4 Days to go and counting

Well Gals and Guys, I go in to see Dr. Joya on Labor Day. Today was my last full day of work. I'm only doing half a day tommorow and then the rest of the weekend is to try to get my things in order. To those of you who are post op, is there anything you'd wished you'd have remembered to take? How long were you off of work when you got back? What surprised you most about Mexico? Evie 280/280/145

I'm so glad you're going to see Dr. Joya!!! I just came back from there last week and met Kina, Susan A., and Jen down there. You will fall in love with him and his posse. I'd say be aware that it is VERY HUMID when you get to the resort. Even the bedspread is damp, which is not to take anything away from the experience, because it's awesome. Take magazines (you will NOT be able to concentrate on books), and anything that will comfort you. Most important, take someone with you if you can. The staff is awesome, but I loved having my sister with me. What surprised me most is how much I loved Mexico. I had never been there and hadn't anticipated ever going, but I just loved how warm the people are, the ocean with the mountains, and the resort. Man. It's awesome. Ask if you can stay in the "tower" which is just a 4 or 5 story complex, but right by the ocean and pools. There is a cyber cafe at the resort so you can stay in touch with friends. Gosh, I'm SOOOO excited for you! Please keep us posted about your progress. I had lap RNY and am I going back next week to work so it's three weeks off for me. Others have gone back sooner. Just DO NOT push yourself. Remember walk and shower as early as possible and keep walking!

Hi Donna, Think I'll be able to live with a damp bed spread. As long as I get the A/C. I have a friend who's taken 2 weeks off of work to come with me and take care of me while I'm out of commision. I'm definately going to ask for the Tower. Did you feel well enough to get to explore a bit of the town towards the end of your stay? I'm not going back to wor****il Halloween. But my job is in a hot, dirty environment that requires heavy lifting. I'm loooking forward to this odd vacation of sorts. lol Evie

Hi, Evie. I am so excited for you. I had my lap RNY with Dr. Joya on Aug 16. I took more than I needed. You won't need a robe, the hospital will set you up with gowns and slippers. They also have shampoo/conditioner and soap, as does the hotel, if you don't want to carry that along. The less you have to take the better. Donna is right. Magazines...books are hard to concentrate on. The TV is better at the hospital than at the hotel. I hope you have the good fortune to meet some new friends there like I did (Donna H., Jenny H, and Susan A.). They'll be friends for life now. I went back to work two weeks after my surgery. The people in PV drive like maniacs. It's kind of fun though. Don't be afraid to take a cab anywhere. They are very cheap. The price of things in pesos sounds high, but it's 10 to 1. IE: Something priced at 100 pesos is really 10 US dollars. And you can exchange american money for pesos at several places, including the hotel lobby. But a lot of places take american money too. The most amusing thing to me was when I first got there and Natalie was taking me to the hospital from the airport, one of the first things I saw was a Wal-Mart...of course. LOL Just know that the doctors and nurses are sooooo nice! Nothing to worry about. Tell them "hi" for me, especially Dr. Carlos Olivares. If he forgot who I was, tell him I was the one afraid of needles. I bet he'll remember real quick Good luck! If you have any questions, let one of us know. Kina 220/197/120

Hi Kina, I'm definately hoping to meet some new friends while I'm there. Will be exciting to meet some people next year at the bash. Perhaps you gals too. Will be nice to 'go back' and be able to take advantage of the things to do and try there. I'm hoping to do a little crocheting while I'm there. Hopefully they'll let me take the crochet sticks on the plane. Think it will give my nervousness some place to go. Yay for Wal-Mart. Didn't think I'd be excited about having access to a Wal-Mart. That's where you get your bottled water, no? lol Anyone's companion get sick from the water there? LOL, especially Dr. Carlos Olivares. Will have to write it down as I'm sure I"ll have a ton of thing going through my head. My plane leave 3am Monday morning so guess no sleep for me sunday night, but I'll have one long nap later that day anyhow. Evie

If you haven't left yet for heavens sake take a PILLOW!! That was my only complaint... the pillows suck. lol Surprizes? Um, for me it was the humidity (I live in the desert) and how awesomely helpful the hotel staff was. One day I was hobbling down to the ice holder and one of the staff saw me. He informed me that I didn't need to get ice, he'd inform the front desk and let them know when I called them they needed to BRING me ice. LOL It was sweet. Have no worries though, Dr. Joya and his staff are the most wonderful set of people you could ever hope to be caring for you. I've had a list of complications and let me tell you.. I wish they were closer because the care I get here flat sucks compared to the attention they gave me there. Have fun in Mexico! ~Audrey~

Hi Audrey, Thank you so much for the pillow suggestion. I'm a little neurotic about my pillows and usually dislike hotel pillows. What kind of complications did you have? Is insurance going to pay for the care you're receiving now? It suddenly occurs to me, just how does everyone keep from dieing of boredom? Evie

Well, I had a couple rather nasty complications. Within 12 hours of surgery I needed a blood transfusion. I took 2 pints of blood... I don't remember it well since I was so weak and out of it, but it scared my family pretty badly. All I remember about that time is looking up at my IV and seeing a blood pressure cuff wrapped around a pint of blood and thinking it looked silly. After the transfusion I felt MUCH better and it was almost as if it didn't happen. My husband checked the packages of the blood to make sure they had been tested. lol Then about 6 days after surgery I was sitting in the hotel... I took a drink and felt it go out my drainage bag. I had developed what's called a fistula.. basically a hole in my new stomach. The doctors rushed me to the hospital and took x-rays of it. They explained my options and we chose to go back on IV fluids and just let it heal on it's own. Unfortunately after 3 days it hadn't healed at all. My flight home was the next day and they said either I could stay and let them care for me or they could send me home with a pic line and IV fluids. I opted to come home... I have 5 kids and my husband's leave was over. I probably should have stayed. So far my insurance seems to be covering the hospital stay I've incurred here at home. We'll see if they continue to, I don't know. I know I've had problems getting any other surgeon to see me... they inform me that the surgeon who does the operation is responsible for me for 90 days... only after then will they do any surgeries I may need. Not cool. But it's all good, I've healed up and Monday I start on my full liquid diet. If you feel good you won't die of boredom, the hotel has all sorts of things to do not to mention the beach right there. I kinda died of boredom because I was so sick... but I did have my husband carry my IV down to the water so I could dip my feet in the ocean! lol Have fun in PV, it's beautiful!! ~Audrey~