# Anyone else here with Phantosmia?



## ZEROPILOT (Apr 19, 2020)

The virus has me somewhat stir crazy. So I'm going to see if anyone here has something I've been dealing with for about the last 2 or 3 months, PHANTOSMIA.
(Smelling something that isn't there)
I've gutted my house. My air conditioning ducts. Bleached and scoured. Looked for mold and had my wife and several friends tell me that they just don't smell anything.
I smell something musty. Kind of earthy with a bad perfume part to it. It is very often very strong and has like an ammonia like quality to it that stings my eyes and makes breathing unpleasant.
The smell is with me on and off. Mostly on. I smell it when I wake up all day until I fall asleep.
I also smell it when I'm not at home. This is a new revelation that made me realize that it's not the house.
But it seems that the smell is strongest there.
A Google search have me the name. Some causes. But no remedy that has worked.
Apparently it's not super rare.
How does a smell that doesn't exist give you real physical symptoms?
If you have ever dealt with this, please me know what you've done about it.
Thank you very much


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## Srmcclure (Apr 19, 2020)

ZEROPILOT said:


> The virus has me somewhat stir crazy. So I'm going to see if anyone here has something I've been dealing with for about the last 2 or 3 months, PHANTOSMIA.
> (Smelling something that isn't there)
> I've gutted my house. My air conditioning ducts. Bleached and scoured. Looked for mold and had my wife and several friends tell me that they just don't smell anything.
> I smell something musty. Kind of earthy with a bad perfume part to it. It is very often very strong and has like an ammonia like quality to it that stings my eyes and makes breathing unpleasant.
> ...


I haven't experienced that, but my husband definitely is. He thinks he smells mold, but NO ONE else does (and we ask lol) and we can't find it either. We've swapped shower curtains multiple times in just 2 months in both bathrooms, bleached everywhere, but still he smells it... it makes him sneeze like crazy, but hes the only one. Idk. Its crazy


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## Srmcclure (Apr 19, 2020)

We haven't found anything that helps either unfortunately. Hopefully someone can help us both out ?


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## jsheffield (Apr 20, 2020)

ZEROPILOT said:


> The virus has me somewhat stir crazy. So I'm going to see if anyone here has something I've been dealing with for about the last 2 or 3 months, PHANTOSMIA.
> (Smelling something that isn't there)
> I've gutted my house. My air conditioning ducts. Bleached and scoured. Looked for mold and had my wife and several friends tell me that they just don't smell anything.
> I smell something musty. Kind of earthy with a bad perfume part to it. It is very often very strong and has like an ammonia like quality to it that stings my eyes and makes breathing unpleasant.
> ...


We've talked about it a bit off of TFO... I live with phantosmia and although it's a hassle,I feel lucky compared to most.

My phantom smells are almost always either pipe tobacco or Gauloise cigarettes... it really freaked me out before I figured out that some smoker want hiding out in my house, but it's way better than poop or rotting meat or fish.

Jamie


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## KarenSoCal (Apr 20, 2020)

Well, you're not crazy. There are odors that some folks smell and others don't.

A true story...back in the late 70's I worked in a nurses' station of a 550 bed hospital that was the local trauma center. Our unit had recently been renovated and looked all spiffy and new.

A few months later, some of us who worked that unit started to smell a foul odor. I could smell it...it was nauseating. It was evenly distributed throughout the area, which consisted of a nurses' station and 2 long hallways with patient rooms on each side.

But other workers were totally unable to smell anything, and pretty much just thought we were imagining this. Some of the patients smelled it, some did not.

We put up with it for a couple weeks, but then insisted something needed to be done about the stench. So hospital administrators came and sniffed, most of whom walked away in perplexity because they smelled nothing.

After we complained enough, finally a workman who could smell it hilariously set out to find the source. Up and down a ladder, sniffing everything.

Turns out the ceiling tiles had been made somewhere in South America where they used river water in the process of manufacturing them. We were smelling a swamp!

ALL of the ceiling was replaced in short order!


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## Yvonne G (Apr 20, 2020)

Ed, have you tried using one of those nasal flush thinga ma bobs and really, really cleaning out your nasal passages?


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 20, 2020)

Yvonne G said:


> Ed, have you tried using one of those nasal flush thinga ma bobs and really, really cleaning out your nasal passages?


No.
But I got nasal spray.
It didn't work.


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 20, 2020)

KarenSoCal said:


> Well, you're not crazy. There are odors that some folks smell and others don't.
> 
> A true story...back in the late 70's I worked in a nurses' station of a 550 bed hospital that was the local trauma center. Our unit had recently been renovated and looked all spiffy and new.
> 
> ...


I remembered back in science class that in a test. Some of us could taste things that others couldn't and that even the same tastes and smells were pleasant to some and awful to others. Everyone doesn't have the same experience from the same thing.
But, this is different because I smell it while driving my truck. And I smelled it again this morning at Walmart.
It IS however, strongest while I'm at home.
I'm relatively convinced that as strong and obnoxious as it is, that it simply is in my mind.


