[livingwith]

Someone near and dear to me was diagnosed with Bell’s palsy this week. Sadly, he was so embarassed he didn’t even tell me. He came over to visit and I asked him what was wrong with his lip? He looked embarassed and right away I knew; I said “it’s Bell’s palsy?”. Anyway, his smile is distorted and he has crocodile tears out of his left eye. In all honesty, it looks a lot like the “elvis sneer” when he would raise his upper lip. Otherwise he didnR...Read the full article

[trunkmonkey]

I cannot help you out, but I wanted to know if you could keep me posted on your friend's recovery. I was just diagnosed today and am scared. Please keep in touch. Thanks

[Lgavron]

I am so happy to read your email. I feel so bad for you. I was diagnosed with Bell's Palsy on September 25 and I still have it. My mouth is not drooping quite as bad, but I am still not able to drive a car. I just cannot see real far away. I feel changes everyday happening. To sleep at night I have to actually put a tears salve in my eye and then tape my eye closed. Real carefully! I was putting a patch over my eye, but the eye doctor said that because it was not closing tight - air and dirt was still getting through the patch and It looked like I had sand granuals behind the white part of my eye. It was getting irritated. Close it with your finger and put a small piece of medical tape right over the closed eye. It feels much better.

I thought that I may have gotten the Bell's Palsy because my father-in-law died in July and I was so stressed and then this happened 2 days after coming home from vacation and then to top it off - in October my mother was diagnosed with Colon cancer and given 6-12 months to live and she went into a coma and died on December 3. My nerves are really at a breaking point. The doctor had said that usually within 3 - 6 months I should wake up and it will go away on its own. I only hope and pray. It is now 4 months. Please let me know how you are doing. I worry because someone told me I should be going to a chiropractor and doing facial exercises and it will heal faster and yet my doctor (ENT) said to do nothing. I just doing know what to do. I really would love to meet someone going through the same thing. I really would.

[trunkmonkey]

Sorry to hear about the loss of your parents. I think this condition may very well be stress related. I have suffered quite a bit of stress over the past 8 months and perhaps it has come to a point of explosion in the form of this condition. Were you put on meds? Did you try accupuncture? I am not sure what to do. I am worrying over this thing so much that I think I may even be bringing on a panic attack, but I do not know. When I first noticed the weakness in my facial muscles, it was only 1 side, now 2 days later, I feel a strange almost (but not numb) numbing sensation in the left high cheek area and around my eye. But all of the weakness seems to be coming from the right side. I am really freaking out. I don't have an appointment with a neurologist until Wednesday. I really don't feel like going to the ER for them to tell me I am having an anxiety attack and send me home again. Did you ever get any strange sensations in the other side of your face than the one affected? Thanks for writing back. It is a horrible thing to have happen, but I am glad I am really not alone.