Bell's Palsy

Legacy_user

hey, was diagnosed with this about a week ago, am seeing some imprivement but just wondered if anyone else had expereinced it and a)how long did it take to go away and b)how did you cope with explaining to people/not being able to smile etc?

tanith

A friend of mine had this , it took a year for her to get back to normal but it was hardly noticeable after about 6wks

System

A year? YIKES! :eek: Thank you for your quick reply

narabanekeater

sorry to be the bearer of bad news but I had it in 2004 at 7 months pregnant. I still cannot smile properly and my eyes appear drooped. I banned all cameras from me when DD was born. There really isnt a single photo of us all.

System

narabanekeater wrote: »

sorry to be the bearer of bad news but I had it in 2004 at 7 months pregnant. I still cannot smile properly and my eyes appear drooped. I banned all cameras from me when DD was born. There really isnt a single photo of us all.

i'm sorry to hear that hun

were you (or anyone else here) given steroids for it?*

*guessing not if you were pregnant at the time?

wolfehouse

have a look at the thread already on this- not so long ago
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2617213

IronMaidenFan

I had it about 5 years ago and I was on an anti-viral meds and steroids. I took 2 weeks off work and was about 90% "normal" when I returned, I've since been told I recovered very quick from it.

The only side effect I have now is when I blink one eye closes ever so slightly slower than the other, but nobody has noticed unless I told them.

When I was diagnosed I was referred to a ENT speacialist to rule out ear problems, etc, and she told me that a good exercise for Bell's Palsy was to blow up balloons (strange as it sounds) to exercise the facial nerves. I couldn't even manage to get the balloon started until well into the second week but when I did their were tears of joy - ask your GP/Specialist if there are any excercises to try and help recovery.

I think I had more of a complex about it than other poeple. When I was off work for 2 weeks I was invited to the works Christmas meal, I was very nervous about going with my face like it was but everyone was great and after a while a totally forgot I had it.

One thing I would say make sure you take your medication at the right intervals and don't forget to take any. I had an alarm clock set up to remind me to take my next dose but I needed to as I was taking 18 tablets a day.

Hope this helps and good luck with your recovery!

p-pincher

Bot my sister and best firend have both had beels palsy, many years ago. it took about 6- 8 weeks for them both to get back to normal and as far as im aware they have both not had any after effects at all x

spinme

I had Bell's palsy 2 years ago. Started on steroids the same day as I first started showing symptoms. The droopiness lasted about 2 months but the tiredness lasted a few months longer than that. I had 3 weeks sick leave and then was on holiday leave for 3 weeks which had already been arranged.
Everyone I spoke to was really kind and understanding about it. I wore an eyepatch over one eye as I couldn't blink so that was rather comical and I remember having to wear earplugs to a concert at the O2 as the music was so deafening (hearing in both ears became super sensitive).
There is a really helpful website bellspalsy.org.uk which is uk based, and an american one is bellspalsy.net
Loads of useful info and forums to discuss it all.
Make sure you take enough rest, I wasn't expecting to feel as tired as I did.

keelykat

Hello, I had this in my last trimester of pregnancy. Good news for me was I recovered fairly quickly and I can't see any signs that i had it now. I'd never heard of it before to be honest, apparently it is common in pregnancy.

The worst part for me was that I was away on holiday when it happened and as i couldn't close my left eye-i got sand in it making it water and sore. I had to sleep on my left or cover my eye with something to help me sleep. I felt quite embarassed that eating was so difficult, I'd dribble and couldn't taste in my left side.

Keep positive, not everyone takes a long time to recover The sooner you get treatment though-the better I was told. I ended up in hospital as I was pregnant and my gp was being cautious over what tablets to give me. Everyone was lovely to me though.

I hope you feel better soon

keely.x

System

Thyank you for all the replies and the links. My flatmate reckons its getting better each day, so that's something! can nearly close my eye, and the smile is getting there slowly but surely!