My face has gotten so sore that applying lotion is painful. I felt subtle soreness for a couple if days feeling worse each day. It's painful when I brush my fingers across my face to get hair off my face. I cannot sleep in my left side because it is so sore. Forget about massaging it because I don't even want to touch it! I have tried Tylenol and warm compress without relief. I need to purchase peppermint oil and try rubbing that on my neck and behind the ears. I read that helps.
My left eye still don't blink correctly and has become extremely dry. I've purchased generic GenTeal gel drops and there's no significant difference to the artificial tears the doctor's prescribed. Las night was the first night I had to tape my eyes shut since it started to sting and get dry. I'm assuming my eyes are not shut completely at night even though I am sleeping.
When I blink slowly getting the left side to close, you see my eyeball roll to the middle upper corner. It looks creepy. I took a video of myself on my iPhone and watched it. Like I said, creepy. I see the way my husband looks at me. I know he's adjusting to it too but he has been very supportive and tries to say the right things (which is not easy for him lol).
Showering is very challenging. It took a couple of nights to remember to hold my eye lids shut after painful stings from my face wash and shampoo. Even with it held down, the dryness from the water makes it every uncomfortable.
My mouth on the left side still has no muscle movement. Smiling or laughing looks silly. Eating large things that require me to open wide such as burgers are not a good idea. I tried to have In-N-Out yesterday and basically ripped apart my burger. :( the Fries were fine though :) I've gotten used to pinching the left side while drinking from a straw or rinsing after brushing my teeth. I need to hold that side open to floss.
Driving has also been challenging. Any exposure to air causes extreme dryness to my eye and my vision is poor. Having the left side blurry and sometimes fuzzy, makes it hard to see out of the right eye. Covering the left side with a patch feels like losing 70-80% vision instead of half.
I am fortunate that my employer allows me to work from home. I received a desktop computer and set up an office in my living room to work. This eliminates the need for me to drive to work and also exposed to the drafty air conditioning at work. I went in a few days ago to get work and the desktop and the tiniest draft was irritating my eyes. Having a 24" monitor allows me to increase font size in my email and documents so that I can still see it even though it's still fuzzy.
I talk a lot and lately I just don't want to. I slur and it's frustrating trying to talk especially to my 3 year old chatter box son who is now having a hard time understanding me. I lose patience a little faster because I can't get my words to come out right.
When I blink slowly getting the left side to close, you see my eyeball roll to the middle upper corner. It looks creepy. I took a video of myself on my iPhone and watched it. Like I said, creepy. I see the way my husband looks at me. I know he's adjusting to it too but he has been very supportive and tries to say the right things (which is not easy for him lol).
Showering is very challenging. It took a couple of nights to remember to hold my eye lids shut after painful stings from my face wash and shampoo. Even with it held down, the dryness from the water makes it every uncomfortable.
My mouth on the left side still has no muscle movement. Smiling or laughing looks silly. Eating large things that require me to open wide such as burgers are not a good idea. I tried to have In-N-Out yesterday and basically ripped apart my burger. :( the Fries were fine though :) I've gotten used to pinching the left side while drinking from a straw or rinsing after brushing my teeth. I need to hold that side open to floss.
Driving has also been challenging. Any exposure to air causes extreme dryness to my eye and my vision is poor. Having the left side blurry and sometimes fuzzy, makes it hard to see out of the right eye. Covering the left side with a patch feels like losing 70-80% vision instead of half.
I am fortunate that my employer allows me to work from home. I received a desktop computer and set up an office in my living room to work. This eliminates the need for me to drive to work and also exposed to the drafty air conditioning at work. I went in a few days ago to get work and the desktop and the tiniest draft was irritating my eyes. Having a 24" monitor allows me to increase font size in my email and documents so that I can still see it even though it's still fuzzy.
I talk a lot and lately I just don't want to. I slur and it's frustrating trying to talk especially to my 3 year old chatter box son who is now having a hard time understanding me. I lose patience a little faster because I can't get my words to come out right.
Wide eyes (only one side goes up)
My smile (with eyes wide open)
Pucker up!
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