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Bell's Palsy

jallenbass

jallenbass

Commercial User
May 17, 2005
4,684
3,930
66
Bend, Oregon
#1
Any current or past sufferers? I'm going on week 14 with no (or very little) change. Did the anti-viral and Prednisone right away and acupuncture 2-3 times a week for the first month. Just looking for moral support and/or a magic bullet :D to make this thing go away.
 
#5
My friend is going through this as we speak, he's at the 6 month mark. And though there has been marked improvement, he still has a way to go, and some of the facial musculature has atrophied a bit, so there's that to contend with as well. not enough eye drops in the world....

I feel for ya, and pray for some relief soon.
 
#6
Big Joe said:
Are you getting any movement at all on the affected side back yet?
Click to expand...

The only movement that I get on the (left) affected side is when I scratch an itch. That causes an involuntary muscle contraction for a few seconds.

The neurologist that I went to said that I have enough nerves firing when electrically stimulated that I should have a full recovery. He just doesn't know when.
 
#7
lowfreq33 said:
I had two friends that both had this. Have you tried an anti viral? One of my friends was prescribed valtrex as one of the suspected causes of Bell's Palsy is a form of the herpes virus. She did eventually recover fully, could be worth a try.
Click to expand...

I did take an anti-viral right away. I can't recall for sure but it might have been Valtrex. My doctor said that it was just to stop the spread of the virus.
 
#14
I had this about 15 years ago (I was 25) and it took a few months to "fully" recover. I quote fully b/c I STILL have some residual ticking in my face from time to time. I did the prednizone route, but had VIOLENT rage problems with it.

Now... oddly enough, I am currently suffering from Peripheral Neuropathy, so they're now currently going back and looking at possible neurological disorders, so it is VERY possible that what I experienced 15 yeas ago was mis-diagnosed.

Hang in there, it's definitely a strange sensation!
 
#15
...back when I was in the 5th grade. I didn't even realize I had a problem, a teacher noticed that when I smiled only one side of my mouth went up, then recognized that I could only blink one eye independently. Had to wear an eye patch for a few months until it went away - I was the coolest 5th grader, EVAR! ;)

Hopefully, you will fully recover quickly. :)
 
#17
I had Bell's Palsy on the right side of my face about 30 years ago. I recovered completely mainly due to the fact that I went to the hospital emergency room quickly and was told that is what made the difference. Scared the heck out me. I thought I was having a stoke. I had to use fake tears since I could not close my eye and playing in smokey bars was awful. My mouth was drwan as well. I was put on steriods and it took a few months to recover. Our guitar player's wife had a very severe case also about 30 years ago and went to many doctors for several treatments. One side of her face is still very drawn and she ever fully recovered. I don't know how soon she got medical treatment after it happened.
 
#18
I would find a physical therapist or speech therapist in your area that is experienced in treating bells palsy to evaluate you and determine if you're ready for treatment.

Stay away from all others. If they are not very experienced in treating BP, look elsewhere. There is very specific way of treating weakness associated with BP that involves isolating the affected side. Anyone who gets you to move both sides during exercise is not doing it right and can do more permanent harm than good.

Hope it comes back quickly for you!

Big Joe, MS CCC-SLP
 
#19
Big Joe said:
I would find a physical therapist or speech therapist in your area that is experienced in treating bells palsy to evaluate you and determine if you're ready for treatment.

Stay away from all others. If they are not very experienced in treating BP, look elsewhere. There is very specific way of treating weakness associated with BP that involves isolating the affected side. Anyone who gets you to move both sides during exercise is not doing it right and can do more permanent harm than good.

Hope it comes back quickly for you!

Big Joe, MS CCC-SLP
Click to expand...

I don't see any references on the web about PTs or SLPs in my area that specialize in Bell's Palsy. Do you have any resources that would give me some info about practitioners in Central Oregon?
 
#20
My wife is going through her third episode currently... The first, on her right side when she was 15, took about 6 weeks for full recovery. Second time was again on the right side, 12 years ago at age 35... That was a very scary one that started with a blinding headache followed by double-vision and then immediately facial paralysis. That probably was not all Bell's, but the seventh cranial nerve was definitely, as well as probably the fifth, (the double vision)...

The double vision lasted nearly 7 weeks, the facial paralysis went 4 1/2 months before there was movement of any kind. An MRI showed some type of bleeder or lesion sitting deep on her brain stem. The lesion, as well as the fact that two nerves were involved tended to point away from Bell's even though the symptoms were essentially the same... During that bout, there was some permanent damage to her eye, (please be sure to tape your eye at night... The moisture barrier route can allow the eye to dry without as much discomfort, meaning you think you don't need as many drops)... She had a gold weight put into her eyelid to help with closing...

This time around, it's on her left side which puts her into an exalted category of Bell's patients :hyper: At least she's getting excellent care... Did the Valtrex and Prednisone early on... Acupuncture 3 times a week, a nasty smelling herbal tea as well as moxa sticks... Her progress has been pretty amazing this time, and I mostly attribute it to her positive attitude, willingness to just rest, and, though I've been skeptical in the past, the Eastern medicine she's receiving... 5 weeks in and she's got about 65% mobility and is back at work (which helps her attitude a bit but bothers her eye)... Just got the results of the latest bloodwork , MRI and CAT and all looks normal (Thank Goodness!!) so this is most likely Bell's (or Melkersson-Rosenthal syndrome as there were other symptoms pointing to this)... Neurologist appointment this week...


I feel for you... My wife's attitude is amazing, much better than mine would be. Because her 'good' eye is primarily affected, I'm doing all of the driving to appointments (of course, they are all out of town!) We're fortunate in that I have an awesome boss who allows me the flexibility with my schedule to accomodate.

Keep a positive attitude, and please, don't ignore your eye when it is begging for drops!!

Best of luck!

-robert
 

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