Sweetsmyl3 Who Needs to Lose Major Weight - Tijuana, Mexico

Hey all. I like to share my experience in having the vertical sleeve procedure. While searching for a physician in the Washington, D.C. area, I kept running across doctors that wanted me to do the gastric bypass. I suppose because my bmi was 45 and need to lose a lot of weight or that may have been the surgery that they knew to do best. Who knows!Anyway, my sister who is a nurse kept telling me not to do that surgery to do the vertical sleeve. She has several of her nursing friends that had the procedure and were doing great and having great results. So that is what I set out to do. However, my road bumps were that my insurance company would not approve my surgery under any circumstances. Now I was so determine to have this surgery and be on my way to being healthier. You see, I have horrible knee pain and my blood pressure is so high. Of course I take meds for that but they make me feel like I weigh eve more than I do. I am always tired and can’t walk far - That is so annoying because I live in the city (just a few blocks from where I work) and don’t have the energy to walk to work which is what I should be doing.Anyway, I got on the internet and started more research on how much this surgery would cost. Man, in my area the cost was just too much ($20-30,000). I was started to get upset and thought about appealing my insurance when I ran across some information about how inexpensive the surgery was in Mexico. Of course my family was silent on that topic. So I sought out help from real self. I posted help for guidance to going to Mexico for the surgery. Dr. Mark Pleatman answered my post and we spoke on the phone. He told me that he had lots of patients that were from out of state and it was no problem to come and have your surgery and go back home. He gave me a lot to think about and I ran all this back to my sister. She was so relieved when I told her that I found a doctor in the States to do my surgery.Paying cash was a lot easier than going through the insurance company with all those silly rules that you have to do before you could have your surgery – which could take up to 6 to 12 months before you get approved. Paying cash was much better (if you can afford to spend on your health). Making arrangements to travel to Michigan (airfare, hotel, etc) were easy.Once we got to Michigan I met with Dr. Pleatman and his staff. They were the nicest people. I immediately feel in love with Rachel. She was so helpful. I, my daughter and sister had so much fun in that office. Meeting them made me feel less stressful. My nerves were really getting the best of me since I was there and knew this was getting ready to happen. But Dr. Pleatman is so kind and funny that I instantly felt calm. No matter what the others say about him the man has skills. And that is the kind of doctor I want treating me. He even gave me a copy of my operation and I was glad I was sleep when it was done.No seriously, the only word I can say about it is “Amazing”. After the surgery, I basically slept with little or no pain – possibly because of the pain meds they give you. Oh let me tell you about the state of the art hospital the surgery took place. This was an absolutely beautiful hospital with the nicest nurses and doctors. You even get your own room. One of my family members was always there with me even overnight.My only uncomfortable moments were the acid in your stomach. That was very miserable for at least a week. But after drinking liquid Rolaids, it helped a lot. I am almost 4 weeks post op and have lost about 30lbs and starting to feel pretty good, except for an occasional acid in my throat – which occurs when I try to eat something other than my protein shake. I can know eat a soft boiled egg. I love eggs and am so glad I can have that. I am now trying to incorporate some mashed foods and that is really hard. I tried eating baby food – yuk! Now I see why babies don’t even like it. I bought a whole slew of that stuff and now I have to put it in the trash!Well if you are considering having this surgery and your insurance will not pay, I suggest seeking out Dr. Pleatman. He is wonderful and you would be in good hands! I am not much of a picture taker, but in a couple of months I will post a picture of myself.

I have been dieting for 30+ years and would like some help in accomplishing some major weight loss. I will be 57 year old this year and need to do something soon with this weight because my blood pressure is high, my knees are in bad shape and I am physically tired. However, my insurance company will not pay for any obesity or morbid obesity surgery. I am considering going to Mexico to have the surgery, but am very reluctant. I think the fact that it is away from my home, the success of the surgery, whether the facilities are clean, the doctor is competent. I am very afraid of these things not being available. However, it appears that the price is way more affordable in Mexico. Can someone out there make me feel better about going to Mexico or somewhere that the obesity surgery is affordable and safe? Many people have tried to scare me into not going to Mexico because they say the facilities are not clean. I need to be assured that it is safe and my life will not be in jeopardy. Help???