Bristol Palin revealed her “crazy” facial paralysis in a string of Instagram Story videos Wednesday.
“I woke up nine days ago with a little weird sensation in my face,” the “Teen Mom OG” alum told her followers. “My mouth was pulling this way, and it just felt a little off.”
At the time, the former reality star, 34, “looked in the mirror” and thought, “Wow, this is looking a little weird.”
She recalled, “Within a couple of hours, the entire left side of my face was numb and just paralyzed. I couldn’t really blink my eye, definitely had no movement on the side of my face. So crazy.”
Palin subsequently underwent a CT scan, had tests done and was prescribed “steroids and other medications.”
She explained, “Nothing came back, they think it’s just a case of Bell’s palsy maybe brought on by stress or lack of sleep. … I think it was brought on by stress.”
The neurological disorder is defined by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke as “a form of temporary facial paralysis or weakness on one side of the face.”
“I know I look crazy right now, but this has been such an improvement from what I was looking like,” Palin concluded. “I’m finally starting to get some of the sensation back.”
She called the process “a little painful,” noting that the discomfort is “a sign or indication it’s starting to get better.”
The former MTV personality went on to share daily videos of herself documenting the symptom’s progression — and persistence.
“I can’t move any part of [my face],” she said in one clip. “My eye is getting so dry from not being able to blink all the way. This is awful.”
By day six, Palin admitted she was “getting a little worried” because she was “still completely numb.”
However, the real estate broker noted that having “acupuncture multiple times … helped speed up” her ongoing recovery “tremendously.”
She also shared her mindset shift, insisting she will never again “pick [her]self apart” over her appearance.
“[When I feel insecure], I am gonna remember this and just be so thankful for a normal functioning face because this has been wild,” Palin said.
Sarah Palin’s daughter has been transparent about the work she’s had done over the years, from a tummy tuck to a breast reduction — and multiple reconstruction surgeries to “correct … terrible scarring.”
In May 2021, Bristol reminded her fans not to “compare [them]selves” when scrolling on Instagram.
“Let’s get reeeel for a sec. I post what I want y’all to see. From decent angles,” she said. “Don’t let this place have you comparing your own worth and stealing your joy.”
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