Cleared to go back to work!

Got some sudden, interesting news on Tuesday. On my last trip to the surgeon his assessment of my condition (recovery was slowed by the flu and a lot of coughing) resulted in an extension of my medical leave to March 19 since the situation was dicey.

Since that February appointment I've been working hard on my recovery, working my way up to walking about a mile a day and doing my PT exercises, as you've seen on the blog.

So yesterday, I sent in my 2-week report to the surgeon on Tuesday and apparently he decided (in conjunction with my employer's disability physician) that I can return to work now. So, I will be in the office on Thursday.

I picked up my return to work authorization letter for the HR files from my doctor, the document clears me for return to light duty as of 3/6/2012 with restrictions of "no lifting, pushing, or pulling over 10 lbs x 4 weeks", noting date of the original injury (herniation) was on 8/30/2012.

Fortunately that allows me to carry my laptop, but not along with a projector, for instance, to meetings. I also need to refrain from a lot of bending and twisting, both still hurt. I may have to have some abbreviated days  for a little while because my back's stamina, for sitting in particular, is not great yet; my left leg has nerve problems at times. The latter is unpredictable since the nerves will take months to settle down. I'll just work through that. I see the surgeon again on 3/19 to see how I'm faring.

I'm eager to get back into the office -- but I'm also little apprehensive of course, having been off for six weeks and there's a lot to catch up on. Email is a beast. I still do hurt quite a bit after walking and particularly sitting, but there's no time like the present to see just how long I can put in at the office without serious discomfort.