An eye that doesn’t blink and a corner of his mouth that hangs: Justin Bieber can only half move his face and has had to cancel some of his concerts. The singer is struggling with Ramsay-Hunt syndrome, he said last week. What exactly is that and does it have anything to do with Bieber’s earlier Lyme diagnosis?
Justin Bieber is quite unlucky: the singer has already had Pfeiffer, struggled with Lyme disease and now he has to cancel at least part of his world tour because of Ramsay-Hunt syndrome. He shared a video of himself on social media in which he explains what is going on, after angry and especially concerned messages when he canceled his concerts. And that made a lot clear right away: it showed how half of his face simply didn’t function.
“I can’t smile with this side of my face and this nostril can’t move, so it’s complete paralysis on this side of my face,” the singer said. Performing is not an option for a while and Bieber is going to take it easy to make sure he makes a full recovery, because that is possible if you suffer from this syndrome.
Ramsay-Hunt syndrome is an infection of the auditory nerve and is caused by a virus. That virus is also responsible for chickenpox and shingles, for example. Facial paralysis is one of the most obvious consequences, but it also causes earaches and temporary or permanent hearing loss. So it’s important that Bieber takes it easy: with earaches, singing isn’t really an option anyway.
The good news is that the syndrome resolves on its own in most patients. The disease can be tackled with rest, possibly painkillers and exercise therapy. It may take a while, because with most patients to disappear symptoms after five to twelve months.
As mentioned, Bieber has had bad luck before. Thanks to Lyme disease and mononucleosis, he was regularly in the infirmary. In 2020, he announced that he was struggling with the two diseases and suffered from them: his skin, his brain, his functioning and general physical damage, he said. Pfeiffer is caused by a virus and Lyme disease by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi, which you contract after being bitten by an infected tick. The singer says he received good treatment for Lyme and Pfeiffer disease, but his body has had a big blow.
After you’ve had chickenpox, the virus that causes Ramsay Hunt remains in your body and it can flare up when your immune system is weaker. Fatigue can lead to that. Bieber has been working hard lately on the preparations for his world tour and exhaustion is lurking, a doctor tells VRT.
The singer himself is optimistic and thinks that everything will be fine. But he will have to postpone that world tour for a while. Get better first.
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