I stopped writing last year, but basically my condition improved slowly and steadily. I went back to work in mid-August 2004, with still visible signs of facial paralysis. The vertigo went after about 2 weeks. I took things slowly for a while. I had to continue taping my eye nightly to stop it drying out until about November. A strange thing happened then – I got the okay to fly again and went on a business trip to Germany. While my face seemed to freeze up a couple of times in the cold in Berlin, it seemed to improved markedly after that, after hours aboard planes.

I experienced lots of twitching and muscle spasms in the affected side of my face throughout recovery – while these were unnerving, they generally preceded improvements, as if my face was returning back to life.

In terms of facial paralysis, my condition now is great. There is some slight remaining paralysis on the right, but it is not visible to anyone but me, and to my former girlfriend/ new wife when she looks closely. I survived wedding photos in March. The right side of my face feels a bit stiff, particularly in cold weather and when I’m tired or run down, but it’s okay most of the time. I do have some ongoing facial twitches.

My hearing is the only thing that hasn’t really improved. I have tinnitus in my right ear and a bit more trouble hearing people in crowded rooms. I sometimes can’t hear what my wife is saying in bed if my good ear is against the pillow. It’s a moderate loss with which I can cope. I haven’t had it checked out further, yet.

As troubling as my experience with Ramsay-Hunt Syndrome was, it’s ended happily for me. For anyone reading, I really hope that your experience will end as positively. In the meantime, give your body the best chance of recovering. Take a slower pace at work if you can (I’d been burning the candle at both ends for a couple of years before it hit me and I am sure this was a causal factor). Eat nutritious foods, lots of fresh fruits and vegetables. I stopped drinking all caffeine for a few weeks early on and it seemed to really help.

Finally, the support of friends and family, maintaining a positive attitude and perspective (people suffer far worse conditions and still get through) is very important. Good luck.