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Pregnant and one side of my face is paralyzed: Pregnant facial palsy, safely recover with Korean medicine

When you wake up in the morning and look in the mirror to find that one side of your face is not moving as you intend, how surprising and embarrassing it must be. Especially during pregnancy, when body changes are already hard to handle, experiencing facial paralysis can further increase psychological anxiety. Symptoms such as inability to close eyes tightly, drooping mouth corners, and drooling while eating cause great inconvenience in daily life and add aesthetic stress, leaving many pregnant women to spend difficult times alone. As such, facial palsy occurring during pregnancy is often accompanied by hesitation even to treat out of fear of affecting the fetus, making it easy to miss the appropriate treatment timing.

💡 Key Answer 3 most common causes of "Pregnant and one side of my face is paralyzed": ① Stress and weakened immunity ② Rapid hormonal changes and edema ③ Autonomic imbalance Dalimchae Korean Medicine Clinic safely helps recover facial function by restoring the balance of the brain and nervous system and improving circulation through autonomic stability treatment.

During pregnancy, there are many body changes, making it easy for symptoms different from usual to appear. Facial palsy is mostly idiopathic facial nerve palsy called 'Bell's palsy', and it is known to have a 2-4 times higher incidence rate in pregnant women than in the general public. In particular, the risk of onset increases in the third trimester of pregnancy or immediately after childbirth, and its main causes are as follows:

• Weakened immunity and viral infection: During pregnancy, the mother's immune system temporarily changes to protect the fetus, making overall immunity prone to decline. This decline in immunity can activate dormant viruses (especially herpes virus) and cause inflammation in the facial nerve.
• Hormonal changes and edema: Hormones such as progesterone that increase during pregnancy can cause edema in tissues around the nerve. When this edema compresses the facial nerve, nerve dysfunction causes paralysis symptoms. In particular, immediately after childbirth, edema and stagnant blood (stagnant blood) due to water metabolism imbalance can increase, causing swelling around the nerve to persist for a long time.
• Stress and autonomic imbalance: The pregnancy and childbirth process accompanies significant physical and mental stress. Excessive stress hyperactivates the sympathetic nervous system and disrupts the balance of the autonomic nervous system, deepening weakened immunity and blood circulation disorders, which can affect the occurrence of facial nerve paralysis.

Facial palsy during pregnancy is generally treated initially with steroids, but due to potential risks to the fetus, use for pregnant women is restricted or approached with caution. This can lead to delayed treatment timing or lack of appropriate treatment, increasing the possibility of sequelae. At this time, Korean medicine treatment can be a safe and effective alternative for both pregnant women and the fetus.

According to a study by Bucheon Jaseng Korean Medicine Hospital published in the 2025 'Perspectives on Integrative Medicine', when Korean medicine treatments such as acupuncture, pharmacopuncture, moxibustion, cupping, and chuna were performed on 2 patients with facial palsy during pregnancy, facial paralysis symptoms significantly improved. In particular, on the House-Brackmann scale, Case 1 improved from Grade 4 to Grade 2 (mild dysfunction), and Case 2 improved from Grade 5 to Grade 2 (mild dysfunction), and the total Yanagihara scale score also increased from 14 to 40 (normal function) before treatment for Case 1, and from 9 to 34 (mild dysfunction) for Case 2. This shows a recovery level similar to non-pregnant patients who received initial steroid treatment, suggesting that Korean medicine treatment can be a safe and effective choice for facial palsy during pregnancy.

In addition, a case report published in 'Medicine' in 2023 reported that a 27-year-old Bell's palsy patient at 26 weeks of pregnancy showed complete recovery after 5 sessions of acupuncture treatment. The researchers concluded that acupuncture treatment can be a safe and effective complementary and alternative therapy that alleviates Bell's palsy symptoms during pregnancy and improves the patient's quality of life. Based on these data, Dalimchae Korean Medicine Clinic Songdo Branch boosts the recovery power of the facial nerve through customized treatment aimed at autonomic stability, considering the special situation of pregnant women.

Dalimchae Korean Medicine Clinic Songdo Branch finds the root cause of facial palsy during pregnancy in the autonomic nervous system imbalance of the body. When the balance of the autonomic nerves collapses, the brain cannot rest and overheats, causing various problems such as decreased blood circulation, weakened immunity, and nerve dysfunction. Facial palsy is also one of the warning lights appearing as a result of this systemic imbalance. We focus not on turning off the warning light, but on cooling the overheated engine of the body and turning on the main circuit breaker switch to normalize systemic functions.

