Brandi Glanville detailed how her struggles with facial disfigurement, which she believes is being caused by a parasitic infection, has affected her.
On Friday, the reality star, 52, revealed during an interview with Page Six’s Virtual Reali-Tea podcast that the ordeal has made it difficult to keep her head up, at times.
‘It’s hard to hide out during Christmas when everyone’s having their parties. It’s depressing. It just hurts my brain and my heart,’ she explained.
The mother-of-two continued: ‘The pain is more mental than anything, because I have been hiding and going through a deep, deep depression. Even if I could work now, at this point, I couldn’t. So it’s just been a really rough two years for me.’
At this time, she’s back to taking antibiotics after noticing her face was beginning to ‘sink in’ while taking a break from the medication.
‘I prefer [my face] when it’s a little swollen, to be honest,’ she explained. ‘When it’s only swollen on one side, it’s not great. But the sinking in thing is killing me slowly, because I just feel like I look like a crackhead.’
Brandi Glanville gave an update on how she is planning to treat the symptoms of her suspected parasitic infection, which may have caused her facial disfigurement
She even revealed that she, sometimes, wears a ‘mask’ around her two sons, Mason Edward, 21, and Jake Austin, 17, so they don’t have to see her ‘scary’ face.
‘They would try and calm me down and say I look normal and fine, but I knew better,’ she recalled. ‘I honestly scared them a couple times. They were like, “What is happening?” [My face] went from being like really fat and swollen to now, like, sinking in.’
At this point, she noted that she wants an answer ‘so desperately’ about her condition and doesn’t ‘f**king know’ if there’s a parasite in her face or what is causing her symptoms.
‘You could do anything you want to me, and I’d be OK with it,’ she said. ‘I’ve had days of looking normal, not weeks. I wish. But it comes and goes.’
Glanville stated that over the weekend, ‘the right side of’ her face was so swollen it looked like she ‘had a really big meatball in the right side’ of her cheek.
‘Whenever I get the chills, it’s generally an infection,’ she continued. ‘Then I start having the ticking in my ear, and then whatever’s in my face, moving around, started moving around again. And it starts sinking in again.’
The Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills alumna — who previously revealed she had diagnosed with stress-induced angioedema — shared a photo last week in which she looked unrecognizable, particularly due to her deflated, mottled cheeks.
Months earlier, she had the opposite issue when she shared a photo of herself with significantly swollen cheeks.
On Friday, the reality star, 52, revealed during an interview with Page Six’s Virtual Reali-Tea podcast that she is back to taking antibiotics again
Dr. Dubrow had told TMZ last week that he didn’t think it was a ‘parasite,’ but instead thought her misshapen skin and sunken cheeks were more likely the result of an infection.
The plastic surgeon emphasized that Glanville’s condition could be a ‘ticking time bomb,’ and had urged her to get help from her doctors as soon as possible.
The cosmetic surgeon — who is married to Real Housewives Of Orange County star Heather Dubrow — said he was ‘concerned’ that Glanville could be suffering from either an ‘infectious process’ or a ‘foreign-body reaction to something she’s had injected.’
Dubrow also clarified that Glanville isn’t at ‘fault’ for not being certain about what is plaguing her, and he instead blamed her doctor for not having a solid diagnosis and treatment plan.
However, he seemed fairly certain that whatever was going on with her is ‘not a parasite’ and is ‘not from something she ate.’
Instead, he suggested the issue is ‘something that got into her bloodstream and seeded some foreign body.’
Surprisingly, Dubrow even thought it was possible that Glanville could be ahead of her doctors, as he said she could be right that she might require surgery.
He noted that she could have been infected with either mycobacteria or fungi, which could be ‘very difficult to treat.’
Also on Friday, Brandi shut down any rumors that both she and Dubrow were feuding after he expressed concern over her face
Dubrow looked particularly concerned when he said Glanville’s condition was ‘like a ticking time bomb,’ because the potential damage could get more and more severe in a short period of time.
He added that antibiotic treatments for mycobacteria or fungus could take six to 12 months, so it would be essential for her to get a solid diagnosis and possibly a skin sample to determine what she was suffering from.
Dubrow concluded the interview by offering the services of himself and his Botched costars.
One day later, Brandi shut down any rumors that both she and Dr. Dubrow were feuding – and explained on X that they have already been ‘in touch.’
‘I have zero drama with @DrDubrow I appreciate all the help I can get. we have been in touch and plan to talk thank you for all the love.’
She then revealed to her followers, ‘All fillers that were in my face have been dissolved. I have seen all the best doctors at cedar Sinai,&all the doctors they referred me to.’
The cover girl also spoke with Entertainment Tonight’s Brice Sander about her recent issue with her face.
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills veteran told Brice that she thought it could be a potential face parasite from Mexico.
Glanville seen on April 25, 2024 in West Hollywood, California
During the time of the interview, the ex-wife of actor Eddie Cibrian said she treating it with a ‘cell sound procedure’ and the help of Dr. Nicholas Nikolov.
Before, she has claimed to have stress-induced angioedema and said she has lost five teeth.
‘I’ve been on meds this whole year. I don’t socialize. I don’t go out and I’m just spending all of my money on trying to figure out what’s wrong with me, over $70,000,’ she told ET.
Glanville has been going to the hospital to see a variety of doctors.
‘Honestly, I have so many doctors and I’ve had so many tests … I did lab work for $10,000. I ran every test under the sun.… They’re like, it could be a parasite that’s, you know, new.’
Brandi thinks she knows how she contracted the potential parasite.
‘I mean, we had food sitting out for hours on end and some of it was meat. In Morocco,’ she offered.
‘Six months after I got back from [filming in] Morocco, I started having this speaking thing and the swelling up thing, it started in July and we’re still here trying to figure it out.’
Earlier this month, she shared an image of her swollen complexion over the summer.
She wrote on X: ‘What happened? I wish I knew I’ve been in and out of the hospital this passed year 1/2 spent almost every dollar I have trying to figure it out.
‘Some Dr.’s say I have a parasite that jumps around my face. Some say it’s stress induced edema. I personally say it’s Bravo.’
Earlier this year, Brandi took to Twitter to blame the channel for her ‘stress induced angio-edema’ which she claimed had left her unable to work.
The TV personality with ex Eddie Cibrian at the Living Out Loud premiere in 1998
She wrote on X: ‘I read that I wasnt punishment4the false allegations in Morocco.Um I was fired,removed from the cast held hostage in a hotel in Morocco for days! The cast rallied on my side didnt want to continue without me.
‘Cuz of the bad untrue press Ive been canceled from all jobs.
‘I’ve been left no choice but to sue Bravo.I have receipts 4days.This stress has ruined my health.I have uncontrollable stress induced angio-edema I havent worked for a year half.Im to depressed to do my podcast to swollen 4cameo or OF. IM BEING USED AS A FALLGUY.
‘I WANT SO DESPERATELY TO TWEET ALL OF MY RECEIPTS BUT MY LAWYERS WONT LET ME. I DO APPRECIATE ALL OF UR SUPPORT MORE THAN YOU KNOW. MY CAST FROM MOROCO HAS BEEN SO AMAZING AND SUPPORTIVE I LOVE THOSE GALS! (sic)’
