Major Hollywood stars share ‘stroke-like’ Bell’s Palsy experiences with Tulisa

Being in the limelight isn’t all high glamour; stars like Angelina Jolie and have undergone the same harrowing facial paralysis that struck I’m A Celebrity’s Tulisa Contostavlos.

An estimated 1 in 60 people will endure Bell’s Palsy at some point, with stress playing a significant role in this neurological disorder. Singer Tulisa has opened up about her own battle since her inaugural episode at age 24, which happened over a decade ago.

The former N-Dubz star and ex-judge on Simon Cowell’s The X-Factor, was catapulted into fame at just 22 years old. Although initially thrilled to be part of the show, she soon felt the pressure.

Tulisa lamented, “It got nasty… the mood changed towards me from the press and the public,” reflecting on her tough journey.

She later went public about her struggles in a television interview, confessing, “I do suffer from Bell’s palsy… it can cause facial paralysis, it can cause swelling. I think the first attack I had was after a serious horse-riding accident. I fractured my skull and it caused a lot of nerve damage”, reports .

In defence of her appearance during these episodes, she stated, “But people have criticised me for the way I look and my face, not knowing I’m actually going through a Bell’s Palsy attack.”

Since then, Tulisa has faced cruel taunting over her appearance, with some even suggesting her altered look was due to an urgent health issue. “Someone said, ‘She looks like she’s had a stroke,’ and that can be the effect of a Bell’s Palsy,” Tulisa recounted.

The singer bravely opened up about her struggle with the debilitating ailment, revealing that she secluded herself at home for seven months following her diagnosis. Despite this ordeal, Tulisa has learned to live with the paralysis on one side of her face, although it led her into a vicious cycle of undergoing numerous filler treatments in hopes of correcting her asymmetrical swelling.

Tulisa is not alone; other celebs have graced our screens with Bells Palsy as well, including queen of the jungle Scarlett Moffatt, who grappled with the same condition and had to opt out of certain challenges in the 2016 series.

Similarly, film titan has been the subject of jests regarding his condition last year, he made an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, where the host attempted to poke fun using an old photo depicting a young George’s crooked smile.

But George, ever the quick wit at 63, beat Jimmy to the punchline, saying, “You’re gonna make a joke. I have Bell’s Palsy there and half of my face is paralysed!”.

Clooney revealed that he suffered from facial paralysis due to damage to the cranial nerve when he was just 13 years old. He said: “It was very awkward being watched like that, everybody looking, and then all of a sudden your face goes flat? My dad would always say, ‘It’s going to go away, you’ll be fine, you can handle it”.

Indeed, his father’s words proved true as the condition eventually subsided, but not before the young Clooney endured bullying at school.

Bell’s Palsy is a form of temporary paralysis that impacts the control of facial muscles, often resulting in a droop on one side of the face. The exact cause remains unknown, although experts suggest it could be due to swelling and inflammation of the nerve controlling the muscles on one side of the face.

Potential triggers range from dormant viral infections such as herpes simplex or chickenpox, stress-induced immunity impairment, sleep deprivation, physical trauma, minor illness or autoimmune syndromes.

The condition manifests through symptoms such as sudden weakness or paralysis on one side of the face, a drooping eyebrow and mouth, which may lead to drooling. Typically, the eyelid is affected by the paralysis, preventing it from closing and leading to dryness unless taped shut.

Bell’s Palsy doesn’t discriminate, hitting the famous and the everyday person alike. Pregnant women are particularly vulnerable, with instances of the condition being about three times higher than average a fact I learned firsthand when six months pregnant in 2008.

Following a dental appointment for a deep jaw injection to replace a filling, I returned home only to realise that my face remained immobile long after the anaesthetic should have worn off.

My GP promptly sent me to a neurologist who, having excluded Lyme disease as a cause, equipped me with an eye patch and advised me to hope for the best, suggesting the paralysis might resolve itself. If only all medical solutions were so straightforward, the NHS might not be facing such financial strain.

Fortuitously, my facial function returned within two weeks, offering me a glimpse into the distress celebrities must feel when their livelihoods, often reliant on their flawless visages, are threatened by such a loss.

The roster of stars afflicted by Bell’s Palsy could fill a guest list.

In a candid disclosure in 2017, Angelina Jolie shared her own battle with the illness during what she termed a “difficult year” post her separation from Brad Pitt. She reflected, “Sometimes women in families put themselves last until it manifests itself in their own health.”

At 49, Jolie reportedly turned to acupuncture for relief and ultimately recovered fully.

Stress-induced Bell’s Palsy generally resolves itself, with a full recovery seen in 70% of cases within a few weeks to months.

However, Tulisa has experienced recurrent bouts of the condition and now keeps emergency steroids on hand. She shared, “Luckily I know how to manage it, so the attacks don’t last as long.”

The sudden onset of the viral illness was highlighted by Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber, who recounted waking up one day to find his face immobile.

The celebrated composer, aged 76, remarked: “What’s incredible is that the night before I’d been perfectly fine. Luckily, I acted swiftly, called a doctor and was quickly diagnosed. It was a condition that leaves your face frozen. I have no idea how I contracted it but much later discovered that someone I’d been working with had shingles and it comes from the same virus.”

Katie Holmes, the renowned actress from Dawson’s Creek, is also reported to have experienced facial paralysis, which is believed to be the cause behind her characteristic smirk at 45.

In a similar vein, Janet Jackson reportedly confessed in 2018 that she too had suffered from Bell’s Palsy. The acclaimed 58 year old singer has since become more vocal about her diagnosis, promoting self-acceptance.

This could potentially shed light on why it took Tulisa a considerable amount of time to accept her own Bell’s Palsy condition.