@stevetaylor721-Hi. I have read through your thread, as the title caught my attention. What you describe, I experienced the same thing after a “minor” elective surgery.
-My profile was completely healthy 100%.
Active in every area of life. Zero health issues. Exercised daily. Ate very healthy. Slept 8 hours a night. Healthy community and family support.

-First-I want to point out the positives for you. It sounds like the surgical site is healing well and you are healthy there. And you also have a great support system.

-I will share with you what I have learned along the way, in hopes it could shed some light or address something that hasn’t been addressed.

-About 2 days after surgery I could not sleep more than 2 hours. Shaking, trembling, could not regulate body temperature. Weight loss despite eating. Severe rushes of cortisol/adrenaline all day.
Saw every type of doctor, had every type of test.

-I too was referred to a Psychiatrist after many doctor visits and tests. This psychiatrist explained to me how anesthesia works and how the body processes surgery as a trauma response. Anesthesia can alter people’s brain activity afterwards. The brain can also get stuck in a protection mode “fight or flight”, when you are no longer in danger.
Many people think anesthesia just “puts you to sleep”. It does so much more than that and acts on all different neurotransmitters in the brain. Each persons pathways are different. So it is not known how each persons brain will accept/respond to the affects. All of these alterations affect the Central Nervous System. It was explained to me as the brain gets turned off like a power grid. When you come out of anesthesia the grid comes back on in different areas and starts reconnecting. If the synapses don’t connect and start firing together these neurotransmitters together, that’s when the altered state can remain. Causing severe anxiety/panic. This then causes all kinds of real physical symptoms. Such as the sleep loss, nausea, vomiting, muscular tightness, trembling, weight loss etc...

-Anxiety/Panic is not just a response from external stimuli and thoughts. It can absolutely happen systemically from within as neurotransmitters from a systemic response and literally make you physically sick. As the lack of sleep continues, this continues the cycle as the brain can only recover with proper restorative sleep. This is why many of the first questions at appointments will be “hows your sleep?”. Without that, nothing can happen.

-At this time you would have to address brain health to balance the Central Nervous System. and many people are out of touch with that.

-Find someone who will explain to you the circadian rhythm/sleep cycle which is run by these neurotransmitters. The rushes you feel immediately in the morning-similar to that of dropping from a swing- are most likely bursts of cortisol/adrenaline. We all wake with a tiny release of this. This hormone is what actually wakes us. Rushes of it at once are not supposed to happen.

-I would recommend working with a Functional Medicine Doctor, one whom understands this as a common occurrence.
A Neurologist, whom understands, brain activity and neurotransmitter firing.
A psychiatrist whom understands and has worked with altered states to due anesthesia and how to help the mental part that this can put a person in.

-Neurotransmitters run the body. They are heavily connected to the gut. Which is why there is a name, “The Gut-Brain Axis”. Both continuously talk to one another. Some people after drugs/anesthesia have nausea and vomiting, this is a response.

-I want to reiterate these are just suggestions. As what you have shared is not rare. It is just not talked about or acknowledged. Anesthesiologists main job is to keep you out of pain and in a coma like state. So long as the surgery went well and they kept you alive, then it is considered uneventful and a successful surgery. To this day, they aren’t fully aware of the mechanism of action on the brain, as every person is so different.

-When the doctors brush you off and tell you it’s “anxiety”, they are doing you a disservice, because many people think of anxiety in a non chemical/systemic way and only with having anxious thoughts. This leaves a patient to think they are creating it. You are not. It is absolutely a chemical/systemic response.

- I will add an article that you can review.
You can bring this up to the providers that you are currently working with or new ones.
It would have to be a provider who completely understands the body as a whole.

-In the mean time, there are things you can do to help restore your nervous system.
A Functional Medicine Doctor can help you with that as well. Or have your wife look into somethings for you.

Focus on brain healing foods, that boost the neurotransmitters, not just calories. But good proteins, vegetables, and high vitamins/minerals. Anything that can promote relaxation and sleep. Keep moving and walking. Try for restorative stretching that can help your nervous system response.

*again-these are just thoughts or suggestions. By no means telling you, you have a certain condition.

If you have anymore questions, please let me know.

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