I had about 2 months of recovery after my craniotomy which was this past march, and returned back to work in the middle of may. I missed being out and doing something productive, but lately I’ve been so tired I don’t know what to think or do. I’m eating right, definitely a lot better than I was before, I’m sleeping at a normal hour, I’m exercising 3 times a week, but when I wake up I just feel just as drained. And it’s not your normal “oh I’m just tired all the time”, it’s I just feel exhausted and it’s hard to explain to my coworkers, or my supervisors when I just want to go home and crawl into bed.
Was it maybe too soon for me to go back? I have a job that requires a lot of lifting and a LOT of running around in a day. How long should you feel so tired after major surgery like this?
Hi Toni,
2 months rest is not much time at all. I can understand that you wanted to go bak 2 work. When I had my craniotomy I went bak to college very early, maybe 3 months after the op. and in hindsight I should have let my body heal. If you are tired or, as you say, ‘exhausted & drained … feel like crawling into bed’, it is your body telling you to slow down. If your body is telling you to crawl into bed, then do just that.
All the best
flower
I am very confused how you do not qualify for FMLA. Did they tell you why they didn’t? Can you appeal the decision?
I know exactly how u feel. I had a bleed/craniotomy on November 7th followed by a month of severe diarrhea and vomitting from an infection I got in the hospital, then went back to work on January 4. I could barely make it through the day. It didn’t matter how much I slept or what I ate. I only started feeling better when the doc took me off Keppra (anti-seizure) He said it was a large part of the reason I was so tired. He also put me on a painkiller that had caffeine in it called fioricet. I am a teacher and dealing with a class of ten year olds, especially after 2 months of a ridiculously incompetent substitute was insane. I still feel more tired than I used to (even during summer vacation). My doc said it can take up to 2 years to get all your energy/strength back to normal. He said you tire more easily cause your brain is constantly working to form new pathways and connections to compensate for any damage.
Two months of rest is not enough. I went back to work one year later and I had to slowly build up my stamina. What did your doctor tell you?
My suggestion is to tell your doctor how you feel and the type of work you do. Ask your doctor to give a letter requiring you to stay away from work for a couple of months. If you intend to stay at work then ask the doctor to write a letter requesting special accommodations at work.
FMLA is tricky. Per the Department of Labor, “Employees are eligible for leave if they have worked for their employer at least 12 months, at least 1,250 hours over the past 12 months, and work at a location where the company employs 50 or more employees within 75 miles. Whether an employee has worked the minimum 1,250 hours of service is determined according to FLSA principles for determining compensable hours or work.” FLSA is short for Fair Labor Standards Act. You don’t happen to work for a federal agency such as the U.S. Postal Service, do you? If so, you could apply for Federal Disability Retirement. You don’t have to be unable to work at all to qualify for this. You just have to prove that you cannot perform the essential functions of your current job and won’t be able to for at least a year AND that your agency cannot find you a suitable new position of equal status and pay. (In other words, if they offer you a demotion or less pay, that doesn’t count and you are still eligible.) Or, does your employer have a program where your co-workers can donate their leave for you to use for your recovery from serious illness? The federal government also has that program. The wonderful folks at my agency donated many hours so that I could recover. Unfortunately, I relapsed. However, then I was able to qualify for Federal Disability Retirement. Another option, of course, is Social Security Disability. I’m not suggesting that you are permanently disabled. I’m just suggesting options for if you might be out of commission for at least a year. As for going back to school, I think that is a great idea! I haven’t been part of your discussions before, so forgive me if everyone else knows the answer, but have you checked into assistance with your state’s vocational rehabilitation department? I’m asking because all the physical requirements of your current job may be ill advised and vocational rehabilitation can fund training for a new job better suited to your health. My state’s voc rehab purchased a car for me to get to college and paid for an artificial leg for me at a time when I didn’t have insurance. They only provided a little funding for college tuition itself because I qualified for grants and loans, but qualifying for voc rehab assistance opened the doors of other programs. It has a cascade effect to start with voc rehab.