In particular, for pregnant women, it is important to help the mother's body develop the power to recover on its own while minimizing the impact on the fetus. Dalimchae Korean Medicine Clinic stabilizes the autonomic nervous system and helps facial function recovery through the following methods:

• Customized herbal medicine prescription: By carefully selecting only herbs safe for pregnant women, we prescribe herbal medicine that relieves nerve inflammation, reduces edema, and improves qi and blood circulation. This strengthens immunity and restores autonomic balance to help regenerate the facial nerve.
• Exquisite acupuncture treatment and pharmacopuncture therapy: Acupuncture treatment is performed on acupuncture points that promote blood circulation around the facial nerve, relax stiff muscles, and activate nerve functions. In particular, we proceed by selecting only safe acupuncture points for pregnant women, and combine pharmacopuncture effective for nerve regeneration and inflammation relief to enhance treatment effectiveness. As a Songdo facial palsy Korean medicine clinic, we delicately approach so as not to put a strain on the pregnant woman's body.
• Thermal therapy and cupping: Relieves tension in the facial area and surrounding muscles and improves blood circulation to help nerve recovery. This is also effective for pain relief.

This integrated Korean medicine treatment can have a positive impact not only on facial palsy occurring during pregnancy, but also on solving other autonomic nervous system problems that can commonly accompany pregnancy, such as headaches, dizziness, or insomnia.

If 3 or more of the following symptoms apply, suspect facial nerve paralysis and consider consulting a medical professional.

• One side of the face feels stiff and paralyzed.
• Eyes do not close completely, causing inconvenience when washing or showering.
• Spilling out of the mouth when drinking water or brushing teeth.
• Mouth corners turn to one side, making smiling unnatural.
• Even when trying to wrinkle the forehead, only one side does not move.
• Taste of food is not well perceived or difficult to perceive specific tastes.
• Pain or foreign body sensation is felt behind the ear or on the face.
• Ears react sensitively even to small sounds.

If 3 or more apply: Possibility of facial palsy due to autonomic imbalance, so it is recommended to set accurate diagnosis and treatment directions through consultation with professional medical staff at Songdo Autonomic Nervous Korean Medicine Clinic.

If 5 or more apply: It is important to start treatment early through immediate visit to minimize sequelae.

Q. Does facial palsy during pregnancy get better on its own after childbirth? A. About 70% of pregnant women with facial palsy improve naturally, but about 30% may have sequelae. Especially for pregnant women, the recovery period is longer and often incomplete compared to non-pregnant women, so receiving active treatment early is important to reduce sequelae.

Q. Can pregnant women also receive facial palsy pharmacopuncture treatment? A. Yes, pregnant women can also safely receive pharmacopuncture treatment. Dalimchae Korean Medicine Clinic Songdo Branch conducts pharmacopuncture treatment by carefully selecting herbs and acupuncture points that do not affect the fetus. Pharmacopuncture is effective in reducing inflammation around the facial nerve and helping nerve regeneration, so it is effectively utilized for pregnant facial palsy treatment.

Q. How long does facial palsy treatment take? A. The duration of facial palsy treatment can vary depending on the severity of symptoms, onset time, and individual recovery power. Generally, starting treatment within the first 3 days is known to be best for prognosis, showing meaningful improvement within 2 to 4 weeks, and complete recovery may take several months. Dalimchae Korean Medicine Clinic Songdo Branch establishes a customized treatment plan for each individual to help rapid recovery.

Q. Can facial palsy recur during pregnancy? A. Yes, facial palsy can recur even after it occurs once. In particular, the risk of recurrence may increase when immunity is lowered or extreme stress is received. To prevent recurrence of facial palsy during pregnancy, it is important to maintain autonomic balance and healthy lifestyle habits, and Dalimchae Korean Medicine Clinic also pays attention to management for recurrence prevention.

Facial palsy during pregnancy is not a problem that can be solved by enduring it. You no longer need to ignore the body's signals you have sent for a long time. If you approach it in the right direction, your body reacts faster than you think. Bring the symptoms you are experiencing as they are. Dalimchae Korean Medicine Clinic will find the cause together.

Where life blooms. Herbal medicine is Dalimchae Korean Medicine Clinic. Check symptoms similar to yours first through the AI consultation on the Dalimchae Korean Medicine Clinic website!

This health information is compiled together by Dalimchae medical staff based on questions actually received a lot in the treatment room. Medical Supervision | Department of Neurology & Autonomic System, Songdo Branch of Dalimchae Korean Medicine Clinic, Korean Medicine Doctor Oh Hyun-min (Facial Palsy Column)