Guillermo Alvarez Bariatric Surgeon MD

I was sleeved by Dr. Alvarez on 10-14-15 and I must say it was a wonderful journey. I only have 60 pounds to lose and I am already down 20 pounds. Dr. Alvarez and his staff are AMAZING! I was scared traveling to Mexico, but my fears were unwarranted. I had excellent care second to none in the states! I believe I visited with him several times and his nurses were so helpful and friendly. The hospital was great, clean and very professional. For those of you thinking about surgery, there is nobody else I would recommend than Dr. Alvarez! Loving life and looking forward to a healthy lifestyle!!!

A very professional, transparent, clean, trustworthy, sincere, WORLD CLASS VIP HEALTHCARE TREATMENT!!!

I had surgery with Dr Alvarez on September 10, 2015. I am so glad that I did this. I am 5 weeks out and have never felt better. My only regret was that I didn't do it sooner! The entire experience with Dr Alvarez from start to finish was nothing short of amazing. I never had to question anything about my journey because everything was taken care of for me. It all went so smooth. I was nervous about going to Mexico but once I got to Piedras Negras I was so pleased on how beautiful the area is and how truly wonderful the people are. The hospital is very clean and the nurses are wonderful. Dr. Alvarez is as nice and wonderful as you see him in his YouTube videos. I cannot say enough about the entire experience and I would recommend Dr Alvarez and his team to everyone who is considering this surgery. Even after you have surgery Dr. Alvarez stays in touch with you and he gives you his personal email if you have any questions. Doctors in the USA could learn a thing or two from him.

Hello, I had surgery with dr.a on sept.7,2015 and all I can say is I am very glad I choose him as my surgeon him and his team are outstanding they are very nice and professional they take very good care of you. As for him being in Mexico a lot of people are scared or nervous about having surgery in Mexico but all I can say is that it is very safe to go and Dr.A is one of the best surgeons

After having met with Dr. Alvarez in June of this year at the 1st Southeast VSG Conference in Atlanta, I knew this was the doctor I wanted to do my gastric sleeve surgery. Not only did he discuss the surgery with me, but he made me feel as if I was talking with a friend and not a doctor. After leaving the conference, I phoned Susan George the following week and was able to schedule my surgery for 8/6/15. The entire experience of getting to and from Mexico was a very pleasant and exciting one. The entire staff were very friendly, supportive, and acommodating. The hospital itself was very clean. The nurses were checking on you around the clock, making sure you were ok. I am so glad I did this with Dr. Alvarez, and would recommend him to all of my family and friends. My only regret is not having this surgery many years earlier.

Unlike some of the reviews, I was not nervous about having surgery in Mexico. I had several friends that Dr. Alvarez performed their weight loss surgery. Dr. A as most of us call him, is AMAZING. His complete staff were like family. I have never had an experience like that. Everything was easy and simple. The anxiety over having surgery in general was there, but my mind was put at ease as soon as I shook his hand. He is one of the most caring physicians I have ever come across and I'm a nurse, so I have know a lot of them! Besides caring for me with excellence, they also took care of my companion like they were family as well. There is no higher praise I can give Dr. A, besides he changed my life and I am forever thankful.

I had my surgery July 20th, 2015. I am a registered nurse. I was hesitant and worried about going to Mexico for weight loss surgery. I researched Dr. Alvarez and read reviews, blogs and his informative videos on YouTube. I could not find anything negative. I had the same worries that most people have about going to Mexico. Was I going to get kidnapped and murdered by the cartels, were they pretending to do weight loss surgery, but instead taking my kidney out; was it a scam- and once they picked me up in Texas-were they going to rob me of my money and leave me on the side of the road? But- this is not a scam, and I felt very safe in Eagle pass, Texas and Mexico. The hospital is clean, the staff were attentive and nice. Dr. Alvarez was so sweet, caring, calm, re-assuring and informative. I felt comfortable and at ease as soon as we met and he started talking. His fellow surgeons and Anesthesiologist were just as caring and informative as he was. I was also so worried about pain and complications from surgery, because I had never had surgery before and it was a 8 hour drive to Mexico. But surgery was non-eventful, and I wasn't in horrific pain after. Mostly uncomfortable from gas. After the first few days, I started having incisional pain at the delivery site. (where my stomach was taken out). But it was mild and is completely gone now. I recommend any one looking for a gastric sleeve surgeon to consider Dr. Alvarez. You won't go wrong. He didn't treat me like a number, I was a person. And I truly felt he cared about me and bettering my life.

