Conquering Bell's palsy requires great mental fortitude

Imagine waking up one day and not being able to feel one side of your face. When you go and look at yourself in the mirror you notice that one side of your face has just dropped and you are not able to move one of your eyes. Scary isn't?

Monica Ram lived through this nightmare. In 36 hours she went from being a young working woman to being a person with a half paralyzed face, who was not even able to carry out sedentary jobs without medication.

"It was August 11, 2013", she said, "I had difficulty in moving my face and by the time it was lunch, I couldn't chew properly. I realized something was terribly wrong." After much research about her symptoms, she learned that the searing headache, earache, and jaw aches that were plaguing her out of nowhere were due to a rare disease called Bell's palsy.

According to National Institute of Neurological disorders and strokes, approximately 40,000 people have experienced this malady known as Bell's palsy in their lives. It is a condition that causes temporary weakness or paralysis of the muscles on one side of the face. Bell's palsy is believed to occur when the nerve that controls the muscles in your face becomes compressed. It is an idiopathic condition - meaning that no conclusive cause has been established. A diagnosis of Bell's palsy is made based by ruling out other possible causes of facial paralysis. There is no specific laboratory test to confirm diagnosis of the disorder. Bell's palsy has a high rate of spontaneous recovery and approximately 80% of patients recover completely.

Monica was in agonizing pain. Her suffering has not only been physically painful but mentally exhausting. When she tried to smile, the left side refused to budge, while the right side of her mouth obligingly pulled itself into the requisite shape. For three months she lived with a crooked smile. But the more she read and talked to people about her ailment, she realised that Bell's palsy is a self- healing disease. "I knew that I'll get over it and be back to normal in just a few days time." She also joined a lot of Facebook groups and online forums from where she could get help by talking to other people with the same condition.

When we are chronically ill, dealing with life is often hard and overwhelming. Monica had myriad problems and Bell's palsy was just one of them. She started experiencing symptoms of severe vertigo and nausea with incessant vomiting for about two months. Ironically, after a month of rigorous diagnoses, the pain increased, with grievous pain in her teeth and ears. But it didn't end here. A huge side effect of Bell's palsy from which she suffered was clinical depression.

"Clinical depression lasted longer than Bell's palsy. The whole depression period completely shattered me. It was just because of some people close to me that I survived," said Monica, who has now overcome depression and Bell's palsy with frequent visits to Fortis and several other doctors.

She battled her inner demons for more than a year. "Slipping into depression feels like falling down a dark bottomless pit, wondering if at all you will stop falling." Her heart and mind were not in a position to motivate her. Speaking to her mother helped her tremendously, preventing her chaotic mess of thoughts from piling up and making her more miserable. She says, "My mother was my pillar of strength. Without the support of my family I would not have been able to fight as bravely as I did."

One's inner strength often comes to the fore when faced with hardships. Monica has experienced the lowest of lows in her life. She had her moments when the disorder overtook all aspects of her life. But, in her own words, "It's becoming harder and harder to remember. The memories don't haunt me anymore."