only one nurse did, so when the doctor is not around it can be difficult to get your point across. I was extremely fortunate because the friend I brought with me is a nurse and fluent in Spanish.
They were able to take turns sitting with me at the clinic and resting at the hotel.
We were also very lucky to connect with a driver, Cristobal, who ran my mom and friend back and forth between the clinic and hotel and even took them on a sightseeing tour while I was doped up on pain killers!
I have been transferred to the Best Care Recovery House which has only been open about 8 months but seems nice. The people speak English and are very solicitous. I'll update after I've been here a couple of days.
My first check up with Dr. Tactuk is Saturday, I'll post more photos then.

Hello Fellow RealSelfers!
This entry is really long, so I apologize in advance.
I am scheduled for a "Mommy Makeover" in the Dominican Republic with Dr. Luis Tactuck Simo at CIPLA. I will be having a tummy tuck (TT), breast lift with implants (BL/BA), liposuction/liposculpture to my abdomen, waist, arms and thighs (LS) with fat transfer to my buttocks (BBL). I'm in my mid 40's with no children, so I guess this is really an Auntie Makeover. I had gastric sleeve surgery in 2012 and lost 75 pounds over the course of about a year, and I've kept it off since.
I was scheduled for a TT with BBL last May, here in the States, but my hemo levels were too low and I had to see a specialist to address my anemia. I was hugely disappointed, but it was the best thing that could have happened because my doctor in Cranford, NJ started acting sort of funny, wanting to postpone for all different reasons even before the anemia issue came up. I had questioned how my BBL would turn out based on the before and after pics on his website, my wish pics and my body type. I didn't think his butts were that great, but I figured it made sense to do the BBL at the same time as the TT since he'd have all that great excess fat to work with (LOL). He seemed to take it personally when I questioned whether his techniques could deliver what I was looking for. When I asked him directly if the anemia treatment would be the final roadblock and if I got my levels up we could go forward with the surgery, he said that he didn't think I would be satisfied with anything he could do and that he did not feel comfortable operating on me. I was shocked and devastated, but he refunded my $9800 (yes, nearly 10k just for the TT and BBL, not counting the hospital fee!), I got my iron infusions, got my hemo levels back to normal, and started researching medical tourism.
I was REALLY nervous about having surgery in another country - language barrier, unfamiliar medical facility and licensing regulations - but thanks to all the wonderful women who have shared their experiences here on RS, it was easy to allay my fears. I became an RS stalker, reading every review about surgeons, surgical facilities, recovery houses, pre-surgical vitamins and supplements, post-surgical supplies including garments, wound care, scar care and pain killers; as well as lymphatic massages, drain and stitch removal and what to bring to make travel more comfortable. Now, I'm less that 30 days away from getting on a plane to the DR and realizing a dream more than five years in the making, and I feel confident about my choices!
I'll be posting some before pictures soon and do my best to blog my beginning to end experience so I can pay forward all of the help and reassurance I received from this site.
Stay tuned!