Today is the one month anniversary of my gastric sleeve surgery by Dr. Guillermo Alvarez and team. My heaviest weight was in February of this year (2015) was 259 pounds. By the time I decided to have surgery, I had gotten down to 249 pounds prior to my pre-op diet. During the pre-op diet (all liquid for one week) I got down to my surgery date weight of 238. That was an amazing loss of nine or ten pounds in just a week. The week after surgery was all clear liquids and I was down another 10 pounds. So in just two weeks, I lost around 19 pounds. I’m exactly one month out of surgery and have a total loss of 38 pounds. The path is not straight. I’m learning about weight loss stalls, what causes them, and how to overcome them. I’m learning a lot about myself and feeling more worthwhile and confident already. At work this past week, I realized how much easier and comfortable it was to cross my legs. Little things like that happen more and more often. Simple little things that make me realize slowly I am taking back my life and beginning to live it again. I’m doing more than just existing.
This weight loss surgery journey started almost a year prior while I was on vacation in Colorado. My lifelong friend, Sherri, and I toured the cave dwellings of Mesa Verde. To exit one of the dwellings required me to fit through a very small stone tunnel. I almost didn’t fit. This was embarrassing, but even more, it was a huge eye opener. I had been overweight – gaining and losing and gaining again-for nearly twenty years. My weight had diminished my self-esteem and confidence. I lacked energy and vitality that I once enjoyed. Finding clothes in my size that were attractive was nearly impossible. Anyway, I had put up with the problems my weight issue had born, both emotional and physical. I had been treated for polycystic ovarian syndrome with metformin for years and finally in the past year, I had been diagnosed with type II diabetes and an added diabetic medication. Emotionally I struggled with depression a few times. I lost my happy.
Yes, I knew what it would take to lose and maintain the weight. I had been told over and over. Eat less, exercise more. Put down the fork. Intellectually I knew what needed to be done, but psychologically, I just didn’t possess the stick-with-it mentality to be successful. I always fell back into old habits of overeating, eating desserts, eating starchy carbs. I knew better, but I had given up and felt hopeless. It’s difficult to exercise when you carry an extra 120 pounds every day, all day long. My dear friend, the one that captured the image of me trying to squeeze through the Mesa Verde exit, has known me since grade school and we have been more like sisters than just friends. She knew better than I did that I had to lose weight and was very supportive. Her stepdaughter had the gastric sleeve surgery with Dr. Alvarez a year earlier with amazing results of losing over 100 pounds in just a year. She had blossomed into a new young woman because of the surgery. After a few conversations with her, I began researching. Reading about vertical gastric sleeve surgery, Dr. Alvarez, and other doctor bariatric doctors fed my quest for information. I watched videos and read testimonials. I read about other options such as gastric bypass and lap band surgeries. In conclusion, vertical gastric sleeve surgery with Dr. Alvarez seemed to be the best answer for me. I did not find anything negative, and believe me, I looked for the negatives. But what I found was positive results and absolutely happy patients taking back their lives.
So in the middle of June, I made my appointment. I cancelled my appointment, but thankfully I rescheduled it for July 21. Why the waffling? Having surgery is scary to me. The only surgeries I had before were necessary—broken elbow and two C-sections. Having sleeve surgery was not necessary. Or was it? Questions like that played on my mental soundtrack. Was I tempting fate by having two thirds of my perfectly healthy stomach removed? What problems would that cause as I aged? Anesthesia makes me wary. What about post-surgery infections? What if I had complications and had to stay in the hospital in Mexico. Financially, I was going into debt to have the surgery? Shouldn’t I just wait and save the money? If I wait I might never get it done. I needed to get this done now, so I could start enjoying life again. So there are all of these back and forth tug of wars in making this decision. Then there were the questions of having surgery in a different country--Mexico. Was I really going to have surgery by a doctor I’ve never met in person, in a place I’ve never seen before, and in a country where I am not fluent in the language? Yes, I was taking a leap of faith. Dr. Alvarez’s reputation, his communications, and professional background tipped the scales in favor of the surgery and having the surgery in Mexico.
