how long time of work?

[piglet8]

Hi
I'm scheduled to have a gastric bypass in about 2 weeks and have been trying to plan my time off with work. When i spoke to my GP he said to self certificate for first week and then to see him for a further couple of weeks. Is 3 weeks enough? Im a midwife in a very busy labour suite and doing 13h shifts including nights, im just worried that im setting myself up for a struggle.

piglet

 

[Natstar]

Hi,

I think everyone is different - my doc signed me off for 3 weeks however I am sure I could go back to work next week.

It all depends on your job, 3 weeks should be suffcient although you will need to factor in that you may need a bit more time off if you aren't healing as well as you had planned etc.

Good Luck with your Op!

Nx

 

[Karlos]

Your GP will advise you dependant upon how fit you feel post op. Some do just fine with two weeks off work, others with more physically demanding jobs can take up to 12 weeks. Each individual/situation is different. If you're not up to going back after three weeks you'll need longer to recover, if you feel ok then great go back to work. Take it one step at a time and follow your surgeon's advice. Good luck with it all x

 

[drylaw]

as said before everyone is different i thought id be ok but i have had afew problems which is going to make me have a bit longer off

 

[penelope1008]

My surgeon signed me off for 3 weeks which luckily took me into the schools summer holidays so in the end I had 9 wks off which left me safely back on solids well rested & recovered but theoretically I could have gone back sooner but it's one of those things you never quite know until you've had the op & see how you feel.

 

[Rachy1979]

Hiya, to be fair I think 3 weeks doesn't seem long enough in your line of work... I'm concerned about how long I'll be taking off too, I'm a nurse on a horrendously busy gastro ward and as hard as you may try to take a step back it's not always easy when you're used to being in the deep of things, and it's lifting, pulling, pushing etc that will make you feel sore IMO. However I guess it depends on how you personally feel. I know occ health depts are seeing more and more staff having had the op so they should be able to advise you also.

 

[pandora]

I'm a nurse on a busy surgical ward , I took 6 weeks off & no manual handling for 12 weeks which is up on Friday . The first 2 shifts back I was knackered , could hardly keep my eyes open by the end of the shift & I do 7.5 hr shifts .
The hardest thing I found was timings for fluids & food xx

 

[mamma mia]

I have an office job and went back after 3 weeks and it was too early ended up having another 2 weeks off! Thought I was ok but so easy to overdo it even though you think your not and very very tired but everyone is different hun xxx

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[P5ARE]

I have an office job I went back 2 wes after my bypass and I was absolutely fine. Everyone is different and it also depends on you job - take it easy and don't go back to earlier good luck with your journey

 

[mazd20010]

It is difficult to say I only needed 3 weeks but someone I know in same job had 10 all depends on how you feel yourself xx

 

[jojojelly]

I am an SEN teacher, my GP signed me off for 2 months! I had open surgery though, so I think the healing time is longer.
Everyone is different but I don't think 3 weeks will be long enough in your line of work.
Good luck with your op x

 

[babybell]

Hey
I had 8 weeks and I work in a office,I just recovered nice a slowly and took my time. I dumped quite abit at first and now I'm fine with all food bread,pasta etc. go back when you feel ready. Everyone's different there's no prizes for hurrying back.

 

[Yvessa]

I teach and I have had six weeks. Went in for a visit today, so only about 3/4 of the day and was absolutely knackered - hadn't even taught a lesson! Did have 3 meetings but still. lol. Karlos is definitely right here, take it a week at a time and see when you feel ready and your team think you're ready.

 

[piglet8]

Thank you all.
I told work that it would definately be 3 weeks and ill play it by ear after that.
Its very difficult to ensure a non lifting situation on labour ward, just today i had a woman in labour in the pool who i found suddenly hanging of me in blind panic as the head was crowning! and i had no choice but to take her weight. Not to mention breakfast at 6 AM and no break until 19.00!
But ill see how it goes. I'll have the meeting with the doc tomorrow so will see what he says.

 

[piglet8]

OMG just seen the lovely Mr Khan and he has brought forward my date to next week!! I will be admitted on Friday, so I better get my skates on with the pre op diet. Super exited but very scary!!! It's happening, I'm doing it!!

 

[Beluca]

Really interesting to read your posts about time off work. I had my surgery on Tuesday and although I know we are told 2 weeks off work, I run my own business and can't afford that much time off at the moment. I am mainly office based and was planning on going back in slowly this week. Am feeling a bit sore but better each day.

Did anyone else out there go back to work sooner? Love to hear from you and how you got on.

 

[helenaali]

Really interesting to read your posts about time off work. I had my surgery on Tuesday and although I know we are told 2 weeks off work, I run my own business and can't afford that much time off at the moment. I am mainly office based and was planning on going back in slowly this week. Am feeling a bit sore but better each day.

Did anyone else out there go back to work sooner? Love to hear from you and how you got on.

i went back to wrk after a week like u i run my own business but i was physically tired for a week or so

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[OOnion]

I had 8 weeks off, but did have my main wound pop open and an infection. However I was not prepared for 10 hr days on my return and was shattered. As a midwife I would have thought you would need at least 6 weeks to be able to go back to lifting, and all that bending and getting in funny positions to see what's going on "up there" !
Take care and don't rush back - your recovery is more important especially in our busy work environments!
xx

 

[penelope1008]

I had 9 wks off purely because my 3wk sick leave ran into the start of the 6wk summer holiday (I'm a teaching teaching assistant). I was shattered when I went back but as much because if the long break pottering I'm usually shattered for the first few weeks back after the summer holiday & only felt a little bit more so than normal & that was more due to how much I could eat than anything else. I had a few times in those first weeks back as my energy output exceeded the input so had a few sessions where a protein bar & shake was needed to stop the shakes & wobbles.
My advice you know your work schedule, take it easy perhaps half days to start, make sure you have some protein shakes & soups etc to hand to keep you healthy & rest as much as possible. Listen to your body don't over do it & take it slowly you've had major surgery even if there isn't much external evidence of it so go careful don't rush back to do to much to soon.

 

[Beluca]

Thanks everyone that's really helpful. I'm going in tomorrow from 10-2pm so taking it slow and already got my 3 tablespoons of chicken soup ready to take with me!

Wish me luck