The day before your colonoscopy, you will start a liquid diet around lunchtime. You can continue to work on this day. That evening, usually after work, you will begin the bowel prep. This will keep you occupied for the night, so if you work the graveyard shift, you should take that shift off to stay at home. On the day of the exam, we ask that you take the entire day off work. Although you will only be at our endoscopy center for about 2-3 hours, you will be sedated, so we do not want you driving or making any major decisions for the rest of the day. You will likely want to go home and rest. The next day, you can return to your normal activities.