Going back to work anxiety

So I am scheduled to go back to work next week sometime. I am soo anxious and I am battling with whether to ask for more time off( I am eligible for up to 12 weeks 100% paid STD). I am still having trouble with insomnia and I am having to take tylenol pm at night to be able to sleep.

Every morning I wake up with either abdominal pain or back ache( i guess I still haven't mastered a comfortable position to sleep) so I am scared to death of having to sit through 8 hours probably more( my job is always busy and we do many 12 hour days).

I am wondering if it would be inconsiderate to take more time to pamper the princess till I feel like 50% okay? I am thinking of taking 2 more weeks which would mean going back to work after 8 weeks.

I have talked to the nurse at my doctor's office and she says the doctor says I should be okay going back to my 12-15 hour days... I honestly do not believe they know what they are talking about.....

What do you gals think? Opinions and advice from ladies who have gone back to work would be highly appreciated.

ME TOO ME TOO!!! I will be an assitant principal intern at 1200 student hight school. 12 hour days, walking on end, high stress, non stop. I am worried about going back to work. I still have 22 days and counting but would love some feedback also.

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Originally Posted by nakisai So I am scheduled to go back to work next week sometime. I am soo anxious and I am battling with whether to ask for more time off( I am eligible for up to 12 weeks 100% paid STD). I am still having trouble with insomnia and I am having to take tylenol pm at night to be able to sleep. Every morning I wake up with either abdominal pain or back ache( i guess I still haven't mastered a comfortable position to sleep) so I am scared to death of having to sit through 8 hours probably more( my job is always busy and we do many 12 hour days). I am wondering if it would be inconsiderate to take more time to pamper the princess till I feel like 50% okay? I am thinking of taking 2 more weeks which would mean going back to work after 8 weeks. I have talked to the nurse at my doctor's office and she says the doctor says I should be okay going back to my 12-15 hour days... I honestly do not believe they know what they are talking about..... What do you gals think? Opinions and advice from ladies who have gone back to work would be highly appreciated.

I can't believe the nurse says you'd be fine to work 12-15 hour days after 6 weeks - that seems awfully long! I'm scheduled to go back to work on July 22 which will also be 6 weeks after my surgery but my boss says I can work half days for awhile if I feel like I can't make it the whole day. Maybe you should look into that and see if you can ease into it. Good luck! )

12 to 15 hour days????? That sounds brutal. I went back to work, to my desk and office with a sofa and a door I can CLOSE, for 4 hours a stretch, after 4 weeks. Those 4 hours were exhausting. I enjoyed the contact with other people, and that was the only reason I did it. I am at 7 weeks today, I am spending about 6 hours a day at my desk, but I am still so beat afterwards that it is really a stretch for me to go to the market or run an errand on the way home, and when I get home, I get right into my robe and literally watch my swelly belly expand. I had a VH and a posterior repair for a rectocele. You, my friend, have had an abdominal hysterectomy and repair. You asked for advice, so here it is: Take as much time off as you need, based solely upon how your body feels (and not what some random person tells you they THINK you can handle). If you are waking up achy, then you need to pay attention to that. If you have the time to take off, why not use it? What is the point of having a body if you don't listen to it and PAMPER THE PRINCESS?? How many hysterectomies are you going to have in your lifetime, anyway?? Who are you being inconsiderate to, if you take your time? You asked for my opinion, so there it is. I hope you wait until you feel at least 50%, maybe 75%.

Good luck. Mindy

I think I would ask the Dr. to reconsider. Isn't that what the FMLA is for? We pay for our STD. We should be allowed to use it. We are allowed 12 weeks per the FMLA. I am shocked. I would make an appt, see the Dr. in person and sternly tell him/her that you need their support and a few more weeks off. Not all patients are the same and I would remind them of this!!

I would talk to your doctor. I am in the medical profession and am on my feet 8 hours a day. When I went for my 6 week check up, he cleared me and I asked for 2 more weeks. I stayed out 8 1/2 weeks total. I told him my outside may look great but my insides still aren't up to it. I do wish I had asked for a note to go back only 4 hours to begin with. I went back 8 hours right away. Left with swelly belly, sore legs, sore feet and was exhausted by the time I got home. I agree with the person about FMLA. I wish I actually could have taken 12 weeks.

I would also ask for more time off or at least 1/2 days... My doctor told me there was no way he would write and excuse for jury duty... And I said well then they will have to cart me off to jail, cause I can't sit that long... Thank goodness they seemed to have taken a reprieve. I did go back full time after 6 wks and had to work overtime, but the only other thing I did was sleep when I got home...

If you have to work such long days, I would definitely take more time off. I am 14 weeks post op and still have swelly belly if I have been sitting at my desk too much - and I work only 10 hour days! I wish I had taken an extra week at least. Once you are back, they forget you were ever gone . . .

I took the full 6 weeks off and then went back for half days for two more weeks. I'm a teacher and I was ready to leave by 11:00 everyday because I was sore and tired. I had a vaginal hyster, you had an abdominal. Take as much time as you need to heal. You only get one chance to do it right. I'm at about 10 weeks post-op and I overdid it working in the yard today. It takes time to heal on the inside. Don't let someone else tell you when you're ready to go back to work. Listen to your body and do what's best for you.

12-15 hours of work and you don't feel even 50% good, I would ask for more time off. My doctor released me at 6 weeks, but I asked for 2 more weeks and I am glad that I took the additional 2 weeks. My doctor wouldn't let me get TDI, so the last 2 weeks were totally unpaid, but it's been worth it. It made a big difference in how I'm feeling. I go back tomorrow (desk job) and hopefully will make it through an 8 hour day.