How soon can you run?

[kkl]

Hi all,

Am 3 months op and back to my country of residence.  My facial paralysis is like 90% healed, don't feel dizzy too much during the day, but still need to take things slowly.  If I look back, I know I have improved a lot...like I now only nap once instead of 3 and that I can do most normal activities, etc. but in a slower pace.  What bothers me most now is the fact that I find myself still clumsy in doing some stuffs...like running for instance.  My left leg is still clumsy, cannot seem to move too fast and doing so makes me dizzy.  Did you experience this, too?  How soon does it get better?

[kenneth_k]

Your balance probably improves the most during the first month, but you can still feel improvements up to three months.

Then you may think that vestibular recovery has stopped, but if you continue to exercise, improvements will continue for at least a year and a half.

If you stop exercising the you may feel setbacks, but "normal" people without a damaged vestibular system also benefit from exercise for their entire life. Especially when they get older.

My advice would be - patience and practice - and you WILL get better

Best regards Kenneth

[Tod]

All this recovery stuff simply takes time. It is frustrating to not have a good calendar of likely benchmarks because each of us has a different experience.

For example, I am 13 months post-op. It was an unusually long surgery (32 hours) followed by two weeks in ICU. At three months I was able to go back to work, and could a few miles at a time. But I couldn't do both in the same day. It was about 5 months later before I could run.  I also had some difficulties with my left shoulder, in strength, function, and range of motion. Only now am I really able to focus on the strength as the other issues are gone.

The bottom line is this: Give yourself time and be good to yourself. Exercise. Rest. Repeat. Your body has its own schedule for healing.

-Tod