Hello Mudder,
I had Bell's 2 summers ago and I think I can offer some help. First, Quirky3's suggestions are a great start. Something not told to me regarding the eyedrops was to be sure to use natural eyedrops as other may not be as soothing. I also found that manually blinking my eye was well worth the effort until my eye began to blink on its own. I know I was prescribed steroids at first which helped immensely with the pain. I also got one of those gel microwaveable heating pads which was really helpful to provide portable moist heat.
From what I personally experienced and what I read, physical therapy is not really necessary as the facial muscles do not atrophy the way other muscles in the body do. I was fortunate to have pretty much a full recovery in about 3 months time. Although I see a very slight difference in my eyes, no one else seems to notice and maybe it was there prior to the palsy.
I hope you have a speedy recovery. I know it was helpful to me to be able to talk to others who had bell's, feel free to call if you'd like to talk(610-876-3271).
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