Wanting to Band and trying to be sure about where?

[Guest guest]

I live in North Carolina so going to Mexico is quite a hike. Anyone

else here that has gone that far? Also when I do a search on lap band

I have found about 10 different places in Mexico that do them? Can

anyone tell me how you decided on Dr. Aceves over someone else? His

prices do seem to be the best! I am like you all I want to change my

life and escape this imprisonment inside this fat body that has kept me

from doing so many things I have always loved. I just need some

reassuring in making the decision especially sine I am coming from so

far away and have such a hefty airfare. Thanks so much to anyone

willing to enlighten me!!!

[Guest guest]

Dear Swanabe, My name is Cathryn and I traveled from a small Pacific Island near Guam to have my surgery done by Dr. A. My total travel time from my home in Palau is well over 24 hours, and my airfare usually is more than $2,000. So, believe me when I say I know what it means to travel for surgery and for fills. When I was researching surgeons, I ask help from my local surgeon. He gave me some advice that ended up really helping me make my decision. First, he suggested that I find a surgeon that has done enough lap bands to have adaquate experience, but not so many that he no longer cares about the individual patients. The second piece of advice was to find a surgeon that performs surgery in an actual hospital, not a stand alone surgery center. The thought behind this was in case of an emergency during surgery, I wanted to be at a hospital with a proper ICU. Well

when I did my research there were two surgeonns in Tijuana that I looked into. Both of those surgeons operated out of stand alone surgery centers. And at least one of the Docs does as many as 6-8 surgeries per day (whew, I would not like to be number 8). The other Doc I considered was in Monterrey. While he used a hopsital, and was well experienced, when I looked into the logistics of getting to Monterrey, it was pretty complicated. So, I contacted Nina, joined the list serve and by the time I was ready to schedule my surgery, I was pretty comfortable that I had made the right decision. Ultimately, the decision you make needs to be one you will feel good about. So, good luck in figuring it all out, and congrats on deciding on the lap band. I had my surgery in July and am happy to be 65 pounds lighter now that I was then! It is one of the best decisions I ever made for myself. Let me know if you have any

more questions. Peace, Cathryn __________________________________________________