Are you interested in gender affirming surgery? Not sure how to plan your time off? QueerDoc tries to make it easy:
- learn more about your desired surgery through our blog series
- understand your insurance coverage and expected costs of surgery using
- Our resources
- A free consult from Trans Family Support Services
- find your surgeon with our databases
- start planning your timeline using our
- presurgery checklist
- this blog to plan time off work
This table reviews the average expected time needed off work to recover after various gender affirming surgeries. This does not include time needed for surgery or travel to surgery or home. Further exact time off will vary by specific procedure, surgeon, and a patient’s pre-existing health conditions.
| Type of Surgery | Time Usually Needed Off Work |
| Nose and cheeks | 2-4 weeks |
| Jaw and chin | 2 weeks- 4 months |
| Hairline lowering | 2-3 weeks |
| Tracheal shave | 1-2 weeks* |
| Voice surgery | 2-4 weeks vocal rest |
| Top surgery (both addition and removal) | About 2 weeks* |
| Hysterectomy | 2-8 weeks* depending on the type of work. Folx at a desk or virtual work may be able to return at 2 weeks. |
| Hysto with BLSO | 4-8 weeks* depending on the type of work. Folx at a desk or virtual work may be able to return at 2 weeks. |
| Vulvectomy | 4-6 weeks* AVOID straddle activities for 6 weeks |
| Vaginectomy | 2-4 weeks* AVOID straddle activities for 6 weeks |
| Phalloplasty | 4-8 weeks* |
| Metoidioplasty | 3-4 weeks* |
| Body contouring | 1-2 weeks* |
| Orchiectomy | 2-3 weeks |
| Penectomy | 4-6 weeks* |
| Nullectomy | 4-6 weeks* |
| Vulvovaginoplasty | 4-6 weeks* AVOID straddle activities for 6 weeks |
We want to thank Dr. Frances Grimstead and Dr. Shane Morrison for their contributions! Grab a downloadable PDF by joining our mailing list.