August 2005
Hi there. I had my surgery on March 23,
2004. I am expecting a baby girl on 11/26/2005. We are very
excited and are very grateful to Dr Perez for helping us with our
little miracle. Thank you!
Becky Paolino
March 2004
My husband and I were married four years ago. I have two children
from my first marriage and he has one child. When we first got
married we looked into a tubal reversal, but after finding out that
it would cost up to $10,000.00, we just about gave up on the idea,
until the good Lord led us to Dr. Perez. When we first found this
website, we had some concerns about having surgery in Mexico, at
first it sounded, "CRAZY"... but the more we read, we were convinced
that we should make our appointment. I also contacted former
patients, and searched for anything negative about Dr. Perez, but we
couldn't find anything! So our journey began.
We drove from Colorado to fly to Harlingen, Texas from New Mexico.
We arrived at about 6:55 pm. Everything had gone smoothly up until
this point. We had arrangements for Fannie to pick us up at the
airport and take us to the hospital, but she was not there when we
arrived. We tried calling her, Dr. Levi, and the hospital but were
unable to call internationally from the airport! Then the panic
began to set in and I just started crying and crying. We didn't know
what we were going to do. At that moment, I started to question
everything and was feeling really helpless and stranded. I prayed to
the Lord that he be with us and help us through this, and shortly
after 8:00 pm she drove up in front of us. She began apologizing and
saying she was late because of the traffic, and I just went over to
her, hugged her, and said, that I was just glad that she was there.
We then proceded to the hospital. It was dark by then, and it was a
longer drive than we expected. We arrived at the hospital at about
9:00 pm.
The hospital was small, but as you enter, you can't help but notice
how white and clean everything was. Fannie helped us check in and
then showed us to our roon, which was #7. We went to our room and
just tried to let it all sink in. We couldn't believe that we were
actually there! We were scared and in a little shock, but we decided
to try to make ourselves comfortable. We then decided to go down the
hall and introduce ourselves to another couple, John and Maryanne,
that had had her surgery the night before. We took pictures and
exchanged phone numbers, and that made us feel a little more
comfortable. The nurses couldn't speak English but I asked them to
call the doctor, they said, in the morning, but that night, Dr. Levi
called me to say hi and to confirm that my surgery would be at 6:30
am in the morning. So we decided to put a movie on and try to get
some rest. We asked the nurse for some pillows and blankets, he gave
us some pillows, but said, blankets, later. We decided to go to
sleep without the blankets, but then in the middle of the night a
nurse brought us two fluffy warm blankets right out of the dryer,
that was so comforting.
Needless to say, I couldnt' sleep that night, I was up every hour,
but finally the morning came. A nurse came in and gave me a hospital
gown and started an I.V. and then shortly after that, Dr. Levi came
in. I was really glad to see him, he has such a comforting face!.
They gave my husband scrubs to wear, and he looked so cute in them!
They then asked me to get into the wheelchair, and they put a
hospital cap on my head and some funky booties on my feet, then I
was off to the O.R. I was pretty nervous, but excited that it was
finally happening. As we entered the O.R., I asked, where is Dr.
Perez?, he then answered, Right Here.., as he stood there with his
mask on all ready for me. They put me on the operating table and the
first thing I noticed was the crucifix on the wall, which comforted
my soul. Dr. Levi then put a shot in my I.V. and told me to get into
the fetal position, the anesthesiologist put in the epidural and
cathader, and I had no idea it was even done. The next thing I knew,
I was in the middle of surgery. I remember feeling pressure in my
abdomen as they were working on me, but no pain. I was awake
practically the whole time. I asked them how my tubes looked, and
Dr. Perez, said good. They spoke to each other in Spanish during the
whole surgery. He told me the right tube has 6 cm. I then could feel
that that they were working on my left side, which they said had 4
cm. I can remember the anesthesiologist holding my hand and asking
me if I was ok. I also remember my husband taking pictures. They
even gave him a stool to stand on so that he could get better
pictures. It was truly an out of body experience. I felt like I was
really there watching my own surgery!
Then I was taken back to my room and Dr. Levi was there to help put
me in my bed. I asked him where Dr. Perez was, and he said he would
tell me to come and see me. I asked him how long my legs would be
numb, and he said, about 4 hours. Then they brought me some jello,
tea and juice and my husband eggs. We were still hungry, but I just
tried to get some rest. Luckily I brought my husband some snacks!
The first day is rough, you can't move and you are just stuck on
your back. Then they brought us lunch about 12:30pm. Yay! Some real
food. It was chicken, rice, mashed potatoes, and homemade tortillas,
which were really yummy! I then started to get concerned because it
had been about six hours since the surgery and my right leg had the
feeling back, but my left leg was still completely numb. So my
husband went and asked the nurses to call the doctor. I finally got
to see Dr. Perez. He came in and asked me what was wrong. I told him
about my legs, he said not to worry, that the feeling would come
back later. I asked him what my percentage was to conceive and he
said 80-90%, which made us very happy! He then had to go do a
C-Section, and I didn't get to see him again. That night, my left
side was still numb for hours, but eventually it wore off. At about
11pm a nurse came in my room and took out the epidural, catheter,
and I.V. and gave me a shot so I could sleep. I was so happy!! I
really hated the feeling of being paralyzed, apparently the medicine
they give you for pain, continues the numbness, so I didn't like
that part. Early the next morning, I got up and went to the
bathroom, with my husband's help. We then took a short walk down the
hall and saw the beautiful baby that was delivered that night. It
reminded us why we were there!
Dr. Levi then came in my room at about 7:30 am and gave me
antibiotics and pain pills and said I could take a shower. A nurse
then put a new bandage on me, we ate pancakes for breakfast, and
then we were released at 9:00 am. Fannie was there to pick us up on
time. Before we left we stopped in a room with another couple who
were very nervous, so we encouraged them that everything would be
ok. We then did a little shopping and we were then on our way home!
I will never forget this experience. I want to thank Dr. Perez, Dr.
Levi, Fannie, all the staff at the hospital, and especially our Dear
Lord for making this possible for us. I feel very grateful and happy
and am so glad we got this opportunity. I would do it all over again
in a minute! For any of you that are afraid, don't be, you will not
regret going to Rio Bravo, it will change you life for the better.
God Bless you all.
Becky P.
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