Feel generally unwell, and a bit dizzy. I ignore this and put it down to being tired.

I’m on leave from work – I’m supposed to start a new job on August 9. I’m still feeling unwell, though nothing too dramatic. I’d been doing some renovation work at home and experienced weird dizziness while sawing some wood for a cupboard. I had to grab hold of a doorframe to stay balanced. I notice that I also have a slight earache. Decide to go to the local doctor to get this checked as I’m supposed to fly on Sunday and I don’t want this to get any worse.

Doctor notices some redness in the ear, says it’s probably a virus that will correct itself – advises me to rest, no medications recommended.

Ear still hurts and feeling dizzy occasionally. Decide to see doctor again – I’m very keen to clear this up before I fly, if possible. The doctor prescribes antibiotics. He’s pretty sure that the problem is viral, but says the antibiotics will help if it turns out to be a bacterial infection.

Evening – feeling a bit nauseous and I have a headache. Wonder if the antibiotics aren’t agreeing with me. Feel really sick overnight, my tongue gets so dry it’s like a piece of cardboard. My right ear is really red and hurting – coincidentally I scratched it earlier in the week, so I assume the scratch must have become infected.

Wake up feeling really nauseous. I have to throw up twice. I notice that the right side of my mouth feels numb and that I can’t wink with my right eye. Now I’m worried. I book in to see another local doctor and beg for a quick appointment.

Doctor diagnoses Bell’s Palsy and tells me not to be too worried as recovery rate is 90%, though this may take 6-8 weeks or a bit longer, and that the paralysis may get worse before it gets better. He puts me on 50mg/day of Prednisolone and some anti-inflammatory/antibiotic ear drops, and mentions that these may help reduce the pressure on the facial nerve and minimise further deterioration in my facial paralysis.

He mentions that there is another similar condition related to Shingles with similar symptoms, but that if I had that I’d be in a lot more pain. I think I’m too much in shock to express pain. So much for flying on Sunday.

Still feel tired, and dizzy but no nausea. Notice that my hearing is bad in my right ear. My face has deteriorated. Right eye is really wide open, mouth drooping at right. I can’t raise my right eyebrow or close my right eye. The condition of my ear is worse – it’s almost too sore to touch, and my girlfriend notices lots of small blisters inside. It’s getting more difficult to talk without sounding slurred. My sense of taste is not affected – my cooking still tastes terrible.

I’m a bit worried, but this is in line with the doctor’s advice that it may get a bit worse at first, so I’m not in a panic, although I do decide to go and see a specialist in the emergency clinic at Melbourne’s Eye and Ear hospital the next day. Looking up Bell’s Palsy on the web, I read that blisters are a sign that it is probably Ramsay-Hunt Syndrome, which seems to be more serious. Looks like the local doc might have got it wrong.