Realistic timescales for return to work

Hi Peppermint. What a dreadful situation to be in. People DO NOT understand. Getting radiation to your mouth and throat is the worst kind you can get and you have a heck of a lot of body and mind healing in front of you.Realistically? Reading other forum members experiences I'd give myself six months and even then make it a phased return. You are protected by law.

Have a look at this page from Macmillan. There may be something there to help Advice about work 

As for being menopausal...as if you haven't enough to cope with. I'd be at the GP for HRT to iron things out while I got better. I know it's only a sticking plaster but at one stage of my life I couldn't have done without it. 

Best wishes

Hi Peppermint Paddy , you are in the very early days of your recovery, and all you need to focus on , is your recovery, your employer has no right to start putting pressure on you, as to when you will return to work. He or she should be ashamed of themselves Let's hope your employer doesn't realize, what recovery time this treatment needs, when they do, they will hopefully back off, and if they don't, like Dani has said, you are protected by law, and if necessary, bring the full weight of the law, down on them. Just concentrate on getting better, work will have to wait. All the best.

Regards Ray.  

Thanks Dani. Really appreciate your advice. I have got myself on HRT (patches now as couldn’t swallow the capsules!) agree at least six months after treatment end is more realistic and a phased return and possibly will ask to go to part time…

Thanks for your support and advice. Much appreciated. 

Just be kind to yourself and hunker down to heal. You'll get there. Hugs

You're welcome, we are all on here to help each other. Any questions or worries you have, just ask on here, someone will always help, if they can.

Hi has Dani and Ray have said  look around 6 month with s phased return. Head and neck cancer are brutal to our mouth and throat  just think every minute of every day what do we do with our mouths and throats wr exist purely because we’ve got them our treatment damaged the n most used and sensitive part if our bodies in my . Be kind to your self  read thus link print copies iff give to work family and friends Our treatment had finished our recovery is  just beginning getting started.  I won’t get into long term side effects but sone yiu might get most we don’t get. 
hugs Hazel. 
https://www.workingwithcancer.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/After-the-treatment-finishes-then-what.pdf

Hello. I gave my employers the Macmillan booklet about Head & Neck cancers, plus the Peter Harvey paper ‘After the treatment finishes - then what?’ so that they could grasp the reality of treatment and recovery. People  assume once treatment is over then you are better. I went back to work, teaching, at 6 months post treatment. I’m only working part time now. 

Thanks Blod, really useful to know. I had a really good session this morning with my MacMillan counsellor and we were thinking along same sort of lines. 

Excellent idea.