When facial nerves heal, it often feels like tingling, pins and needles, or even mild electrical shocks as nerve fibers regrow, which is a positive sign, accompanied by gradual improvements in facial symmetry and muscle control, though movements might be weak and muscles tire easily, sometimes with inconsistent recovery where one muscle group improves before another. You might also notice unwanted linked movements (synkinesis), like your eye closing when you smile, or odd sounds in your ear, indicating the nerve fibers are regrowing along different paths.
People will start to tell you how much better you are looking but your movements may still be very weak. There may be a tingling sensation in your face which can be a sign of nerve recovery – a therapist may test for this using Tinel's sign.
Individuals may notice a return to normal sensations, such as touch, temperature, and proprioception. This can happen as your damaged nerves regenerate and reconnect with the central nervous system. A reduction in numbness or tingling sensations often accompanies this improvement in sensation.
You may experience tingling feelings and possibly sensations similar to electrical shock, which is a good sign of having new sensitive nerves. Whatever you feel during the journey, be sure to talk to your doctor about it during your follow-up appointments.
First degree injury – this occurs when the pressure on the facial nerve is mild and brief which means the nerve recovers fairly quickly within approximately 4 – 6 weeks or possibly earlier if the pressure on the facial nerve is very mild.
Regular exercise improves circulation, helping nourish and heal damaged nerves. Alternative therapies like acupuncture and massage may provide additional relief. It's also important to manage underlying conditions—such as diabetes or autoimmune disorders—that can affect long-term nerve health.
A positive indicator of healing is the gradual return of feeling in the affected area. You may notice reduced numbness or tingling in your hands, feet, or other parts of the body. Depending on the severity of the injury, it can take over a month for feeling to return.
As your nerve recovers, the area the nerve supplies may feel quite unpleasant and tingly. This may be accompanied by an electric shock sensation at the level of the growing nerve fibres; the location of this sensation should move as the nerve heals and grows.
You begin to notice when you're activated, and you have tools to return to balance. Healing often feels like: Crying without knowing why — the body's way of releasing stored emotion. Trembling, yawning, or shaking — natural ways the body resets after stress.
One promising strategy to accelerate peripheral nerve regeneration is the application of electrical stimulation directly on the injured nerve. Immediately following nerve injury, electrical stimulation has been shown to enhance early regenerative stages, including neuronal survival and axonal sprout formation [20].
As the tissue heals less chemicals are released, the nerves are irritated less and gradually they become less sensitive. As the nerve returns to normal it sends less pain messages to the spinal cord and onto the brain so less pain is felt.
Schwann cells can help damaged nerves regenerate and restore function. On average, damaged nerves can grow back at a rate of about 1 inch per month or 1 millimeter per day. Surgery is needed if there is significant scar tissue or a gap between cut nerve ends.
Signs that a nerve is healing often include a gradual return of sensation, tingling, or a “pins and needles” feeling in the affected area. You might also notice improved muscle strength or coordination over time. Healing can be slow, and progress may come in small increments.
Facial pain may feel like a dull ache, throbbing, stabbing or cramp-like. When facial pain is intense, it is sometimes called "the suicide disease" because people report the chronic pain is the most severe imaginable, so severe they cannot function.
Once the recovery is happening, all of these muscles are susceptible to cramping, so you may experience pains anywhere on your face and head.
Tingling or a pins-and-needles sensation is a common early sign. These sensations indicate that nerve pathways are starting to regenerate. It can be an encouraging indication of the body's healing capacity. Muscle twitching or spasms may also occur, revealing the re-establishment of nerve-muscle connections.
In fact, neurons of the adult brain and the spinal cord are unable to regenerate and form new axons. If, for example, the spine is harmed, this can have serious consequences, as the nerve fibers running in the spinal cord do not heal or regrow on their own.
It's normal to feel some pain, swelling, and heat around a wound as it starts to heal. But if the pain doesn't go away, it might indicate a non-healing wound. Non-healing wounds can cause worsening pain over time.
In the early stages of nerve recovery your hand or area of skin affected by your injury may feel completely numb. After approximately six weeks you may then start to feel tingling or pins and needles, or a burning feeling.
It has been suggested that certain B vitamins support this nerve regeneration process (Figure 1). In particular, the vitamins B1 (thiamine), B6 (pyridoxine), and B12 (cobalamin) are mentioned in this context. Those are also called “neurotropic” vitamins because of their important functions in the nervous system [9].
Many pinched nerves will heal within four to six weeks following at-home treatments. But for those with more severe symptoms that require surgery, it may take four to eight weeks for initial recovery wearing a sling, with full muscle recovery taking up to a year.
While blunt injuries to the face may result in facial paralysis, it is rare. Even if facial paralysis occurs after such an injury, most patients start showing recovery within the first 3 months.
Exercise and Nerve Growth: The Surprising Connection
According to the study, when muscles contract during physical activity, they release a combination of biochemical signals known as myokines. These myokines have been shown to stimulate the growth of neurons, promoting regeneration and healing.
Facial Exercises for Bell's Palsy: What You Need to Know