Yes, I had reservations in the beginning, but they were all unfounded. The morning we left for Texas, I felt a reassured calmness knowing I was doing the right thing for me. Everything was exactly as he patient coordinator, had told me it would be. We called the hotel shuttle, met Rosie our driver, traveled to Eagle Pass, TX, met up and had dinner with my sleeve sisters (This is another genius way to help us in our journey.) and got a good night’s rest. Rosie picked us up at 7:30 a.m. on July 21 and drove us over the border to Endobariatrics, Dr. Alvarez’s office. After a group photo, we entered the office. Shortly after, Dr. Alvarez entered and greeted each of us warmly and genuinely. He met with each of us individually discussing our medical history and answered questions we may have had. I felt absolutely confident in minutes of meeting him that I was in the best hands I could be in and that I had made a very, very good decision in having weight loss surgery with Dr. Alvarez.
The surgery morning went exactly as explained. So did the afternoon—waking from surgery and walking the halls to begin the healing. The next day ice chips never tasted so good! More walking. We even walked a short distance to the pharmacy and store next to the hospital. We were all feeling pretty good for having a major surgery. Another night in the hospital with quiet, competent nurses tending to us through the night lead to a 6:30 a.m. grape juice box. If we could successfully drink half of the juice, we would be released to travel back to San Antonio for a good night’s rest before flying back to Kansas City.
I could not have hoped for a better experience. The Endobariatric staff was friendly, professional, and skilled. The hospital staff was also top notch. There was a professionalism in this facility that I have not seen in many American hospitals. The hospital was not fancy and big, but it was clean and efficient. It was the human element that made it grand. We were treated respectfully and without judgement.
Now that I’m one month post-surgery, I am still happy with my decision to have the surgery. Yes, I could barely stop smiling the moment I set foot in Piedras Negras in Mexico. I’m still smiling. I’ve followed Dr. Alvarez’s instructions and I’ve had success. I have had no problems, discomfort, or pain worth complaining about. I’m respecting my sleeve and following the rules. I have stalled out a time or two, but that all passed and I understand it will happen here and there. This tool will help me lose and maintain my weight, improve my health, and jump start my life. I honestly cannot say enough to convey how happy I am that I trusted Dr. Alvarez and his surgical team with my life and my weight loss journey. I found my happy again.

My husband was referred to Dr Alvarez by someone at his work. Like anyone would be I was nervous at the idea of traveling to Mexico for surgery. My husband and I did a ton of research. We even specifically searched for bad reviews. We found none. There was a reason for that!!! Dr Alvarez and his team are the best!!!! I've had no complications and I firmly believe it's because I have received the best possible care from the best surgeon and surgical team. I highly recommend Dr Alvarez.

After 4 years of struggling trying to lose on my own I finally set up my apt with Dr Alvarez. I researched all i could for 2 years before making my final decision to goto him. With something like this you just know through communication if you are at your comfort zone. And i was times a million. I never had a uneasy feeling during the whole process. People tried to scare me about going to Mexico. But it was nothing anyone told me that it was. When we areived to his clinic we were treated as if we were family and he has such an amazing bedside manor that you would think he has known you forever!! After having surgery the following day i even got up and went to the Market shopping. He had his driver and a employee take us! My brother in law went and the nurses made sure he was fed every meal! I have to say i was highly impressed. I am now 1 month out from surgery and have hit a weightloss of 50 pounds !!! So exciting. But i know the after care and support from DrA and Susan has been over the top. They stay in contact and answer every question no matter how big or small quickly. I recommend Dr Alvarez and his team to anyone!!!