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 0078

I was exposed to the fumes of burning plastic and one month later I kept smelling smoke and ash on my arms and in my nose. I have developed a cough that won't go away. I have been to two different doctors many times. They gave me prescriptions which had no effect. It has been six months with no improvement. I have not been able to taste or smell since. Actually, I can taste and smell but nothing smells or tastes like what I am eating. Most things taste awful and nothing tastes like what it is. I know this is really strange and downright weird. I am not a crazy old woman... I wish I were.

case 0079

I have always had an extremely heightened sense of smell. I could not go to a friend's house if they had a cat because the smell of cat litter hit me as soon as I entered the front door, yet no one else (including other friends visiting at the same time) even noticed. I have always been able to smell things at levels that are undetectable to others (except the occasional pregnant woman with heightened sense of smell). I could smell french fries in a car in front of me driving 65 mph down the highway in winter. I could smell cigarette smoke from four cars away. I could smell subtleties in aromas (wood, chocolate, carpeting, and just about everything) that others couldn't smell unless it was overwhelming. All that changed three months ago. I had flu-like symptoms but without any nasal congestion or stuffiness. I also had the worst headache I've ever had for eight days. The doctor thought it was the flu and told me to rest. Now, my sense of smell is much worse than it was before. I can still smell very faintly some very strong odors: when my baby poops, I can no longer smell it until I have actually taken off the diaper. And it's very faint. I used to be able to smell it from another room. I can no longer smell aromas such as food cooking, pizza, flowers, spices and others. I can no longer smell the mercaptan (gas-odor additive) when I turn on the gas stove. I worry now about our safety. My doctor first said "You're lucky! You won't have to smell the diapers!" When that upset me, he replied that loss of the sense of smell was "no big deal" and I would "probably get it back in a few weeks". That was more than a month ago and there has been no improvement. It is more terrible than I could have imagined to have lost almost all sense of smell, especially since I had had an incredibly sensitive and heightened sense of smell my entire life until four months ago. I can no longer tell if food is spoiled, if there is a gas leak, if the pancakes are burning, if the house is on fire — not to mention all of the pleasant aromas that make life enjoyable!

case 0080

At 37 I noticed that I had problems smelling my grandson's nappy. Within two years I would not be able to smell any bad smells. I went to my doctor who poo-pooed it. By the age of around 45 I was starting to lose some of the nice smells, such as mown grass and some perfumes. I went to another doctor at 48 and got an examination and a brain scan that didn't show any underlying cause. My sense of smell disappeared completely a year after this. I am now 53 and cannot smell a thing. I hate it because it is like living in a plastic bag.

case 0081

I passed out from paint fumes when I was a child. When asked why I didn't leave the garage when I smelled the fumes, I told my parents that I was "still working on smell." I thought it was something you learned at school. I have no sense of smell and doctors found no physical cause for it. I assume it's congenital.

case 0082

My sense of smell and with it my taste went very suddenly after a cold and a series of violent headaches which I put down at the time — possibly incorrectly — to blocked sinuses. What also may be relevant is that at the time I caught the virus I was trekking in in very high mountains — over 13,000 feet. I once had an extremely developed sense of smell and could taste herbs and spices in food well enough to tell you what was in them. I also loved perfume. I can no longer smell perfumes nor taste food. I went to a specialist who confirmed that I lost my sense of smell and told me that there is no cure. Losing my sense of smell was a huge blow, smells evoke memories and enrich life. Life seemed very empty when there was nothing there, like I was living in a box and looking out at the world.

case 0083

About three years ago I noticed that whenever my TV was on or whenever I was near a light turned on or whenever my forced air gas furnace was on I had a smell of burned wood. The smell got worse when I changed TV channels.

case 0084

On occasion I would smell a bad odor. There was no evidence of a "real" odorant, as nobody else smelled anything. I was very persistent in that it was something "outside" of myself that smelled bad. I had our water checked, drains checked, changed laundry soaps, body soaps, etc. At first the bad smell would come and go but later it began to linger longer and longer. Finally, it became almost permanent. Now, the smell is worse than ever. Warm aromas smell bad, the cold interior of the refrigerator, the freezer, the blow dryer... Now I cannot smell things I used to be able to smell like peanut butter and coffee. Later I also lost my sense of taste and the bad odor persisted! I cannot taste sweet, salt, bitter...nothing! Sometimes, I can detect a different taste between foods, but cannot tell what it is I'm eating. I have lost 11 pounds since this began. The odor is so bad that it makes me nauseous at times.

case 0085

After a concussion I noticed that my sense of smell and my perception of what things I liked to smell and taste changed. I went from strongly detesting the flavors of certain foods and flavors to enjoying them. Foods and drinks that I had liked the smell of, but not the taste of, prior to my car accident suddenly became not only things I enjoyed consuming, but my favorite things to order. When I go to my coffee shop they know right away to make me a chai without my ever ordering it, because it's the only thing I get. I hated the taste of chai before my accident. Smells that I did not like before suddenly seemed pleasant to me, and some of my favorite smells from before were generally less appealing to me. I tossed out some of my perfumes, and bought some new ones. I started trying new foods, and forgetting old ones. Embracing these changes and looking at them as an opportunity to discover new things to love was really the only way I could handle the situation without it upsetting or confusing me, since my brain checked out okay on scans and my doctor did not really know what to tell me about it. Certain elements of my personality have changed as well, but the one that has been the most quirky and the least troublesome has definitely been the change in my senses.