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Hi guys, I’m having surgery on Thursday. What is everyone’s thoughts about when to return to work. I’m a billing manager and I spend my days at my desk punching numbers, no heavy lifting or anything. I can do some work from home but I’m still curious as to everyone’s thoughts? I know people who have taken two weeks off, some have taken a week and some went back after like five days. Please share.

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LOL! I wish I had a job to go back to. I am beating the bushes looking for work opportunity.

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It's hugely variable between people. I had an easy recovery and didn't miss anytime from work, but I work from home. I could have gone into an office for a desk job 2 days post op. But I'm definitely on the low end for time off, most people need more time than that.

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2 hours ago, acuttita said:

Hi guys, I’m having surgery on Thursday. What is everyone’s thoughts about when to return to work. I’m a billing manager and I spend my days at my desk punching numbers, no heavy lifting or anything. I can do some work from home but I’m still curious as to everyone’s thoughts? I know people who have taken two weeks off, some have taken a week and some went back after like five days. Please share.

i am two weeks post op and today is my first day back. I also sit at a desk doing patient registration at a hospital, so no heavy lifting for me either. Honestly i could have gone back on day 4 post op, but it was nice to get a break and get on a routine with my vits, protien, Water, ect.

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If you have the time off and can swing it I would at least take one week off, two weeks is even better.

Some people get really nauseated and have a hard time keeping fluids and such down post op. Even at a desk job I wouldn’t want to be dehydrated, nauseated, and miserable.

I have a physical job and had full six weeks off. No regrets. :D

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I work from home. Took off 3 days including surgery day. Very easy recovery but I wish I had just taken the week off, not because I felt bad (I did not take my pain pills) but because i was still not really focused.

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seems to be the $10,000 question. Everyone asks me how long it will be before I go back to work. My canned answer is - the first week, forget it. the 2nd week, I might work from home (also a desk job) and hopefully by the 3rd week feel well enough, not only to work, but to drive a car and climb the stairs to my office. I'm lucky to have a good employer, they're fine if I work 1/2 days once I get back into the office.

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Not sure what your work allows, I’m lucky and have short term disability and took 4 weeks off, should have took one more.


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I know a couple people who have had the surgery and two of the three said they could of been back to work (all had desk jobs) in under a week. I plan on taking a full week off and then depending on how I am feeling I might work from home, return to half days or return to full days.

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I'm six days post op and was, telling someone earlier that I could see how people turn to work within a week of surgery because you do feel great. As for me, I'm taking three weeks off because I want to make sure my body has gotten the proper rest which allows me to heal as much as possible.

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I was a manager at an insurance company. I took two weeks off, then worked from home for two weeks. I probably could have managed to take just one week off and worked one from home, if I had to. HOWEVER, having that time allowed me to feel physically well by the time I started working and also gave me the time to figure out my drinking and eating routines as well as getting to a point where I knew what to pack and how much to pack for food for work. The first few weeks are when you are learning a lot about your new routines.

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Hi guys, I’m having surgery on Thursday. What is everyone’s thoughts about when to return to work. I’m a billing manager and I spend my days at my desk punching numbers, no heavy lifting or anything. I can do some work from home but I’m still curious as to everyone’s thoughts? I know people who have taken two weeks off, some have taken a week and some went back after like five days. Please share.


I had surgery on 4/23 and went back to work today working 1/2 a day today and the rest of this week. I have done fine and my job is at a desk as well.


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I had surgery 4/19 and I have a desk job as well, it is a very demanding job and there is a lot of pressure as well. Doctor put me off until June 4th which is 6 weeks off.. I guess this all depends...


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    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. summerseeker

        Life as a big person had limited my life to what I knew I could manage to do each day. That was eat. I hadn't anything else to look forward to. So my eating choices were the best I could dream up. I planned the cooking in managable lots in my head and filled my day with and around it.

        Now I have a whole new big, bigger, biggest, best days ever. I am out there with those skinny people doing stuff i could never have dreamt of. Food is now an after thought. It doesn't consume my day. I still enjoy the good home cooked food but I eat smaller portions. I leave food on my plate when I am full. I can no longer hear my mother's voice saying eat it all up, ther are starving children in Africa who would want that!

        I still cook for family feasts, I love cooking. I still do holidays but I have changed from the All inclusive drinking and eating everything everyday kind to Self catering accommodation. This gives me the choice of cooking or eating out as I choose. I rarely drink anymore as I usually travel alone now and I feel I need to keep aware of my surroundings.

        I don't know at what point my life expanded, was it when I lost 100 pounds? Was it when I left my walking stick at home ? Was it when I said yes to an outing instead of finding an excuse to stay home ? i look back at my last five years and wonder how loosing weight has made such a difference. Be ready to amaze yourself.

        BTW, the liquid diet sucks, one more day and you are over the worst. You can do it.

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