How much time do you take off for work?

It also depends on what you do for a living. I am a high school teacher and on my feet pretty much from 7:45 to 3:15, give or take a few minutes here and there and a 30 minute lunch period. I had surgery last April 2nd and didn't go back to work until May 21. If I had a desk job I could've gone back weeks sooner.

The truth is that whenever you go back, people will expect you to do your job as if nothing had happened. I don't mean people won't be understanding at first, but that passes quickly and it's back to business as usual.

In terms of your stress, tell your doctor about it and see if they can give you an anti-anxiety med to take in the morning before you go. If not, tell the nurses as soon as you get there and they'll make sure you get your i.v. and something to help you relax. I was shaking and crying before my hysterectomy, which I hadn't done for the laparoscopy 7 months earlier, and they were great. They just talked to me about everything other than the surgery while they very quickly got me set w/an i.v., and before I knew it they'd given me something for the anxiety and I stopped shaking, etc. It's a scary thing - you're allowed to be scared! But know that you deserve to take care of your health problems! You deserve to let others take care of you! And you deserve to feel however you feel without apologizing!