i am debating.....

i was a full time student,before february..(thats when my health problems got unbearable)..i had surgery in march-d & c ,right ovary removed,laparoscopy,and a hysterescopy..i then ended up having a TAH ON 7-12-04..i definitely feel rough physically and mentally..i noticed that fall quarter starts sept. 29th,and am wondering..if i should throw myself back in full time,take 1-2 classes instead.or wait til winter quarter to start..im going for nursing,and theres literally 6-8 hours of homework daily..im not trying to sound wimpish,but i want to make sure that when i go back,ill be 100% totally ready..this might sound silly,but im sure someone here understands..*hugs*..Melly

Hello

I would wait until winter quarter. You need time to heal and to get plenty of rest. I went back to work 10 weeks post-op. I work as a aid in a mental institution. I couldn't imagine 6-8 hours of homework so soon. I have volunteered for 7 extra shifts, since being back to work for 2 weeks. That makes it a 16 hour day. I got so tired yesterday, that I cancelled my O.T. and came home and went to bed.
We have the rest of our lives to work and go to school, so take this upcoming quarter to heal and rest. Stress is not good for our healing process.

Take care
Peggy

TAH, cervix gone, kept ovaries
May 7th, 2004

Hi Melly,
I agree with Peg... you have your whole life in front of you. Take this time to heal. Try to do too much at school and you could end up with lower grades than you could earn, a worn out body, and slower healing.

Take care of yourself,
Lisa

I started back to school at 5 weeks post-op but I am only taking one class for the summer mini-session. It is hard to concentrate on the subject matter. (physical science!) I am taking two classes in the fall plus starting back to work. If you want to be at full capacity when you start back, you should skip the fall semester and let your body and mind heal some more. I know it is hard to do, especially if you have set yourself a time limit. One of my fall classes will be an internet class--otherwise I would have limited myself to one class. The brain fog thing takes over sometimes and I feel like I should have skipped this summer session. The fact that I am 44 years old and most of the others in the class are approximately 21 doesnt help! With that much homework, I would definitely wait a semester. Good luck with your recovery and your school work!
DarlaJ

I highly recommend that you wait before going full time. You want to get good grades, good performance means good recommendations. Healing/not healing. It's all going to effect that. And you may get a professor that doesn't understand. A semester break is not going to delay your career that much, true? Be good to you....

ronni

As a nursing instructor, I would recommend that if your program allows you to be off for a time and you do not have to go back right away, you should probably wait. I tell my students to take a semester off if they have any health or personal problems that will prevent them from focusing on the classes they are in. This can pose a problem as they must complete all the courses in a 3 year time limit. Give yourself plenty of time to heal if you can. Otherwise the fatigue, brain fog, etc will just cause you major frustration and if you have complications, it would just make things worse. Good luck, and make the decision that is right for you.

I think wait a bit and see how you feel, then you'll know what the right decision is for you. I too had a lap for endo in between my fall and winter semester last year, and it was hard. I had a TAH on June 10th and started summer semester on the 14th. I have classes online which makes it much easier. I start fall semster in three weeks and have 15 credits this time. For me, I think I'll be able to do it, since I am in less pain than I was before.
We can drop classes until the second week with no penalty...maybe its an option for you??

Good luck in whatever you decide to do!
Jodee

Hi Melly,

Personally, I don't know about the physical end of doing that much studying so soon, but I know mentally I'm already going nuts out of boredom at two weeks post surgery. I think I'd go for a middle of the road kind of schedule for the quarter -- enough to keep you mentally challenged, but without the full bite of academia.

Do you perhaps have one class you expect to be really challenging? You could take your one class and devote all of your energy to it instead of trying to take it when you're swamped with other stuff.