"You can go to extremes with impossible schemes/You can laugh when your dreams fall apart at the seams/And life gets more exciting with each passing day/And love is either in your heart or it's on its way/Don't you know it's worth every treasure on earth/To be young at heart/For as rich as you are it's much better by far/To be young at heart/And if you should survive to 105/Look at all you're derive by being alive!And here is the best part, you have a head start/If you are among the very young at heart." --Frank Sinatra, Young At Heart
Well, I am extremely happy to report that my eyeball is no longer a great ball of fire. In fact, (and here's to hoping I don't jinx myself), it actually doesn't burn anymore, and it has needed fewer drops of lubricant. That new medication, Tobredex, certainly has done me wonders. If I continued to take Dr. Troll's advice (see two posts ago), I might have been blind by now, and no, I'm not being sarcastic. I'm grateful to Almighty God that my eye is on the road to being healed. Time will tell if the cornea heals completely, but now that I've traveled out of the Valley of Unending Pain, my optimism is returning along with my ocular comfort. Thank you for your prayers and well wishes. Keep 'em coming!
Frank Sinatra talks about being alive at 105. Do you know, that it is thought in the medical community today that, given both technological and medicinal advances, we have the ability to push our life expectancy into the 100 year mark and beyond? There's a group that actually believes we can live to 120, and personally, I like that estimation...it means I haven't hit middle age yet. Hooray!
With everything going on right now, I don't have time for a mid-life crisis anyway. You?
But that actually gets me into today's topic...how Bell's Palsy, or something similar, can actually happen to you...even if there's no prior history in your family of it occurring. (Now, there is in mine; my maternal grandmother had a bout of Bell's, and it was temporary for her and she made a full recovery which is what I know in my bones I will achieve, too). I'm greedy. I'd like to take all of you with me into the centenarian status. You can do it! Positive thinking actually is one of the ways you get there. In future blog posts I will give you the steps to get there. SHARE THIS BLOG WITH YOUR FRIENDS! Let's all make it through a long, happy, healthy life together, OK? :)
First, what is Bell's Palsy? It's a form of temporary facial paralysis resulting from damage or trauma to one of the two facial nerves. The neves in question are a paired set known as the seventh cranial nerve. It travels through a narrow bony canal known as the Fallopian canal in the skull, beneath the ear, to the muscles on either side of the face. Not only do the facial nerves direct the muscles that control eye blinking and closing and overall facial expression, but also taste sensations in the tongue and the nerve impulses sent to the lacrimal (tear) and saliva glands. When Bell's Palsy strikes, it disrupts the facial nerve, interrupting the messages the brain sends to the facial muscles, leading to facial weakness and/or paralysis.
Bell's Palsy affects approximately 40,000 Americans annually; it affects men and women equally, and can occur at any age. It disproportionately attacks people who have upper respiratory ailments like the flu, bronchitis or a cold. Guess what happened to me? I had been exposed to some sick folks at an event, I contracted a nasty, near month-long case of bronchitis and had to utilize powerful drugs to eradicate it, but that baked my immune system further...and SURPRISE! Bell's Palsy kicked my butt around the time the meds finished kicking in to remove the first ailment.
The immediate take home message to you is: old or young, man or woman, you can contract this malady...and if you or anyone else in your family are sick...stay home!!! Get rest! See a doctor, even if you have to go to a walk-in clinic and pay a higher co-pay. Get the care you need so that you and everyone you come into contact with can be safe! At Vassar Brothers Hospital, the ER doctor told me, given everyone passing around the garden variety flu, swine flu, and all the other usual fall/winter colds, PLUS the everyday stress everyone is baking themselves with by living everyday life, the instances of patients presenting with Bell's Palsy has increased in recent times!!!
I'm not trying to be unrealistic here; in fact, I'm not pointing fingers at any one person, I swear...I used to be one of those offenders. I'm a workaholic, and my attorney lifestyle means that there isn't much time for me to breathe, let alone take time out for being sick (remember, I brought a fully loaded trial bag of legal work with me to the ER, when that should have been the last thing on my mind). I was an idiot, working when I was sick, pushing myself to work when I should rest, and going to the doctors' only after I'd been sick for a week...and by then, my immune system was already as destroyed as my exhausted body. Plus who knows who else I infected along the way by not taking myself out of the public and by not taking care of myself sooner? I'm going to learn, grow and change from my mistakes. You?
We need to learn, all of us, to take better care of ourselves. To be proactive about our health and not treat such proactivity as an optional extra in life (and stop worrying about being labeled a hypochondriac or one of the "worried well" by putting the effort into maintaining our bodies in optimal shape). We should be better disciplined, as responsible adults, to get the care we need the SECOND we're sure that we're sick and it's not "some 24 hour thing." We have to educate ourselves about stress and how to reduce it, because you may not be practicing law, folks, but I'm sure you'd feel you could meet me power for power in terms of the stress load in your life. Right? You're probably grinning.
THAT'S NOT A GOOD THING!!! This isn't a contest! Did you read about my being wracked with pain and agony on Black Friday? Do you want to go through that? I don't care if Bell's Palsy finds you or not. You could suffer from a heart attack, stroke or cancer. You think those things involve a pleasure cruise in terms of physical experience? I don't want to go there! I want to live longer and stronger.
I never thought I'd get sick in any major way. You probably think you're going to somehow dodge a bullet yourself. Forget anything else you are doing to yourself or NOT doing that you should be doing...stress will get you. Hop around on the Internet...what doesn't stress cause? What is stress not a contributing factor to? Bell's Palsy isn't the only thing, folks.... Scientific studies have proven that stress causes chemical changes in the brain...and these chemical changes literally fry our systems...how it manifests is different for each person. Each of us have our own unique DNA combination, so each person's Achilles Heel or weak spot is different. "It" can happen to you..."it" being something unique as your unique DNA. So, are you willing to learn with me, change with me, and grow with me into someone leaner, meaner, stronger and healthier (mentally, physically and spiritually)? Keep tuning in. My goal is to post to this blog regularly...daily if possible...because I'm learning so much from articles, studies, books, my actual health care providers and more. Benefit from my experience...before it's too late. We can make it to at least 105, with a great quality of life, but clearly NOT if we keep repeating the same mistakes.
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