Do people stay home for a few weeks after going through a kidney donation?

No: Most kidney donation is now accomplished via a laparoscopic approach with small incisions in the belly so that the recovery is very fast just as when you have a gall bladder removed. You can return to work in a few days post op.

Dr Ali agreed

Usually: Most living kidney donors stay in the hospital for 2 days. They need to be able to eat and drink without difficulty and post-op pain needs to be under good control with oral pain meds. As to how fast one can go back to work depends on how uneventful your surgery was and what kind of work you do. On average, most of the living donors I see need 3-6 wks before returning to work.

Dr Robinson and another doctor agreed