I lost my sense of smell four years ago. The doctors told me that it is natural and that it is not a sickness

case 0729

I noticed that my sense of smell has changed to the point that when I smell certain scents I feel sick to my stomach. For the past nine months I have smelled a stale cigarette smoke at my workplace and I am the only one that seems to smell it. It is so weird! My co-workers think I am crazy!

case 0730

Since I was a young boy I noticed that I could smell things no one else could. It wasn't extreme, but enough to put me off things like overcooked french fries. Throughout my life this happened many times, like in the summer when the water from the tap began to smell bad. No one else could smell it. I have been susceptible to allergies and a long period of upper respiratory infection would cause me to lose my sense of smell. I started keeping track of the number of times that I lost it and regained it when I was about 50, because a sinus doctor told me it was unusual to regain it several times, and I just got it back after a long head cold, for the seventh time.

case 0731

When I was around eight a skunk sprayed our sleeping bags and they smelled really bad. Everyone was trying to wash them. I could not figure out what the big fuss was. I could not smell anything bad! Something like this happened many times since and each time I did not smell anything; or if I did smell something it was just a bit "off".

case 0732

I have had asthma for eight years. I use anti-inflammatory drugs (inhaler) on a daily basis to prevent the asthma attack. After using it for about four years I noticed that I started losing the ability to smell. I never recovered it.

case 0733

Sixteen years ago I had an accident. I didn't realize my sense of smell was affected until I made turkey and smelled nothing. My doctor told me my sense of smell would most likely come back. It has on very rare occasions. I will get a whiff of bread baking when I pass a bakery, or of onions cooking. But it is fleeting. I don't think I lost my sense of taste. My sense of smell has been gone for so many years that I am resigned to being without it. When I do get a whiff of a scent I treasure it.

case 0734

For many years now I have had episodes of smelling fumes. They are almost like car exhaust and it sometimes will get bad enough that my eyes burn. I usually get a really bad headache either a day or two before or a day or two after these episodes. This past weekend I had an attack of vertigo, which I was diagnosed with about ten or more years ago. The next morning I awoke with a splitting headache that lasted all day. The next day I had the fumes back and have had them now for the past three days. My longest bout with the fumes was two weeks straight. They can last anywhere from a few minutes off and on up to the one that lasted two weeks.

case 0735

I am writing this on behalf of my son. He had a perfectly normal sense of smell until he had a head injury when he was three years old. It wasn't until he was five that we realized that he can't smell. After CT scan and MRI the Neurologist said it was probably due to the injury years ago. Now, he can smell very strong odors, but he says that he "smells it in his throat", as opposed to smelling it through his nose.

case 0736

Two years ago I had sinus surgery for sinusitis. After the surgery I had fewer and less frequent infections, but when I got an infection it was far more intense and painful. Last year I had a bad sinus infection and since that time I have had little to no ability to smell. Because I had an unusually acute sense of smell before the surgery, I do blame the surgery. I think it allowed infection to get higher into my sinuses. My sense of taste has also been greatly compromised.

case 0737

I cracked my skull in an accident 48 years ago. From then on I have been unable to smell anything, even rotten meat. Occasionally I see something and I get the sense of what it used to smell like. My sense of taste is acute.

case 0738

Twenty years ago, when I was 35, I had ongoing sinus/nasal irritation. I noticed that my sense of smell had been affected by this. I could no longer smell when milk had gone sour and that is still the case. It is very embarrassing because there is a certain kind of "off" smell which I am no longer aware of. This gives rise to bad breath issues because it is difficult for me to know when certain foods — dairy — is causing an odor. I do not have a problem with any other smells, so I just put up with it.

case 0739

Last fall I began to feel like I was breathing in dust. No one else who came into my house had this sensation. It has gradually gotten worse and now my sense of smell has gotten so much worse that sometimes it makes me sick to my stomach. I feel as if I have pepper in my throat and it causes my throat to burn. I have seen an ear nose throat doctor about this, but he says it is all in my mind. I am beginning to wonder about how much of this is real and if my mind is playing tricks on me. I wish I could get an answer for this.

case 0740

Four weeks ago I had a case of acute cold associated with nasal discharge for over a week. I have not been able to smell since that cold.

case 0741

I had chronic sinusitis for 30 years and underwent several nasal surgeries. Whenever my sinusitis worsened my sense of smell vanished and with a shot of steroid it used to come back. Last time I lost my sense of smell was a year ago, when I was 58 years old. I consulted my doctor and got steroid shots again. My sense of smell returned, but it was very weak. I underwent laparoscopic surgery which cured my sinusitis. Now I have a very weak sense of smell. I cannot smell stinking water, stale food, dead animal, gas leaks, smoke, flowers, good food, etc.