Time Off Work Following A Breast Reduction
Breast reduction surgery recovery time is similar to many other plastic surgery procedures. For the average patient with an administrative job, 1-2 weeks off are a good place to start.
If you work from home, you can start as soon as you want. If you really want to get back to work, one week is fine. Unless you have a post op problem, you should not need more than 2 weeks. Active jobs may need up to 6 weeks off.
Breast reduction surgery typically is not too painful compared to other commonly performed plastic surgery procedures. In fact, many of the pains that led you to get breast reduction surgery will be gone the day after surgery.
How long you need to take off will depend on the type of work you do. For a desk job, I tell my breast reduction patients that if they can take 1 week off from that it should be plenty.
Everyone responds to pain and surgery different so some people may be able to go back sooner, while others will take longer. It is important to remember that it is unsafe to drive if you are still requiring regular use of narcotic pain medication.
For Percocet, I tell patients not to drive within 6 hours of taking a pill. (Samir S. Rao, MD, Chevy Chase Plastic Surgeon)
Typically, it will take your body about 6 weeks to recover from the breast reduction. Your actual healing time, though, is much longer. If your job is not too physical, you may be able to return within 2 weeks.
If you are concerned about the amount of time off you need, I would suggest asking your surgeon. Your body will see this procedure as 2 surgeries–2 different operative sites. If you have doubts, ask for an addtional week off, or perhaps you can return to work with a lighter schedule for a week or two. (Connie Hiers, MD, San Antonio Plastic Surgeon)
The Average Time For A Breast Reduction Is Approximately One Month
Normally you’ll need between 10 to 14 days of real rest. You’ll feel better every day. Using a orthopedic bra for a month or month and a half will have a great result. (Juan Pablo Cervantes, MD, Mexico Plastic Surgeon)
Most of my patients take 2 weeks off work if they have an administrative job. For more strenuous jobs, it can be a few more weeks. You will have some restrictions on exercise, but sitting at a desk job can be done after two weeks. (Anne Taylor, MD, Columbus Plastic Surgeon)
Most patients can return to a desk job one week after breast reduction.
Returning To Work After Breast Reduction
The amount of time needed to be taken off from work depends on the type of work you do. If you have a desk job you may only need to take a week to ten days but if you do a lot if lifting , you probably would need about six weeks. (Stephen R. Steinmetz, MD, Birmingham Plastic Surgeon)
Time off work following a breast reduction will vary but in general you should expect 10 days before you can get back to work. (Jeffrey Zwiren, MD, Atlanta Plastic Surgeon)
You should be fine to return to work in retail two weeks after breast reduction. You will be somewhat tired in the evenings after you get home, but should have no other problems. Since you will be walking, you will reduce the risk of developing late blood clots in your legs.
When you get home, do not sit, but, instead, recline and prop your feet up. Also, wear a good supportive bra to take the pressure off your incisions. (Robert T. Buchanan, MD, Highlands Plastic Surgeon)
Most of my patients take two weeks off from work after their breast reduction, and they do just fine. With a lot of physical activity at work, and if you’re using your arms quite a bit, you may notice some breast soreness at the end of the day, but this won’t affect your breast reduction results. (Joshua Cooper, MD, FACS, Seattle Plastic Surgeon)