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 20, 2020)

Srmcclure said:


> I haven't experienced that, but my husband definitely is. He thinks he smells mold, but NO ONE else does (and we ask lol) and we can't find it either. We've swapped shower curtains multiple times in just 2 months in both bathrooms, bleached everywhere, but still he smells it... it makes him sneeze like crazy, but hes the only one. Idk. Its crazy


It smells moldy and musty and it's so potent that it stings my eyes and makes my throught sore.
Power of the mind?
I just don't know.
I hope it goes away like it arrived. Quickly.


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## jsheffield (Apr 20, 2020)

I think the first time I was aware of mine was after a trash-burn behind my old home exposed me to some raunchy chemical smoke. I did a bit of research and that's one of the things that can precipitate phantosmia... also repeated sinus infections (which I had for years)... also a brain tumor (which I hope isn't the reason for either of ours).

Jamie


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## Yvonne G (Apr 20, 2020)

ZEROPILOT said:


> It smells moldy and musty and it's so potent that it stings my eyes and makes my throught sore.
> Power of the mind?
> I just don't know.
> I hope it goes away like it arrived. Quickly.


Try what the TV CSIs use - put a small dab of Vick's Vaporub under your nose.


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## Srmcclure (Apr 20, 2020)

jsheffield said:


> I think the first time I was aware of mine was after a trash-burn behind my old home exposed me to some raunchy chemical smoke. I did a bit of research and that's one of the things that can precipitate phantosmia... also repeated sinus infections (which I had for years)... also a brain tumor (which I hope isn't the reason for either of ours).
> 
> Jamie


Jeez it better not be a brain tumor... he already has seizures... that could be a cause for my husband at least. All those seizures might have crossed some wires... hes had brain scans and all that, but still...
I hope so too... we can't afford to keep replacing curtains lol


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 20, 2020)

I had also read the brain tumor link to this thing.
Today, it's pretty sharp and strong. I've been using nasal spray and it seems to help. But not for long.
Apparently it is NEVER a phantom good smell. Only bad ones.


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## jsheffield (Apr 20, 2020)

I guess I'm lucky, or odd, in that the tobacco smells that seem to predominate in mine don't really bother me too much (although it did weird me out significantly at first).

J


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## queen koopa (Apr 20, 2020)

Owww.. all very interesting. I read a while back about asparagus smell in urine. Some people have the ability to smell it and others don’t. Something to do with olfactory evolution or mutation possibly.


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## queen koopa (Apr 20, 2020)

Maybe you guys have more evolved olfactory nerves !


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## Blackdog1714 (Apr 20, 2020)

Sometimes I wish mine weren't so overwhelmingly sensitive. Sadly years ago I pulled a neighbor out of his burning vehicle he had wrecked in the early morning. Took me years to get over the phantom smells I would get at the oddest times.


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## KarenSoCal (Apr 20, 2020)

Odors can be triggered by all kinds of memories, even if you don't actively remember the incident causing the trigger. And it isn't always a bad memory.

For instance, now and then, a character in a TV show will light a cigarette or cigar, and I will briefly smell the smoke from it.

Or a cooking show...onions go into a pan, and I smell them.

This certainly doesn't happen super often, but it does occur.

Do you have any memory, maybe as a kid, of being in a moldy musty place? Ever locked yourself in a closet or small room? A basement? Does anything come to mind when you smell it? Is it familiar?

Did it start before or after the COVID outbreaks?

Just stuff to think about.


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## Pointydog (Apr 20, 2020)

I would try the neti pot thing if it happened to me. I am one of those people who can smell things no one else can. 
I chase down air leaks in my old house by the smell of wood in a draft....and tell if a person or animal has a liver or kidney problem by the smell of their skin.
But everything I smell is actually there...if it happened to me like you describe, I would try flushing out my sinuses somehow. 
It would really frustrate me if I couldn't rely on my sense of smell.


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 20, 2020)

Pointydog said:


> I would try the neti pot thing if it happened to me. I am one of those people who can smell things no one else can.
> I chase down air leaks in my old house by the smell of wood in a draft....and tell if a person or animal has a liver or kidney problem by the smell of their skin.
> But everything I smell is actually there...if it happened to me like you describe, I would try flushing out my sinuses somehow.
> It would really frustrate me if I couldn't rely on my sense of smell.


Well, @Pointydog 
I sure wish you lived closer.
I could use that nose here right now.
I just made dinner and smelled none of it. Just this stank.
One more friend, a neighbor, also confirmed that there is no smell in my house.


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## charlygal123 (Apr 20, 2020)

Random thought, I watched a documentary a few years back about certain people who could smell Parkinson’s disease and a laboratory did a series of tests lots of people can smell medical things from gum defects right up to cancer! There’s lots lots of reports online about it. Some people smell things others don’t! I see it as an ability not everyone shares (just one of the things that makes you an individual) I have really sensitive hearing but it is annoying when others can’t hear what I do so I do sympathise with you! But I love it when I can hear the train station announcing when the trains are coming usually in the morning while in the kitchen, my fella can’t believe it we live 1.3 miles away from the train station. I’ve proved it by telling him what I can hear and he’s even checked It against the train times (Just because he can’t believe it ?) awesome ?


