progress

well my face is about 90% of being fully restored ;)

soon will be pics. 

I'm so happy!

UPDATE:
 Face 100%

how long will this last?

Man, I am starting to think that this will last for ever!
below are some pics of what my face will and will not do...... yesterday was the first time I could curl my lip....that is something right?

I do not like blood test

Making a pregnant woman fast for twelve hours is some kinda torture!
There was a very talkative girl in the waiting room. She was sweet, but really did not care what I had to say. She did seem confused about my face though. It is embarassing to talk to new people with my face being all lame. I look totally normal when I have no expression, but when I start to talk it is painfully obvious that something is not right with my face.
I can only give people half a smile, my eyes do not match when they close and the most embarassing is when I talk I practically eat the left half of my bottom lip.

Oh and I can not pronounce the letter F correctly....which is the other problem when meeting new people. "Hi, my name is Sloffy" is what people hear.....dang, I have a hard enough time with people understanding my name....this on top makes it even more annoying.

blood test

well it appears that I failed the blood test, and now I have to go back for more extensive testing. In the inital test they make you drink a super sugary drink that taste like orange Fanta on crack, and then after a hour wait they pull some blood. This is to see how your body handles the sugar.

This time, they take your blood when you first get there, then give you the sugary drink, wait a hour take your blood, wait another hour, take your blood, wait yet another hour, take your blood. So tomorrow I get to wait in the doctor's office for three hours and have my blood taken 4 times! oh and I have to fast the night before and the whole time during the test.

Doctor's office

I had to go to the doctor to have my blood taken. Apparently pregnant women can develop what is called gestational diabetes.
My dad has type II diabetes, and I had to get tested about three weeks ago. NOW I have to get tested again for the pregnancy type.
I really hate needles.

more about Bell's Palsy:

Bell's palsy is more common in pregnant women than in women who are not pregnant.
Developing Bell's Palsy during pregnancy does not automatically indicate the presence of a more serious underlying condition.
The 7th Cranial Nerve (VII) passes through a complex and tortuous route in the skull before it gets to the muscles and other structures it innervates. Some of the openings that the nerve must pass through are extremely narrow.
Many scientists believe that a viral infection such the common cold sore virus, herpes simplex, causes the disorder. (which I do get cold sores now and again, but not any recently, but the virus is still there if the signs are not showing). It has also been associated with: mumps, influenza or a flu-like illness, headaches, chronic middle ear infection, high blood pressure, diabetes, tumors, Lyme disease, tuberculosis, trauma such as skull fracture, facial injury and even in some instances, dental work, if the facial nerve is damaged or frozen during injection.



But for me, I think it is stress with the viral infection and pregnancy.



Facial Muscles Supplied By the 7th Cranial Nerve
Muscle Function
Epicranius: Raises eyebrows, wrinkles forehead horizontally 
Corrugator Supercilii: Wrinkles forehead vertically
Orbicularis Oculi: Closes eye
Orbicularis Oris: Draws lips together
Zygomaticus Major: Elevates angle of the mouth (laughing)
Buccinator: Permits smiling; blowing / pursing of the lips



So right now my face is really bad at doing all those actions on my left side..... tiny improvments have come about, but i can not capture them on film to share, just know that I can curl my upper lip and pull my bottom lip down slightly, but my eye area is the weakest part, and that is also where i first felt the problem.



other things it effects:
Hearing structures innervated by the 7th Cranial nerve
Stapedius muscle - the function of this muscle is to tension the bones of the middle ear



Sensory functions innervated by the 7th Cranial nerve
Anterior two thirds of the tongue - taste



Parasympathetic functions innervated by the 7th Cranial nerve



Salivary and lacrimal glands - salivation and lacrimation (saliva and tearing of the eye)



I hope this helps with questions....

Bell's Palsy

I have Bell's Palsy:

WHAT IS BELL'S PALSY?
Bells palsy is a condition that causes the facial muscles to weaken or become paralyzed. It's caused by trauma to the 7th cranial nerve, and is not permanent.



