Bell's Palsy or Cervical Myelopathy with Spondylosis?

I have had trouble with the left side of my face for years. It will get very hot to the point that it felt like it was on fire. I also struggle with the feeling in my ear as if someone were stabbing me with an ice poker. Then my face goes numbish and things calm down a bit. The heat and numbness may last for hours but at least the searing, ice poker pain only lasts seconds or at most a minute.

Triggers: Stress, having sound near my ear. Some tones will set everything off in horrible motion, leaving me breathing like I am about to give birth to a 20 pound baby. If I use my left arm for much of anything, it can cause the burning sensation. (I also have rotator cuff disease).

This is an update to my post about Bell's Palsy. Since that post, I have been diagnosed with cervical myelopathy with spondylosis and Trigeminal neuralgia. Both of these can cause the Bell's Palsy symptoms. So...now I do not know for certain which is the culprit. Maybe they all are!

Coping? Well, I get through it. Ice packs are my very best friends and I try not to be far from them. Seriously, I need to move a freezer in my room, packed full of ice packs, ready at a moments notice. I follow the rules of 20 minutes on and 20 minutes off with the ice. I do not need other complications caused by over icing!! The only place I want too much icing is my muffin!

Ear Infection and Facial Nerve Issues

It all started when the left side of my face and my ear would get red, feverish, then go back to normal. There was no pain, and I do have lupus so I chalked it up to some weird lupus thing. As the days went on and my face was hot more often then not, I decided to get a look at from the doctor. Sure enough, to my surprise, I was diagnosed with an ear infection.

At this point I did not have a lot of pain, not any more than normal for me. I also have Meniere's disease that often causes ear pain and dizziness. The doctor prescribed some medication for my ear and within two days the redness was going away but the pain was increasing. More alarming to me was the strange pain in my face. It felt like I had gone to the dentist, gotten numbed up for some horrible dental procedure then my face was used for a pin cushion. The more I talked...and anyone who knows me knows how much I love to talk...the worse the pain/tingling got. When it reached the point that I could not smile because it hurt so bad, I thought it best to get another medical look. Just my luck that it is Friday night and the doctor's office won't open until Monday. I did not want the bill from the emergency room that I knew was sure to raise my blood pressure a notch or two...but I was getting worried about my face.

I called a friend, gathered my purse and my daughter, friend and I headed to the ER to spend our Friday night. Much to our surprise it was not that busy. Everyone that was there seemed far worse off then I did until I smiled. I decided to stick it out and hope the bill would not be too high.

Back in the room we waited for a short time, thank goodness. I was eager to leave and not have to listen to the woman getting sick somewhere in another room. I think they gave her some miracle drug because she was able to calm down and I could hear her talking. Her words could not be understood but at least she seemed to have gotten a little relief from her illness. It was my turn  to be seen and it was confirmed that I did indeed have an ear infection. So, what about my face? After the doctor had me smile and look at him in assorted ways, it was determined that I had nerve damage from the ear infection!! I did not know that could happen!! Only time will tell if I will ever lose this feeling of fresh- from- the- dentist- after- tooth- extraction. The doctor told my daughter and my friend to watch me for drooping face or...drooling...I hope that the only time I am seen doing that is because I am looking at some really delicious!

My escapade to the emergency room is going to cost a great deal, but at least I know what is going on. If I start drooling or my face droops...well, it might just change my make-up routine