Treatment for facial muscles

    • Anonymous
      March 15, 2011 at 11:59 am

      Hello again all u guys out there !

      It has been a long time since I wrote about my wife. She was diagnosed with GBS in June 2010. She’s now able to walk & do her daily chores but whenever we go for outing she gets fatigued very soon. Also she still have the feeling of numbness & tingling in her feets.

      But the main issue of concern is that it has been almost an year (10 months to be exact) but her facial & eye muscles are not working properly. She can’t open her mouth fully. Neither she can smile properly, when she smiles or tries to laugh it looks like she’s crying. Her left eye is still not in exact focus, slightly non aligned.

      Her face was the first place of GBS attack. Some relatives of ours say that bcoz face was attacked first, recovery to the face will be last. But it has been a long time that her facial muscles are not working properly although rest of all her body parts are working properly now.

      Now even my only 33 months old son has been diagnosed with enlarged adenoids (pharyngeal tonsils). I don’t what GOD wants from me. Why is he taking such a test from me.

      Now I wanna ask everybody out there when & how my wife’s facial muscles w’d start working properly again. The physiotherapy so far is unhelpfull. We have even tried stimulants like mild electric currents on her face but of no use. [B][U]PLEASE HELP[/U][/B]

      with warmest regards

      Harry

      May GOD have mercy on all affected !

    • March 15, 2011 at 2:08 pm

      [QUOTE=bubbly]….her facial muscles are not working properly although rest of all her body parts are working properly now…….[/QUOTE]

      So great to hear that your wife is feeling better, always remember how far she went down and keep looking forward.

      I find that stretching and massaging the muscles that are stiff helps immensely. I have spoken with others who have found a lot of relief and recovery through this. Perhaps this might work for your lady. Keep giving her love.

      I’ll hope for your boy that his tonsils can be taken care of with routine procedures.

      Best to you

    • Anonymous
      March 15, 2011 at 4:42 pm

      Hello, Harry. I hope your small son gets treated and over this, soon. As for your wife – well – you are describing me. My face has not been the same since exactly 18 years ago today. My first bout with GBS landed me in the hospital March 15th, 1993. 10 months is still too short a time to be concerned yet – but for some of us it is permenant. She will have to learn to deal with it in the best way she can. For example – when getting ready for a photo, practice in front of a mirror. Find just the right amount of a smile and/or tilt of the head gives a more natural look. Cut food into very small bites to avoid too much falling back out of the mouth when eating. Hopefully by this time next year this will all be a dim memory for both of you. I am wishing your family all the best.

    • Anonymous
      March 15, 2011 at 7:21 pm

      I was diagnosed 5 1/2 years ago. I still have some weakness on the right side of my face. My smile is lopsided and my right eyelid is still a little weak. While I was recovering, I saw a speech therapist who helped a lot with exercises and massage techniques the helped stimulate the muscles.

      I would suggest looking into the help of a speech therapist for her facial muscles. Since they know about the specific makeup of facial structure and movement, they should be able to help.

      Tonya Correll
      GBS May 15, 2005

    • Anonymous
      March 19, 2011 at 2:04 pm

      The number of muscles in the face is enormous so it is not easy to get them all working again properly. After 5 months from GBS onset, a speech therapist had used some massage and vibration therapy with me to try and stimulate the muscles. I recovered almost all my facial expressions by 18 months.

    • Anonymous
      March 19, 2011 at 3:54 pm

      Harry,
      Your wife is just beginning the healing process. It has not even been a year. Time is on her side. The nerves heal one millimeter a day – this is the width of a pin. When I had my GBS the second time, I did not want to hear that it would Probably take 2 years -5 years for the total healing. But looking back, this was correct for me. I never thought I would be able to stand again. And I did this living alone and not one friend in this town that would help.
      I hear the desperation in your voice. My tonsils and adenoids were removed when I was in grade school. Looking back, that was the wrong thing for my parents to do, but they listened to the doctor. I would shrink them wholistically and not put a child under anaesthesia. But that is my path.
      Let’s look at the whole picture – there is a good chance that TIME will allow the body to repair the nerves – but slowly. Don’t watch closely for improvement. It will frustrate you. Just pray and have faith that your body is and will continue to repair itself. Perhaps you could read some of the old posts on this site and read the positive ones to your wife. The nicjname for GBS is French Polio – I read that in a book – I didn’t make it up. If your wife had French Polio – wouldn’t you expect it to take a longer time for the body to heal? Hope this helps. Hang in there. It does look horrible from where you are right now, but it will look differently down the road. Trust us. We have been there. It will get better. My therapist had me picture myself standing and looking healthy and vibrant. Picture what you want the body to be like – not what you currently have. Visualization works.

    • Anonymous
      April 23, 2011 at 5:54 am

      I was diagnosis in March 2005. I still have alot of problems with my face muscles. I’m not able to smile, very very little movement. I had speech thearpy too. Which help the most, but but has not recovered. I’m just thankful I’m still alive and can walk and breath on my own.

      Chuck