I had the full sternotomy and was hospitalized for about 5 days - mostly in ICU because of breathing issues. I returned to work 8 weeks after surgery - It has been 9 years since my surgery and they were just starting to do the transcervical thymectomy for mg. It wasn't very painful after the first week, but I didn't have an 8 week old child either. Good luck whichever way you go.