WHY IS IT CALLED BELL'S PALSY?
The condition is named for Sir Charles Bell, a Scottish surgeon who studied the nerve and its innervation of the facial muscles 200 years ago.



HOW COMMON IS BELL'S PALSY?
Bells palsy is not as uncommon as is generally believed. Worldwide statistics set the frequency at approximately .02% of the population (with geographical variations). In human terms this is 1 of every 5000 people, and 40,000 Americans every year.



IS BELL'S PALSY ALWAYS ON THE SAME SIDE?
The percentage of left or right side cases is approximately equal, and remains equal for recurrences.



IS THERE ANY DIFFERENCE BECAUSE OF GENDER OR RACE?
The incidence of Bells palsy in males and females, as well as in the various races is also approximately equal. The chances of the condition being mild or severe, and the rate of recovery is also equal.



WHAT CONDITIONS CAN INCREASE THE CHANCE OF HAVING BELL'S PALSY?
Older people are more likely to be afflicted, but children are not immune to it. Children tend to recover well. Diabetics are more than 4 times more likely to develop Bells palsy than the general population. The last trimester of pregnancy is considered to be a time of increased risk for Bell's palsy. Conditions that compromise the immune system such as HIV or sarcoidosis increase the odds of facial paralysis occurring and recurring.



CAN BELL'S PALSY AFFECT BOTH SIDES OF THE FACE?
It is possible to have bilateral Bells palsy, but it's rare, accounting for less than 1% of cases. With bilateral facial palsy, it's important to rule out all other possible diagnoses with thorough diagnostic tests.



CAN BELL'S PALSY AFFECT OTHER PARTS OF THE BODY?
Bells palsy should not cause any other part of the body to become paralyzed, weak or numb. If any other areas are affected Bell's palsy is not the cause of the symptoms, and further testing must be done.



HOW DO THE SYMPTOMS OF BELL'S PALSY PROGRESS?
Very quickly. Most people either wake up to find they have Bells palsy, or have symptoms such as a dry eye or tingling around their lips that progress to classic Bell's palsy during that same day. Occasionally symptoms may take a few days to be recognizable as Bells palsy. The degree of paralysis should peak within several days of onset - never in longer than 2 weeks (3 weeks maximum for Ramsey Hunt syndrome). A warning sign may be neck pain, or pain in or behind the ear prior to palsy, but it is not usually recognized in first-time cases.



IS BELL'S PALSY CONTAGIOUS?
No, it is not contagious. People with Bells palsy can return to work and resume normal activity as soon as they feel up to it.



WHAT ABOUT RECOVERY FROM BELL'S PALSY?
Approximately 50% of Bells palsy patients will have essentially complete recoveries in a short time. Another 35% will have good recoveries in less than a year.



Regardless of the trigger, Bell's palsy is best described as an event - trauma to the nerve. As with any other injury, healing follows. The quality and duration of recovery is dependent on the severity of the initial injury. If the nerve has suffered nothing more than a mild trauma, recovery can be very fast, taking several days to several weeks. An "average" recovery is likely to take between a few weeks and a few months. The nerve regenerates at a rate of approximately 1-2 millimeters per day, and can continue to regenerate for 18 months, probably even longer. Improvement of appearance can continue beyond that time frame.



IS MUSCLE ATROPHY A CONCERN?
Not as a rule. It takes longer for the muscles to start to atrophy than it takes for most people to fully recover.



IS BELL'S PALSY LIKELY TO HAPPEN AGAIN?
The possibility of recurrence had been thought to be as high as 10 - 20%. These figures have been lowered as more has been learned about conditions that are now diagnosed as other types of facial palsies. Estimates of the rate of recurrence still vary widely, from around 4 - 14%. Most recent reports hover at 5 - 9%. The average time span between recurrences is 10 years.