I am seeing the surgeon next week and expect to be booked in for a grade 3 cystocele repair. How soon can I expect to go back to my job? I teach a large class of five and six year olds, no help from any other adults in the afternoons.
Hi
Hope your surgery goes well
I am a teacher too. I had anterior, posterior repairs and vault suspension. I took 13 weeks off work. Thought that by then I'd just go back to my normal full time teaching routine. I lasted 2 weeks before falling in a hole. Then I reassessed my practice and had to majorly modify it. I used to work on the floor with groups of children several times a day and spent the rest of the time standing or walking around the room. I now have to make sure that I sit a lot more and work with groups of children at a large table. Since I worked out my new normal I have had no problems. I teach 10 year olds, but taught 5 year olds for 15 years and know how much bending and getting up and down off the floor is involved. You'll be told that 6-7 weeks will be enough. In my experience it wasn't - its hard to be nice to 35 ten year olds when you're in pain!
Your experience may be totally different to mine. Hope this helps, all the best,
Juli
Hi Juli
Thank you for your reply. I think you are right that an expectation to return after 6 weeks is completely unrealistic. I am worried that I will feel pressurised into doing this and feel I need to be quite clear to doctors about what my job entails. It's hard to imagine of you are not in a school setting, just how exhausting it can be!
I am glad to hear that you have worked out how to manage.
Sue
Hi Sue
My surgeon gave me 7 weeks off of work as sick leave. I could have seen my GP for more leave probably, but decided to use some long service leave to see out the term. That way I could plan well ahead and the teacher replacing me knew how long she would have the class for.
All the best
Juli