I’m so glad you brought this up!!! I have been off this site for 3 months while I TRIED to go back to work full time, which is 50+ a week at my organization. I just couldn’t function the whole day anymore, not even 8 hours, which is lower than the nomn. I run a large program and I was floundering. I had to talk to my doc about it and he agreed that it was too much and limited me to 25 hours a week. But my work would not accomodate me in my current full time position but haveing someone help with my work, so I lost the position i have held for 8 years and was given a part time job. After much heartbreakover this, i guess i should feel good that they still let me work for them and i still can apply for short term disability a thired time (once for stroke, once for crainiotomy, now part time disability for further recovery). Im just so exhausted all the time, and just cannot go to meetings, draft work, email, drive to sites, obsevre and give feedback to staff, and hold staff meetings all in one week anymore, My brain just shuts down and stopps thingking after 4 hours a day. Taking breaks helps and can get me to 5 hours a day, but i cant function much after that and i have to lie down… and never mind that I have a son too, i have barely given him any attention since i went back to work. So I’m startung part time work for real this week and hoping i can survive it better and have much more time with my son i hope.
Im going to post a link to an explanatipon of what it is like to have a disability or deal with severe ilness and it has really helped me explain things to freinds. Although at work im afraid they just think im lazy and could try a little harder. That part sucks.
read this, the spoon theroy! I asked all my friends and family to read, and it helps them get it!
I posted something similar…no one responded so I deletedit. I am a nurse and so so tired…I had my embo August 3. BUt I missed my job…slept most of this weekend… Its so weird mentally you want to keep going but physically… 
I had just under two months as well. I had my craniotomy back in Dec of '08 and was back to work on Feb 1st of '09. I was not permitted to drive so I had to get a bunch of friends to assist, but I was back. My surgeon let it be my decision and told me that if at any time I was not up for it I could come back to him and he would say it was necessary to be back on disability. I was so bored at home. When I went back it took me a long time until I felt my new “normal.” At least 6 months. I also had an understanding VP who I reported to that told me to take a day when I needed it. He was very involved in getting to know what happened. Don’t cut out exercise, but cut back. That was another thing I had to do. I was used to going to the gym and throwing the weights around 4 times per week. I had to go very, very light and make sure that didn’t take away too much from the work energy.
i had the same problem toni. i returned 3 months after my crani, and like you have a physically demanding job (auto worker). disability wanted me back sooner, 6 weeks post op, but my surgeon said absolutely not! he was really great about it. asked me and my wife if i thought i was ready after 3months and i rushed to say yes. my wife said no. hindsight tells me she was right, had exactly the same problems your describing. it took some time for me to tolerate this better, but i can go most of the night without a crash, 10 months post op is where im at now. i was recently taken off seizure meds (keppra) that helped a great deal! that stuffed drained me! still have a ways to go i guess but its getting better for me, just hang in there it will get for you too im sure. dr. says its expected and will last up to a year year and a half. every situation is different i suppose hope things ease up for you!
HI, TONI, I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHY THEY SAID U DIDNT QUAILFY FOR THE FMLA AS WELL, ON MY JOB WE HAVE FMLA AS WELL AND IF U WORKED 1,200. THE YEAR BEFORE U QUALIFY, I DID GET A LETTER THAT MY TIME WAS GOING TO RUN OUT BECAUSE I WILL BE OUT SO LONG BUT WHO CARES. I USED ALL MY SICK LEAVE AND VACATION TIME, BUT MY HEALTH IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN WORRING ABOUT GETTIN INTO TROUBLE WITH THEM. MY JOB REQUIRES A LOT OF LIFTING AND RUNNING AROUND I WONDER DO WE WORK FOR THE SAME COMPANY JUST IN DIFFERENT PLACES. GO BACK TO YOUR DOC. TELL HIM HOW U FEEL AND GET HIM TO PUT YOU ON LIGHT-DUTY AND SEE IF THAT HELPS. GLAD YOU POSTED NOW I KNOW NOT TO RUSH BACK TO WORK TWO MONTHS MAY NOT BE LONG ENOUGH. LISTERN TO YOUR BODY IF IT SAY’S REST THEN REST. THAT JOB WILL BE THERE IT GOT DONE WHEN U WERE GONE AND IF SOMETHING HAPPENS TO YOU IT WILL STILL GET DONE. GOD BLESS TAKE CARE OF YOU
Two months is not that long. It was not that long for me. I worked half days for two weeks. Then, I went to full days. Engineer job sitting at a desk and it was exhausting me. Sounds like your job is a lot more physically demanding. then, I went on a plane trip. It was a little six person plane going on a short ride to Kansas from Illinois. When we got there, I crawled out of the plane and lay down on the ground for an hour.
Two months is not that long.