Hi everyone, time is getting closer now getting banded on 25th March 2009 , and was wondering if you could be as kind as to advise what one is to expect following surgery.

My wife and I have a small family run business , most of which is online related , sadly Ive always been the one to keep on top of things online related , our site and online trading.

Now Im wondering should I shut the operation down for a few days and take the financial hit , something that may cost us around £1000 a day , having still to pay staff wages etc whilst I have this band fitted, this is something I would not like to do as in todays economic climate, things are hard especially after just forking out the money for the operation.

Now I know one should not put a price on ones health and if I do decide to shut things down , I am trying to anticipate for how long I can expect.

So in reality I ask , from the day of the operation ( and being advised all going well I will go home next day ) if I were to hope the day after I could do some light work , ie just sitting at pc for a couple of hours, could I expect to be able to handle this OK , or would I be more likely to be in my bed full of aches ?

Any advise and comments would be much appreciated.

as you can see... my new ticker ... and on my pre op diet whcih phew is tough going , If I drink another cup of Soup I think Im gonna scream , my wife made the kids sausages for dinner ... oooohhhhh the smell ... I nearly lost control of myself ..... then the sister turned up with a nice new stainless steel smoothie maker for me ......... mmmmm took my mind off it at least LOL ..

sorry Im off on a tangent .... yes comments please

You have my sympathy on the pre-op diet, big nik! It's tough......but it's ultimately for your safety. Sounds like you are toughing it out pretty good.

RE: workload after banding......The answer is a resounding "maybe". I had a very easy time with my operation, was home by 2 PM, no sweat. However, having said all that, there is really no way I would have been lucid enough to operate my business on that first day. The anesthesia made me sleepy all day and night for the first 24 hours. Days two and three were actually the worst I was sore (but not outright pain, just soreness......it felt like I had done 3000 crunches) and I was back at my job by day 4 (not much physical labor, but lots of moving around).

My opinion? Plan to hold off at least 24 hours. Depending on your pain tolerance, you will most likely be able to do computer stuff on day 2.

I was banded March 2nd, & from what I hear, my situation is not totally unique. My Surgeon found & repaired a hernia. I am still experiencing pain, however I was at my home computer conducting some work by the 4th day. Good luck & much success with your banding.

is it possible to train your spouse or another worker how to cover the most important tasks for a couple days? You should really develop some back-up anyway, sounds like a good time to start. At some point you may want a vacation or have an unexpected medical issue that keeps you from work. Would be helpful to have a back-up plan in the long run.

more to your question, you'll probably be able to work on computer after the first or second day, but take it easy if you can...good luck.

Hi,

I got banded on Monday. Today is Thursday. The first 24 hours you are drugged up pretty much from the anesthesia. I sat at my computer for about an hour the first day. But I got off realizing I needed to take it easy. If you have no nausea and gas, you will be able to sit at a computer for a good number of hours the second day. You also have prescriptions to take care of any additional pain. Day three and Day four are better. It all depends upon the pain and how you feel. I hope your banding goes as well as mine.

Regards,

ikerry

Im laughing to myself Ikerry , I was just reading your post and think whoooo thats the way I wanna go ... must be telepathic powers across the Water ... reading and posting same time ....

thanks for the responses Guys , much appreciated, I gotta give it some serious thought for sure

I too am self employeed and couldn't be down long. I went in on a Friday morning at 6am and was home by 3pm. I was a little sore but took no pain medications after leaving the hospital. I went in to work a little in the office on Sunday because I was bored stiff. Went back to work on Monday bright and early full time. I was sore some but it got much better each day and after about 4 days the soreness was gone. Good luck.

Do you have a laptop with a wireless connection? Under the "your experience may vary" disclaimer I could see you functioning as long as you could stay comfortable. At a pc at a desk, a little tough, but if you could make yourself more comfortable, its possible.

I'd say a "safe bet" is to count out the first 24 hours after surgery. I personally worked 10 hours from home (laptop in bed) with no problems whatsoever (yes, I took pain meds and was still sharp as a tack). I worked every day from then on and went back to work (physically to the office) on the Friday after (had surgery on Monday) and worked a half day. Then back in on Monday full time with no issues. Of course the ol' disclaimer, everyone is different, yada yada yada. Good luck!

Hi thanks , yes I think the laptop and wireless the way to go , een if not in bed even comfortable in the Parker Knoll recliner , I really only need around 1/2 hours a day for what would need my intervention.

I have decided I am going to shut things down for 2 days for sure and go with the plane I can do some work on the evening on the second day or the third day if push comes to shove.

I do in general have a good pain threshold , if general aches more than sharp pain and at least I can get comfortbale I think I should cope.

- in reply - inri09

Yes I know only too well this would be sensible thing to do , sadly the input needed is considerably complex , and would take quite a bit of time to train someone , being family business , kids , work rushing about crazy , and of course looking after elderly parent , time just never been on our side , company is a new one still in its days of infancy .. we just manage as it is and do what has to be done .. still 12/14 hours a day usually .. but take on board your advise and of course agree.