Bell's Palsy Update

Halleleuh! At one month to the date I can report my Bell's Palsey is nearly undetectible! I can say I feel perhaps a lag in my right eye when it blinks, perhaps not quite as many wrinkles on that side when I smile, and my ear ever so slightly sensitive. Even my children are telling me how happy they are that Mommy's smile is all better.

I never would have dreamed the dramatic change in the past 10 days. At first it was very painful, like someone punched me really hard, with a really big fist. Lots of twitching and then the dramatic increase in function came along. I have to say rest (thanks to my husband) played a major role, along with the high dose prednisone (even though it was awful!), high dose vitamin B & D (I was deficient in both), evening primrose, green tea, flax seed oil, and super B complex. I also ate to feed my injury, as I was told after my previous surgeries. I had lots of green, and lots of protein (eggs, cheese, yogurt, chicken, beans).

We are all astonished be the speed of my recovery and oh so very thankful!


Scary at Halloween. I was actually smiling here, or trying very hard to anyway! Cover the right side of my face and you can see it.

What I have learned... If you see someone, even just a distant aquaintance, who has an obvious disfigurement, new or old, or has something obviously distressing going on... smile. Offer a hand. Acknowledge it. A smile does wonders for the healing. Please, don't stare. Ask questions. A hug is the best gift you can give someone and it doesn't require any akward words.

Twisted

We have had a great few weeks. things have really been going well for us. Particularlly tuning up since getting life back to normal after Hurricane Gustave hardships of last month.



I was really busy Friday. I got a ton of boxes out and made a good bit of product made for Saturday market. That afternoon my little man spiked a bit of a fever. Not uncommon for him. He has also been trying to kick a respiatory infection that went around our house. It was the kick I needed to stop what I was doing and rock the little boy that had been sitting on the stool all afternoon next to me to spend time, as I had been busy. It was nice to rock. I was really tired too. I had also been trying to kick this lingering cough. I was guessing I was a little stressed lately as my eye and lip had been twitching on and off all afternoon as well.



In regular form, we spent the remainder of the evening eating dinner, getting kids ready for bed, and back to work, finishing us pouring come more candles and labeling. 12:30am to bed. Wake up time is 4:14am on Saturdays to get ready to go to market. This is typical for Friday/ Saturdays and very common weekdays for Fall / Christmas season for us. Things get busier and as we are a 2 person show, we tend burn at both ends most nights.



Saturday market was Great! We surpassed any other Farmer's Market sales to date. It was even better as I arrived with the least amount of stock than I would normally bring, I ordered a ton of supplies last week and they should be arriving this week. We may be recruiting help! I went home and spent a nice afternoon watching movies snuggled with the kids. I was really tired and must still be stressed as the twitching is getting worst.



Saturday night we attended a wake for a grandmother of a good friend of ours. It was a little stressful as she was upset and I really wanted to be supportive. It reminded me of my our grandmothers passing 4 years ago. I was really ok though. The longer we were there the weider I felt. Cory and I sat outside with a coke. Maybe I needed sugar. I hadn't eaten more than the muffin my sweet market neighbor Mrs Davis had bought and insisted I ate, in her motherly attempt to look after me.



We took our friends to dinner and thought a margarita was in order. We all had a lot going on and perhaps needed a little help to relax.



By the time we got to my in-laws to get the kids, I knew something serious was going on with my body. We got home and as I readied for bed, I was unable to keep the water in my mouth while brushing my teeth as my lip was starting to twist. I had been a paramedic for 13 years. I had been out of the loop for several, but it comes back to you. Treating yourself is different. I knew things like this could happen in a panic attack. I was not having a panic attack. I had eaten, so my blood sugar should be up. Stroke. It was the only thing running through my brain. And there I did crumble and start a full fledged panic attack. My arms and legs were still working. Cory got me calmed down enough to lie in bed and rest quietly. We agreed if things weren't better with a little rest we would go to the ER.



Sunday morning things were worst. I awoke early breaking down as my face is now totally twisted on the right side. I can not move my mouth on the right, I have no brow control so my right eye droops and as I can not fully control the lid my eye is very dry. As you can imagine, I tolally crumbled. After calling mothers, we had decided it may be Bell's Palsy. Not a stroke, but a paralysis of the face.



Going to the ER was bad, and comforting the same. I knew nearly everyone there and they were super nice. Yes, it was Bell's Palsy. It affects the 7th cranial nerve and causes paralysis on one side of the face. There are a lot of statistics, but it looks like over 3-6 months I could recover. Cause factors: lack of sleep, stress, viral infection. Check, check and check. Thank you Laura, Maggie, and Johnny. Without your familar comforting faces, that visit would have gone oh so much worst.



I am really tired. It is a lot of work trying to talk and make muscles work thet simple won't. I am working very hard to control my emotions and not break down. Telling my children was hard. They are little. I explained that mommy had a new smile and a new funny pucker when I kissed, but when I looked at them it was still a smile and when I kissed them it was still a kiss. My daughter didn't want be to smile. She asked me if I could just give her a what she mimicked as a Mona Lisa smile. My son sweetly kissed the twisted side of my face. Don't cry, don't cry, oh it is so hard. I do need to patch my eye and keep it moist so it willl not become damaged. In a effort to lighten the air, we picked up a pirate patch at the pharmacy. I can also make a great "arrrggh" out of the good side of my mouth. The kids do think Mama Pirate is great.



This too will pass...