july 11, 2003
Just returned from the hospital. I'd laugh from the amount of silliness I've put up with today (especially from my mother who kept saying stupid thing like "stop touching your eye!!" "let me drive!!" right after I pointed a car she was about to drive into), but laughing hurts when you can only use one half of your face.
Let me explain.
A few days ago a sharp pain, very much like the kind you'd experience with a headache, started annoying me right below my ear. I assumed that it was my wisdom tooth that has yet to be yanked out and figured I'd live with the pain.
The next day, my tastebuds didn't appear to be the same. Everything I put in my mouth tasted like crap, as did my saliva. I was starting to freak out a little when the sensation didn't go away after obsessively scraping at my tongue with my toothbrush.
That same day, I felt twitchiness on the left side of my face. Once again, I ignored it and figured it was just stress.
The next day, I woke up and realized I had problems closing my left eye. I also had problems smiling and eating. I could barely move any muscles on the left side of my face.
This is when I started freaking out.
We went to the hospital today, waited roughly 3 hours for a doctor, and after his diagnosis he told me I had Bell's Palsy. It's an uncommon temporary facial paralysis thingy that affects one half of the face. The seventh cranial nerve on one side of your head becomes damaged, inflamed, or irritated, and causes the muscles on one side of the person's face to become unuseable. I can feel things, I just can't actually use the muscles properly.
As a result, I can't blink involuntarily and every minute or so I must manually close my eye with my hand.
Yes, it fuckin sucks.
It's supposed to go away in a few weeks, the doctor at the hospital said. After researching on the internet though, I found out the symptoms may remain the same for another few months up to a year, depending on how quickly my cranial nerve heals. For some patients, it never goes away.
I've been prescribed antiflammatories and am going to need an artificial tear gel for sleeping.. I have to apply it and then tape my eye shut in order to not cause any damage to my left eye while I sleep.
I'm sorry to all my friends who I was supposed to go clubbing with tonight.. I'm a little too busy freaking out over here to get down and dirty.. Sorry guys. :
