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How long should I take off work after surgery???



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I was banded on 12/28 and went back to work today - 9 days later. I probably would have been ok going back at 7 days but much sooner than that I wouldn't have been able to do it. Not only to you have to think about the physical adjustment, but there are the changes in eating & drinking habits too that need to be incorporated into daily work life. Everyone is different...I think my time off was just about right.

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Whew! This process is moving along very fast. In September I became interested in WLS after I was deathly afraid for my sister to have VGB WLS. In the process of researching I came across Lap Band Surgery and decided this was the most logical WLS out there for me. It definitely seemed much safer and could help to address the issue of overeating (even the good foods). My apprehension of my sister getting WLS actually helped me to choose WLS, what a turnaround.

Well my reason for posting is to ask about how long people normally take off work after lap band surgery (or will be taking off). I have read in posts from days to 3 weeks. I have finished my 3 dietician visits, primary physician visits, psych visit and have solid support from all three. The only thing I am waiting for is the surgeon to call me after the team has approved me as a good candidate to schedule our appointment. After that I wait for insurance approval. They told me it would be about a month before I get a surgery date. I am a teacher and am trying to plan the surgery date to provide as little disruption as necessary. I can't wait until our spring break because our board and union agreed to change everyone to a different insurance as of April 1st. Do you think it's possible for me to take Thursday and Friday off right before a Monday mid-semester break day? That would be 5 days off---it really would be nice if I could have the surgery Wednesday afternoon!

What do you think? I was trying to have all my appointments done before Winter Vacation, but appts wouldn't line up. I don't want to tell anyone at my job, they gossip way too much.

Hi! I am also a teacher and I too was concerned about taking days off and missing school. Fortunately, my surgeon was able to schedule surgery the Tuesday before Christmas. It was ideal. I had almost 2 weeks to recover. It was awesome! I could have gone back to work the following Monday (but fortunately we had that week off). I was still sore and a little slow at moving around but I could have managed it! Everyone is different and reacts differently to surgery and you will know when you are ready to go back to work!

Best of luck with scheduling the surgery and having it! I was soooo scared but so far everything has been going great!

By the way, I also didn't tell anyone at work, and no one even questioned me. I didn't tell any of my family member either (it's a personal choice, as much as I love my family, they aren't good at keeping secrets). My family members did not even notice that I never really ate anything on Christmas because I was still on liquids. I was sooo worried that they would pick up on that but they didn't. The only person in the entire world that knows is my husband. He has been the best support a woman could ever ask for!

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I'm a bit concerned about telling folks at work, too. I could take off, no problem, but I've got a lot of work on my plate right now, so I need to tell them something so they know its not just a vacation. I was thinking about saying I was going to have abdominal surgery and just leave it at that. Depending on what day of the week surgery is scheduled I think I'll take 1 week or less, just to avoid all the questions & gossip.

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