Posting For A Cause (Bell's Palsy Awareness)

December 3, 2021

Those who have read my noisecash post this morning knew about this already. If you haven't read it yet, you can check it here https://noise.cash/post/lz2z8qmq

Ever since I became capable to help others, I gave help without hesitation and did not ask for anything in return. When my co-applicant in Manila got a problem with money for his medical examination, I pawned my earnings without hesitation just to lend him some money even though I barely knew him and that was our first encounter. And he never pay it back and I didn't ask him about it either, even until I flew abroad and forgot his FB account. He's a young poor man who badly needed to work for his family. And I felt like we had the same fate at that time. I guess I mentioned this to @FarmGirl before. When my ex in Cebu borrowed money from me so he could buy a motorcycle, I lent him a few thousand so he could attain his dream to have his own motorcycle. Unfortunately, we broke up and he never paid for it. I just let bygones be bygones. It's kind've of embarrassing to share my naiveness. Even though sometimes other people abused my kindness I just shrugged it off as long as I was able to help them.

When somebody from noise.cash or read.cash ask for help, I never hesitate to donate some amount because I know I am capable to do so, we are all capable. Recently, I made a post for a cause where I'll give 70-80% of my post's upvotes to the original writer of the article. So why can't I make a post for a cause for my real friend?

This post for a cause isn't for me but for my friend who was diagnosed with Bell's Palsy. And I only learned about her condition last night when she asked me for a loan. I uploaded her short video on YouTube, you can check it here. It's not public and only those who have the link can see it.

I got emotional last night when she informed me about her condition and she badly needed to treat it, or else, it might cause permanent damage to her facial muscles.

Bell's Palsy Awareness

I wrote this article not only for a cause but also to give awareness to everyone.

Her condition started with a headache in the last week of November and it became consistent with severe pain. Taking pain relievers to alleviate the pain was what she did as she thought it was just a normal headache. Then she felt pain in her ears as well.

On November 26 while she was brushing her teeth, she noticed that the water was spilling out of her mouth. After she gargled water, she noticed that her mouth drooped. She went to a doctor and was diagnosed with Bell's Palsy.

Bell's Palsy is a health condition that can hit anyone at any age, young or old.

Those who have been diagnosed with Bell's Palsy experienced sudden facial muscle weakness or paralysis, inability to close the eyelid, and dropping of the mouth, usually on one side of the face.

According to Hopkinsmedicine.org, it is a condition due to damage to the facial nerve or the 7th cranial nerve.

What causes Bell's palsy?

There is no certain explanation of Bell's Palsy causes. But according to the provided link above, it might be due to inflammation that is directed by the body's immune system against the nerve controlling movement of the face.

How is Bell's Palsy treated?

Bell's Palsy is treatable, but in rare cases, if not treated soon, it might cause permanent damage to facial nerves.

@LykeLyca is a Physical Therapist and according to her, physical therapy or electrical stimulation is needed to easily recover. Steroids are given as medication, but their side effect can cause further complications if taken more.

So the safest medication is through physical therapy or electrical stimulation. And according to research, relaxation, acupuncture, and taking Vitamins such as B12, B6, and the mineral Zinc, are also helpful.

Patients with Bell's Palsy might start improving after 2 weeks, but the full recovery would take up to 6 months.

While we were chatting last night, it brought back the memories when how we became friends. I was a pioneer in our department and she was a newbie.

It was February, her birth month when we became friends. We were by the roadside waiting for the jeep to come as we'll gonna take the same route. She mentioned her birthday and I just got my weekly incentive by that time. I don't actually know what came to my mind that time that I volunteered to buy a pansit so we could celebrate her birthday. We weren't even friends yet, but I felt comfortable talking with her.

I suddenly told her that I will buy pansit for her and she was confused, lol. The lady on the right photo was also there and that was also the moment we became friends, up to this day.

So after our conversation, she invited us to her house. And there, her mother cooked pansit for us and we celebrated her birthday.

Then our friendships began.

I was studying caregiving when she worked in Dubai as a call center agent, and I was working here already when she went back home. So we haven't seen each other for a long now. Only communicating on FB messenger. She's always telling me to save some for myself and not to send all my salary to my family. Or I might regret it in the future.

The same as me, she's a breadwinner as well and I know the condition of her family. She worked as an online English teacher after working abroad but stopped because of her condition.

She needed to recover soon, or else, her debts would only grow day by day. And this is the only way I can think to help her. All upvotes of this article will be sent to her.

Despite having a bad condition, she remained positive and hopeful. She even advised me to stay strong and care more about my health before it gets worse.

Sometimes fate is really so unfair to those who are sacrificing themselves for the sake of their beloved ones. But as she said, this is just a challenge to us and God will help us get through these.

This should also serve as a lesson to put health on top of our priorities because once we get crumpled, what we can only do is regret things.

Thank you so much to those who dropped their help on noise.cash. 🙏🙏🙏. I owe you guys a lot.