Thursday, March 28, 2013

Day 8

March 28, 2013 

I am starting to feel the right side of my face a little more. I still have pretty painful headaches, but I've been taking extra strength Tylenol and drinking A LOT of water. If I clench together my teeth, I can feel my jaw move and the right side of my mouth twitch. The appearance of my face looks about the same, though the swelling seems to be going down a bit. 

Yesterday I spent my morning volunteering at the city's soup kitchen... and even though several people asked, "what's wrong with your face?" It helped to put my situation into perspective. I left reminded that there are far worse things that could happen to me than a crooked smile.  

Today I woke up, did my makeup for the first time in over a week and threw my hair up. I went to play Bingo with some of my coworkers...we lost :( but it was still fun to get my mind off of all this for just a bit. I'm realizing that it's important, (as my book also mentions) that no matter how I feel, I get up, dress up and show up for life. Time doesn't stand still just because I'm ill. I still need to go out and enjoy myself.

Tomorrow I will fly home to San Jose for Easter. Some quality time spent relaxing with my family should be good for me. I plan on going into work Monday and working behind the scenes till my face decides to snap out of it and I can go back on air. 

I'll just have to go with the flow and have faith that the best days are yet to come!
Recovery week 2 begins. 

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Day 6

March 26, 2013

Day 6

Today I woke up, took my medicine and went on an early morning a hike with my dog. I wanted to do something "active" since the doctor told me I should keep working out. Prednisone causes fluid retention and an increased appetite, which translates into weight gain if you're not careful. I've been trying to keep myself busy and avoid high-sodium foods. 

My jaw feels pretty sore, as does the rest of my body -- again, a side effect of the meds. I bought a gel pack from Walgreens to use warm or cold to ease the pain. It covers the forehead, eyes and nose for maximum relief... it works pretty well. I've noticed an increased in sensitivity to sound in my right ear. It feels like everything is painfully loud. No noticeable changes in the appearance of my face today. 



Monday, March 25, 2013

Hey little fighter, things will get brighter


March 25, 2013

Day 5

Hola - Today I woke up and went into work. My coworkers said my face looked "better" than when they saw me on day 1. I only stayed for a bit, then it was off to my doctor's appt. It was the first time meeting Dr. Lee -- he was terrific! He looked over my cat scan results and said he didn't see anything abnormal other than a few pinched nerves likely resulting from the Bell's. He referred me to the neurologist just in case. I mentioned the constant headaches and ear pain. He checked my ear and saw that it was inflamed, a possible sinus infection. He prescribed me antibiotics (Amoxicillin) and gave me an additional prescription for more 2 more weeks of Prednisone. I also had my blood drawn since I hadn't had a test done recently.

I asked Dr. Lee about returning to work, he said I should relax for at least a week. Staring at a computer monitor or a TV screen may further strain/stress my eye. He thinks I'll be out for a month, but I plan to return next week if I feel better.

I think the swelling in my face has gone down. I am also able to fully close my right eye if I concentrate really hard -- all signs of small improvements, but exciting none the less. I also started reading this great book called "God Never Blinks" by Regina Brett. It's not so much a story about faith, but rather human emotion. It has taught me to remember Bell's is temporary and that no matter how good or how bad a situation is, it will change. As the author puts it... "the passage of time heals almost everything. Give time time"and with that, I'm headed to bed - one day closer to recovery. I have posted a few new photos I took today... I shall call them, "More images of life's little detour" ;) Nighty night.



Sunday, March 24, 2013

Day 4

March 24, 2013

Woke up today in a better mood :)  I've been faithfully been taking my meds and am headed back to Vegas in just a few hours -- will see the doctor for a follow up appt tomorrow. I had a bit of ear pain yesterday and a slight headache, but today -- not so much. I feel a little more sluggish than usual. I have had A LOT of facial twitching today ... Some in my brow, right eye and cheek.. accroding to the web, that's a good sign! They say it could be an indication of the nerves in my face trying to fire up again. Let's hope! I'm off to bed, will update the status of my condition tomorrow. One day at a time..

Saturday, March 23, 2013

You have Bell's Palsy...

March 23, 2013

I decided to start a blog to document my experience with Bell's Palsy. I figure since I Facebook, Tweet, and post about everything else going on in my life... why not this? Maybe sharing my story will inspire others dealing with this condition to do the same.

I woke up Thursday morning at 1:30 for work and noticed the right side of my face was droopy. I realized I couldn't smile, rub my lips together or blink my right eye. In a panic, I called my parents thinking the worst -- a stroke.

I drove to the television station where I work to check in with my executive producer Judy... seeing the right side of my face frozen, she quickly suggested I get to the doctors.

The first doctor sent me off to the ER for a cat scan. Within hours I was diagnosed with Bell's Palsy, a condition in which the muscles on one side of the face cannot move (paralysis). It is most often thought to be brought on by a virus... though most of the time the cause is unknown.

I was terrified thinking I had lost my face forever. It suddenly hit me when I looked in the mirror that I may not be able to return to work as television reporter... I thought, what if I'm permanently disfigured? What if I never recover?

But doctors say that's unlikely ---

Recovery can take weeks to months. Most people improve within 3 weeks of when the symptoms began. The condition is temporary and strikes when the seventh cranial nerve, the tiny nerve controlling the face, gets inflamed or damaged. They prescribed me anti-viral and steroid medications. I have to wear an eye patch at night and use eye drops to make sure my cornea doesn't get dried out or damaged. 

There are a few symptoms that are considered red flags of a Bell's Palsy attack... and looking back on the days before my diagnosis, I now recall signs I had dismissed. My right eye had been twitching all day Wednesday. I had a slight pain in the back of my neck and my tongue was numb, as if I had burnt it on something. I couldn't taste my dinner the evening before and I was having a hard time formulating my sentences on air. My photographer jokingly called me "stumbelina." All signs of an attack, yet at the time I didn't think much of it.

Today marks day 3 of living with Bell's. I am home with my family and am doing well. I haven't noticed any signs of improvement yet, but I'm confident they'll come. I have a follow up appointment back in Las Vegas on Monday, I may have to do some facial physical therapy this week and possibly take anxiety medications to make sure this doesn't happen again since the condition is stress induced.

I will do my best to post here often with photos and updates... for now I'll leave you with a quote I found that lifted my spirits, hopefully it does the same for you!
 "Life can change in an instant -- for good and bad. Some changes we control, some we don't... so look for reasons to be grateful, hold your loved ones close and remember that even grief is important sometimes."






This photo was taken Tuesday, two days before my attack. The next ones were taken Thursday and Friday.