Angie and Fred King

Oklahoma

July  2006

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Tubal ligation

June 2000

Tubal reversal

July 29, 2006

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7 cm  right

5 cm left

August 2006

My name is Angie King, my husband Fred and I have been married eight years.  My tubal was done in June of 2000.

We talked with our Reproductive Endocrinologist about reversal, but he wanted $10k - $12k. We researched online for low-cost tubal reversal and found several clinics that would do for between $6k - $8k, and figured we'd have to save for months to get to that point. Then we ran across Dr. Perez's website and were excited to find out that we had enough money in the bank to do it NOW. Being 35 years old, I figured the sooner the better! So on Sunday I called and spoke with Dr. Levi about scheduling. He was very funny and agreed to do the surgery the FOLLOWING Saturday. July 29th, 2006, six days away! Of course I was excited and suddenly became nervous because it was going to happen rather quickly. My husband and I had intended to fly and use Marcos, but the short time frame made the flight from Oklahoma City to McAllen expensive. We opted to drive.

We left Friday afternoon around 3:30. LONG DRIVE. I would recommend you fly if your drive is more than a few hours. We arrived at our McAllen hotel at one in the morning. It was not a good hotel. they only provided one towel, a very small bed, etc. But it was only $40, and we weren't going to be there long anyway so it was fine. We awoke around 6 in the morning and drove to Mexico. We (of course) became confused at the border, went the wrong way, and were demonstrated to go around by a gentleman that didn't speak English and waved his hands wildly at us. The website directions were perfect, we arrived at the hospital without problems.

We signed our paperwork and were shown to our room; almost immediately a nurse came in to put my IV in. She kept asking me a question I didn't understand but eventually through gestures, I realized she was asking me if I'd shaved. :) They brought my husband a tray of food, which he ate right in front of me without remorse, LOL. They also brought blankets and pillows for me and my husband. We watched TBS (the only English channel) for a couple of hours before they came and got us.

Things moved rather quickly from there. Dr. Moreno (I believe) talked to me about giving me sleepy medication, and I didn't even feel the epidural going in. In no time I was numb from mid-section down. I became disturbed about this rather quickly, tried to move my feet, my leg, anything. Plus I could feel my heart up against the numb portion and it felt weird. I remained semi-calm while the doctors did the first portion of the surgery. I heard them talking about how I had 7 cm on one side, things were going well, etc. But then I guess I panicked because I was feeling nauseated. So I asked to be put to sleep, and they said OK! I awoke quickly after that and was moved back to my room.

I did experience some pain after the epidural wore off, but the nurses took care of that quickly when my husband told them. My abdomen didn't hurt so much as my shoulder blades and diaphragm. That was the worst part...especially when driving home. I couldn't lay down flat, the only position I was comfortable in was sitting upright, knees to my chest. But within 48 hours that wore off.

The morning following the surgery, we were brought pancakes for breakfast. Dr. Levi came and talked to us. I have 7 cm of tube remaining on the right side and 5 cm on the left. He provided antibiotics and some pain killers, along with a post-op report. My husband paid, and we were on our way!

Overall the experience was VERY positive. Everyone is friendly and goes out of their way to help, even if they don't understand what you're saying. I'd recommend flashcards with English/Spanish words on them, that helped us immensely.

Thank you to everyone at the hospital for taking such good care of us! God Bless!

Angie & Fred