Adult Life after a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)

In the hip replacement surgery recovery room (August 27, 2015), when I woke up,(groggy from the anesthesia) I was covered in sweat. My first night out of the hospital (in the "re-hab center), I woke up in TERROR at 3am, with severe PRESSURE in my head, dizziness, slight frontal headache, ringing in right ear [my nervous system was reacting to vibrations of the wall in my room from an oxygen concentrator up against the wall in the adjacent room=first symptoms of CENTRAL SENSITIZATION SYNDROME--hypersensitivity to most all sensory stimuli: sound, light, smell, temperature, motion/ vibration, touch/pain etc. As days progressed, I had neck pain/upper left jaw pain, difficulty concentrating. unable to focus on a task, (BRAINFOG) excessive sweating episodes, waking up in the middle of the night with "linked" severe pain in HEAD and "new hip", (not knowing what was triggering what). I had vision problems/blurred vision, had several falls, difficulty swallowing/choking, difficulty with abstract thinking (unable to continue with my garment design & implementation endeavors), unable to get restorative sleep, PTSD episodes---- most all this continues 9 years post-op!! With the post-op rehab process, I was so hypersensitive, physical therapy was NOT effective/too much hip pain. [Surgery team discounted my symptoms/refused MRI/refused to schedule my 12 month appt at 12 months post-op, & abruptly departed in February 2017/denying my symptoms] 2nd opinion orthopedic MD diagnosed "severely eroded gluteal tendon at the attachment point in March 2017 (but too much pain to proceed with PRP). 2nd opinion hip surgeon commented " trauma to the SPINE". TBI neurotherapist Phd [author of book: Understanding Mild traumatic brain injury] diagnosed MILD TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY April 2018, but retired shortly thereafter & not replaced. Neurologist diagnosed post-traumatic cervicogenic headache, basilar migraine in Feb 2018. Chronic centralized pain diagnosed Nov 2019. Behavioral optometrist diagnosed "Post-trauma vision syndrome" in Nov 2021. ENT MD diagnosed hyperacusis in April 2022 . [new PCP in Nov 2018, verified (in April 2023 "most all symptoms lead to "AUTONOMIC DYSFUNCTION/DYSAUTONOMIA"); 2d opinion neurologist diagnosed "Functional Disease of Central Nervous system", & PPPD (motion hypersensitivity) May 2023.