Recovery Time

HELLO LADIES,

JUST A QUICK QUESTION. I WILL BE HAVING A TVH ON 12/3/04. MY DOCTOR TOLD ME I SHOULD BE ABLE TO RETURN TO WORK WITHIN ONE TO TWO WEEKS. I AM WONDERING IF THAT IS REASONABLE. I HAVE A JOB THAT IS MOSTLY SITTING WITH SOME WALKING. ANY ADVISE OR INPUT WOULD BE APPRECIATED.

Hi,

I think your doctor is overly optimistic and has evidentially never had this surgery! (What ARE these doctors thinking!!!???)

This is major surgery with an initial recovery period of 4 to 6 weeks and full recovery taking anywhere from 6 months to a year. And believe me, it takes that long to feel even half way back to normal.

I had a TAH (granted I had an external incision, but the internal work is the same.) I was in excellent shape and just 39 at the time of my hyst. Even so, there is no way on this earth that I could have gone back to my desk job at 1 week post-op!! I did go back part-time at 5 1/2 weeks, but even then was exhausted after 4 hours and sore from sitting (puts a lot of pressure on your healing tissues.)

At one week, I was just able to shuffle around the house and out to the mailbox to get the mail. I hadn't even attempted to ride in a car yet, except for my return from the hospital. I had major brain fog from the anesthesia and the Darvocet I was taking for pain and couldn't concentrate on reading a book, let alone trying to work.

If you are able, plan to take at least a month off. Your body needs that time to heal. If you try to rush back too soon, you could be setting yourself up for complications further down the road. You'll have hundreds of internal sutures and a lot of internal work that will need time to heal. Please plan to give yourself that time, as you only get one chance at a good recovery. A month isn't such a long period of time, but it's the most important of times, as what you do during those weeks can affect your health for years to come. Work and life will still be waiting when you're ready to get back to them.

While I had a SAH, and not a VH, I agree with Shashi. One week is overly ambitious, and two weeks is still pushing it. You probably should plan on 4 weeks, and then if you feel better, you might be able to return part time a week early. You don't want to set it up that you HAVE to go back at two weeks, and then find you feel crumby.

one week is impossible. i went back to work part time in two weeks only because i am self employed. it was grueling. 3-4 weeks is more realistic. but 4-6 seems to be the norm.

jane321

Words of encouragement ~ I had LAVH 2 weeks ago today, and I am back at work. We own our own business, so I can pace myself. I am doing about 6 hours a day, as an office administrator. I also want to tell you that I feel great. I starting walking for about 30 minutes (slowly) four days post op, and I am up to 45 minutes at a good pace now. I have been cooking, driving and light tidying around the house, groceries with carry out/in help etc. Don't get me wrong, at the end of the day I am pooped, and take a good break with my feet up around 4:00 each day, but on the whole, I feel normal. I think that the sooner you get moving, the better. I had 2 c-sections, and the Hysterectomy is a piece of cake compared to those. Pace yourself, rest when you need to, but move when you can. Good luck!

it is possible, I had a tah and I'm back to things full swing at 4 weeks and was doing must things back as early as 2.5 weeks, no pain on my incission site . Stay positive, and focus and you'll do great.

I had an LAVH/BSO and went back to work full time as a nurse practitioner 4 weeks after my surgery. I could have returned to "desk duty" at 2 weeks without any problems, but I was lazy and took the 4 weeks that my doctor suggested because he knew that I work on my feet for 12-14 hour shifts 4 days a week and have a very physically demanding job. My only restriction was I couldn't lift patients or change the water bottle in our office! I had no issues with being tired. I was driving without any problems after a week and returned to full activities (including lifting patients) after 6 weeks. That's the great thing about vaginal hysterectomy. Yes, it's major surgery, but it is a far easier recovery than abdominal hysterectomy.

You cannot begin to compare the recovery from TAH to TVH. And you cannot predict your recovery based on my experience or the experience of others, including me. I think that planning for 2 weeks is a good starting point. I also believe that we live up to our expectations. If we are told to expect to be disabled for 6 to 8 weeks, somehow we manage to do that. I expected to be "disabled" for one week, tired for another week, then lazy for two more weeks...and that's what I got!

I've read time and time that it can take 6 months to a year to recover from hysterectomy, but that is not my experience at all. I'm not tired, I'm not sore, I'm not anything other than very well and completely recovered! Your mileage may vary!

I would like to reiterate what maribel said. Unfortunately, you can't predict how you will recover compared to others and I think she's right in that we live up to our own expectations. Now in my case, I had a TAH so I've got the incision in my belly. HOWEVER... I am not experiencing any fatigue, am now up to walking just under 4 miles a day and generally feel so well that I am going back to work 3 weeks after surgery. I have no problem sitting for extended periods of time and suspect no issues when I go back to work. I am in shape and had a very positive attitude, but I don't think that's necessarily a guarantee for how well a recovery will go. I'm sure there are plenty of people who are not in shape who had wonderful recoveries and people in great shape who had problems. Processing all this info is what makes you crazy pre-op!! Hang in there and see how you feel at 2 weeks.

Good luck -
Lisa