Phantosmia: Creepy Smells Not Just for Halloween

Some people who suffer from phantosmia (a form of olfactory disorders known collectively as “dysosmia”) smell rotting bodies. Others smell like garbage or rotten food. Imagine biting into a big piece of chocolate cake, only to smell ghost dog poop. Or bend down to smell a rose that smells like a dead rodent.

I am one of the lucky ones. I smell smoke that is not there. That’s better than not smelling the smoke in there, at least from a safety standpoint. Although nothing burns, my throat closes and my lungs refuse to take a deep breath. My eyes water. It seems… real. I no longer have to ask family, friends, and co-workers, “Do you smell like smoke?” I recognize the ghost: a slightly plastic chemical smoke. The first time I smelled it, I was driving home from work. The air conditioning was on. I immediately thought the car was on fire. I watched for any sign of malfunction, the slightest puff of smoke, any sign that the electrical system was on fire. I didn’t panic, but kept an eye out for opportunities to stop and ditch the car. A car burns fast.

I got home where I raised the hood of the car and did a 360 degree visual inspection of the car. Nothing out of the ordinary.

I still smelled it an hour later. Only this time, she was in the kitchen, preparing dinner. I calmly inspected the appliances, checking the oven and stove for burned-on grease or food, and making sure I knew where the fire extinguisher was. It was disconcerting. I asked my husband if he could smell something burning. He said no. I asked the children. No. I opened the attic hatch. It smelled of sun-warmed wood, insulation, and cardboard. No Smoking. In fact, the smell of smoke was easily subsumed by the smells of cooking food, the smell of the warm attic, a hint of perfume. Again, I happen to be one of the lucky ones: I still taste and smell other things quite normally. I can even overwhelm this phantom smoke with real scents. Last night, it was a little smear of Mentholatum in each nostril, like they do in the morgue. It’s not that the smell of smoke, in and of itself, is so horrible; the worst part is the suffocation and watery eyes. That makes it hard to sleep.

Types of smell disorders range from anosmia (lack of sense of smell) and hyposmia (decreased sense of smell), to hyperosmia (overly sensitive sense of smell), parosmia (inappropriate smell), and phantosmia (hallucinations). olfactory). Causes include upper respiratory infections, head injuries, nasal polyps, sinus infections, hormonal imbalances, dental problems, certain medications, exposure to some types of chemicals, brain tumors, and radiation treatments for cancers head and neck, to name a few. Apparently, dysosmia can be a symptom of a life-threatening medical problem, or an end in itself. Clearly, it’s important to see your doctor, and possibly an otolaryngologist or neurologist, to rule out more serious physical problems. It can also be psychological.

If you suffer from phantosmia, it’s a good idea to keep a diary detailing the odors: what time they come on, what they smell like, what might have triggered them. Brewing coffee is a reliable trigger for me; stress seems to make phantosmia more likely to occur. There are some indications that soy consumption also triggers phantom odours. You may be able to get some symptom relief by using a saline nasal wash. It is recommended that you do this on all fours, with the top of your head down on the ground, for maximum effect. Keep track of the results – you may find out other things causing the odor or things that make it go away. Once your doctor has ruled out things like brain tumors and nasal polyps, you may be your best resource for symptom relief.