The Facial Rehabilitation Centre

24/04/2026

See post below about an excellent free app available now!

22/04/2026

Great post by Facial Palsy UK!

🌿April is Stress Awareness Month🌿

Living with facial palsy can be tough, and in difficult moments, many of us become our own harshest critics.

Thoughts like “Just get on with it”, “What’s wrong with me?” or “Stop complaining” can creep in… but they often make things feel even harder.

It can really help when we start to treat ourselves like someone we care about (even if we don’t feel it).

When things feel overwhelming:
1. Acknowledge it
“This is difficult” or “This really sucks.”
2. Remember you’re not alone
“This is part of being human” or “Others feel this too.”
3. Speak kindly to yourself
Ask: “What do I need to hear right now?”
Maybe it’s: “I’m doing my best,” “I’ll get through this,” or “Go easy on yourself.”
It may help to ask “What would I say to a friend who was struggling with this same situation?” Offer those same words to yourself.

The more you practise self-compassion, the more it becomes natural. Over time, this will help you cope better, feel stronger, and find more moments of ease.

Take time this month to find a way that helps you to reduce your feelings of stress – whether that’s a few minutes of facial relaxation, taking some time outside, or reaching out for some support.
🌿 We do have a support group this evening (19:30 on Zoom) if you want to chat to others on a similar journey. Contact us to register.

Find out more information about psychological support here (psychological_resources_facial_palsy_uk.pdf), or contact us at support@facialpalsy.org.uk to chat.

15/04/2026

An excellent post to read if you suffer from synkinesis 💜

by Faye Linda Wachs, PhD Professor of Sociology California State Polytechnic University, Pomona In 2009 I woke up with Bell’s Palsy. After googling the symptoms… What flashed across my screen...

08/03/2026

07/10/2025

24/05/2025

Photographs can be challenging for many individuals with facial palsy, as it can increase feelings of self-consciousness, especially in today's age of selfies and camera phones. To help with this, we’ve created a ‘photograph card’ that you can give to the photographer. This card provides a discreet way for you to share information about your condition, so you don't have to explain your facial palsy verbally.

These would be handy for any situation with a photographer or group photographs e.g. school photographs, wedding guests, etc. You could even share it with a group of friends before going out.

💜 You can download the card here to print at home:https://www.facialpalsy.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Photograph-card.pdf
💜 Alternatively, you can request to receive one through the post https://www.facialpalsy.org.uk/support/photo-card-request-form/

Comment below where you’d use the card.

02/03/2025

New Resource: Eye care for patients with Facial Palsy

We have a fantastic new download available for patients with detailed instructions of how to take care of your eyes following an episode of Facial Palsy.

This is ideal for GPs and A&Es to email or print out for patients.

Please share>https://www.learn.facialpalsy.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Eye-care.pdf

01/03/2025

Please support Facial Palsy UK this Facial Palsy Awareness Week 💜

Please support our Facial Palsy Awareness Week mission – to get a dedicated Facial Palsy page on the NHS patient information websites.

Too many Facial Palsy patients are still misdiagnosed, misinformed and misunderstood due to a lack of reliable, consistent information.

We believe that having dedicated pages for Facial Palsy (not just Bell’s Palsy) on the four NHS websites will help to ensure that patients across the country can access safe, accurate information about their condition, as well as giving GPs and first responders a trusted resource to refer to.

This would also help to reduce misdiagnosis of conditions such as Ramsay Hunt Syndrome, Lyme Disease, tumours and cancers, as patients and health professionals would be more aware of symptoms that require further investigation.

We have already succeeded in getting this information published on the Northern Ireland NHS website, and our aim is to do the same in England, Scotland and Wales.

💜 Sign our petition: https://buff.ly/4hS1yYJ
💜 Find out more about the campaign (1-7 March 2025): https://buff.ly/3KcU6t1

20/02/2025

Very much enjoyed having Liesbet & Glynnis from Belgium with us this week for two days of facial palsy BTX-A knowledge sharing and collaboration at Queen Victoria Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.

29/09/2024

Great resource for October!!

Relaxation October

Join us for our 'Relaxation October' challenge. We challenge you to find time on each day of October to do some facial relaxation.

💜 You could use our self-help guides from the website (there are three to choose from!)
https://www.facialpalsy.org.uk/support/psychological-needs/relaxation-videos/
💜 You could attend our guided relaxation and mindfulness virtual support group
💜 You could just have a minute focusing on breathing and relaxing your face while your kettle boils.

It all counts!

There are so many benefits to engaging in facial relaxation.
1️⃣ Deep abdominal breathing with short breath holds allows more oxygen into the body and helps to nourish the tissues, assisting in recovery.
2️⃣ It calms the nervous system, grounds and centres, helping to calm anxiety and settle restless thoughts.
3️⃣ Facial relaxation can help to provide your overworked unaffected side a chance for some much needed calmness.

Download our tracker (https://www.facialpalsy.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Facial-Relaxation-Tracker.png ) and we look forward to hearing about your progress.

18/07/2024

Have you heard of Yuni Headphones? They are headphones featuring single-sided stereo sound designed for listeners with unilateral hearing loss. The Bluetooth-enabled headphones have both stereo channels in a single side, one above and one below the ear opening, so the brain perceives them as two separate sound sources. ANA volunteer, Emily Truell, recently tried the Yuni headphones, and you can read her review here: luckybraintumor.com. For more information about Yuni headphones, visit yuniheadphones.com.

01/05/2024

Research Opportunity!!

Improve Facial Palsy is looking for 18 participants to take part in an evaluation phase designed to check the stage assessment and content of a mobile application.

Initially, they are looking for people who were recently diagnosed with Facial Palsy (after 01/04/2024).

All you have to do is to book a 30 min video call to take an assessment and record a short video of 7 facial expressions.

More information here: https://lnkd.in/eD-KC4-n