How long were you out of work?

And do you have an active job?  I am a visiting nurse and have to carry heavy bag and need to move around pretty much. If I get approved, I don't want to tell my employer why I am out and I do not want to do light duty at work.  I know that everyone's recovery is different, but I'd like to know what I should expect.

I took 18 days days off..all the vacation time I had.. I work in a casinoso I'm on my feet 8 hrs a day and was a little sore in my legs and back but not too bad.

I was out six weeks with an open procedure DS.  I would have been okay going back to work probably around 3-4 weeks, but I sit at a desk all day.  I know I had a lifting restriction of no more than 15 pounds until six weeks.  You really do NOT want to hurt yourself or get a hernia.  I felt human again around the 4th week and some of the potty issues were beginning to regulate themselves, so there's that to consider also.  I was pretty tired even after waiting the 6 weeks.  I didn't have any residual pain, but still had open wounds (and still do even almost 5 months out) that need to be packed every day.

Open DS, six weeks.  It was just automatic and insurance told me how long I would be out, barring complications.  I could have come back to work sooner than I did.  BUT my job at that point was sedentary and I didn't have to do anything physical but walk.

Seriously, you can't be moving patients.  That's just all there is to it!

Desk job and only out 2 weeks. Listen to these ladies that took 4 - 6 weeks and find a way not to be lifting for a few more weeks after that.  Good luck!  : )

--gina

Nurse Lizzithinner needs to respond to this one...

I am a nurse too but I am a Hospice Nurse so I can get away with not lifting very much for a few weeks. I am taking three weeks off for my DS. I told my company that I would be on light duty for three weeks but that my nurse partner would help me or I will get the facility CNAs to help me with any skin assessments.

I really wanted 4 weeks off but I cannot afford it. I hear that some people go back two weeks after. You will either have to tell your boss light duty or be sneaky with your patient lifting and get a CNA or Nurse friend to do the work for you while you heal. Or you can do things like wait for people to be changed or bathed by the CNA and show up in the middle of it to assess the skin. I guess it just depends on what field you work in. 

Good luck! 

I lift and am on my feet 8 hours a day I took 5 weeks off. I was planning on going back in 4 weeks but I got the flu and it just wiped me out so took an extra week off.

Trish

I'm a desk jockey, so it wasn't that bad.  I could have gone back to work in 3 weeks.  BUT... my incision got infected.  That knocked me on my butt.  And my crazy boss kept insisting that I go back to work after 3 weeks!  I did not feel good or get my energy back till 3 months later.

Point of my story - you just never know how it will turn out.  I've read some people go back to the gym after 3 weeks.  And others take a lot longer to heal.

 Best to have a plan B incase plan A doesn't work.  Because forcing yourself back to work before you are ready is hellish.  And get some kind of agreement with your employer if you are lifting over 8 lbs of stuff.  Getting a hernia over it isn't worth it.

Best of luck. 

Music teacher/choral director here.    I took 2.5 weeks.   I could have taken more, but I did not want to start the school year off with a substitute teacher.   I just did pretty low-key lesson plans the first week or so.    I MOVE a lot with my students!    I just made sure I rested well when I got home.   By five weeks, I felt pretty darn normal.

I'm a corporate trainer, and like you, did not want to do light duty or anything either.  I took a full 8 weeks off > really needed the first 5 > started feeling more like myself, albeit tired easily after week 6, and needed the time if only to regulate my eating, vitamins, and bathroom system.  When I returned to work, though, I was able to hit the ground running and they all thought I was tough as nails.

One thing you need to keep in mind, though, is that you cannot lift/push/pull anything more than 8 lbs for 8 weeks, and even after that, I recommend you're very mindful not to pop a hernia.