The right side of my face is expressionless

Post Reply New Topic

I discovered this after making videos of myself, I discovered the right side of my face is largely expressionless and I actually can't even move my right eyebrow. I also speak from the left side of my mouth.

I wonder what this means, anyone else like this?

After some research i discovered it's a common thing to have a dominant eyebrow

Could it be that your right side is more autistic?

Sounds like Bell's palsy. Did you have that as a child? It's a common viral infection that causes temporary paralysis of one side of the face, and typically goes away after a few weeks. In some cases there's a bit of residual paralysis that remains on one side. If you purse your lips, for example, the eyelid on the weaker side may involuntarily close.

EDIT: I've now looked it up, and I see it actually occurs more often in adults than in children. I had it as a child and remembered people saying it usually occurred in children, like chicken pox. It's a temporary motor paralysis, most often going away completely, but sometimes with some residual effects.

Maybe a minor stroke at some point? That can cause symptoms like you describe. You really should see a neurologist, but since you're Indigenous Canadian ("First Nations") seeing a specialist is probably out of the question.

This has nothing to do with your autism, probably. It's probably something purely neurological, rather than neurobehavioral.

This has nothing to do with your autism, probably. It's probably something purely neurological, rather than neurobehavioral.

I think you mentioned once that you live near a major city in your province. Maybe you can make an appointment with a neurologist there?

Assuming it's not due to trauma like an accident, stroke or use of forceps during birth, you can find out more about it by looking up Emotional Lateralization. Basically though, it's just* a quirk. Looks like neurologists are still at the, "we're still collecting data" stage, meaning they have theories but nothing they can prove definitively.

*meaning it's not indicative of something you need to go to the doctor to have checked out immediately. Like KK said, though, if it concerns you it wouldn't hurt to have a doctor give you their opinion.

I'm the same way. It's awkward.

It might indicate left hemisphere damage. Did you have a language delay? Are you left-handed? It's possible you had brain damage early in life that caused at least some of your difficulties. Did your mother have a difficult labour? Were you premature? Were you born blue? Did you get hit on the head as a small child? (It's also possible to have a brain injury with no obvious cause.)
The left hemisphere controls the right side of the body, and is usually dominant for language. So left hemisphere damage can cause language issues and right-sided paralysis.
If your facial paralysis was more symmetric, I'd suspect a nerve issue like Möbius Syndrome or Bell's palsy, but paralysis on only one side is more often due to a brain issue.
Can you see any sign of this in childhood pictures? Eg is your smile lopsided? That could indicate whether you've always had this issue or developed it recently. If it is recent, then you need to see a doctor.

Sounds like something you should see a neurologist for whenever you can. I thought bell's palsy too which causes temporary paralysis on one side of the face, if you know professional wrestling Jim Ross the commentator was afflicted with this at varying times.