At work, no particular stress or strain. Went to lunch with some customers but was not very hungry (unusual). At the end of the day I was not feeling too great, kind of wobbly, told them I just might not make it in on Friday.

Stayed home and slept a lot. Thought it was just the flu. Some dizziness. Had no appetite. Later in the evening I conked out in front of the TV. My wife tried to get me to bed but finally gave up. About midnight I woke up and cut up an apple. Ate just a bit, but noticed that I had a bit of difficulty eating it. Must have lain on my face wrong, I thought. Anyway, too tired to bother.

Woke up and noticed that I was paralyzed on the right side of my face. Dizzy and weak. We called my doctor’s answering service, this being a Saturday. Did not take too long to get a response. The first concern was that I had a stroke. My son took me to the local hospital emergency room. Being early, I luckily did not have to wait long. I remember walking down the hallway like a drunken sailor. I was diagnosed with Bell’s Palsy by the attending physician. They prescribed methylprednisolone 4mg in a 21 pill package (six the first day, five the second, etc.). I was told to tape my eye shut when I slept.

Today is our 30th wedding anniversary. Guess we won’t go out tonight. Sleep most of the day. No particular pain. No appetite, hard to chew and things don’t taste right. Can’t hear too well on the right side.

Visited my GP. Diagnosed with Bell’s Palsy and Otitis Media, acute serous.

Rested a lot. Felt lousy but no major pain. The biggest problem was not being able to close my eye when I rested.