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## Pointydog (Apr 20, 2020)

That stinks.
I hope it resolves fast. My late husband would have chopped up a couple of lines for you...


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## Pointydog (Apr 20, 2020)

charlygal123 said:


> Random thought, I watched a documentary a few years back about certain people who could smell Parkinson’s disease and a laboratory did a series of tests lots of people can smell medical things from gum defects right up to cancer! There’s lots lots of reports online about it. Some people smell things others don’t! I see it as an ability not everyone shares (just one of the things that makes you an individual) I have really sensitive hearing but it is annoying when others can’t hear what I do so I do sympathise with you! But I love it when I can hear the train station announcing when the trains are coming usually in the morning while in the kitchen, my fella can’t believe it we live 1.3 miles away from the train station. I’ve proved it by telling him what I can hear and he’s even checked It against the train times (Just because he can’t believe it ?) awesome ?


That's awesome! I hear well, but nowhere near that well.
I'd love to see that documentary about smelling illness. It's not a very useful skill, but it would be interesting to see if they explain what things are smellable like that and why.


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 20, 2020)

It's so tempting to think that this is real. But it's so strong that its actually too strong.
Like it is only inches away. As I walk around the house it doesn't get more or less strong. And I've jammed my head into every crevice, cabinet. Even house plants.
Makes sense when it actually is "in your head".
Its stinging my eyes.
I guess the truth is that the burning eyes are actually another symptom of the condition and not caused by the smell.
Kinda blows my mind.
I've never encountered this smell and I'm not aware that I ever smelled something no one else did before this all happened.


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## Maggie3fan (Apr 20, 2020)

ZEROPILOT said:


> Well, @Pointydog
> I sure wish you lived closer.
> I could use that nose here right now.
> I just made dinner and smelled none of it. Just this stank.
> One more friend, a neighbor, also confirmed that there is no smell in my house.


Dead animals under the house? Or dead mouse in the house?


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## charlygal123 (Apr 21, 2020)

Pointydog said:


> That's awesome! I hear well, but nowhere near that well.
> I'd love to see that documentary about smelling illness. It's not a very useful skill, but it would be interesting to see if they explain what things are smellable like that and why.


I’ll have a dig around the Internet Later and see if I can find that documentary it’s gotta be out there somewhere, it was really interesting but I agree it’s not very useful unless you know what your smelling I suppose and could help someone before they knew themselves although imagine some one coming up to you saying I think you might have an illness I can smell it ? most people would think you was insane


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## Pointydog (Apr 21, 2020)

Agree  I just find it interesting to see if scientists have figured out what it is that can be smelled ( maybe the higher levels of waste in the blood?) And how exactly we can smell that.
@ZEROPILOT , can you rule out a sinus infection? 
This might be gross, but late last night I remembered something that happened to me about 25 years ago but that I hadn't thought about in ages.
I had a headache (very unusual for me) and watery eyes that lasted about 2 weeks but felt like a month. I could hardly smell my food. I was standing in a hot shower letting the water hit my forehead, as hot as it would get, trying to make that headache go away.
here comes the TMI.....warnings
Suddenly a bunch of ropy goop started coming out of my nose and into the back of my throat, accompanied by a weird crackling sound/feeling and the pain was immediately gone. The smell of that goop was so bad, I can't even describe it. It continued to drain for a few minutes with the drainage getting thinner and finally stopped. 
Later conversation with my awesome, practical doctor who trained in the Philippines was almost comical. She said that's what happens when you have a bad sinus infection and ignore the killer headache for 2 weeks. She also though that outcome would be better than her treating it since whatever caused it was certainly flushed out while antibiotics might stop an infection but leave the nasty stuff in there.
Nothing remotely like it has ever happened to me before or since.
I was remembering that unbelievable smell and thought it might be like what you're experiencing.


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## Chubbs the tegu (Apr 21, 2020)

I think my son has it ..”dad did u fart??”.. me: what are you taking about??


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 21, 2020)

maggie18fan said:


> Dead animals under the house? Or dead mouse in the house?


I wish!
I'd know that smell.
And my house is cement block with a poured cement fountain.
Nothing to get under.
It's not as horrible smelling as that. But it's very strong.


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 21, 2020)

Pointydog said:


> Agree  I just find it interesting to see if scientists have figured out what it is that can be smelled ( maybe the higher levels of waste in the blood?) And how exactly we can smell that.
> @ZEROPILOT , can you rule out a sinus infection?
> This might be gross, but late last night I remembered something that happened to me about 25 years ago but that I hadn't thought about in ages.
> I had a headache (very unusual for me) and watery eyes that lasted about 2 weeks but felt like a month. I could hardly smell my food. I was standing in a hot shower letting the water hit my forehead, as hot as it would get, trying to make that headache go away.
> ...


I DO indeed have some kind of sinus thing going on.
I've had like post nasal drip and a dry cough for months. Maybe a year. And I'm hoping that my Phantosmia is caused by that.
But I haven't read of any cases that report such a strong and pungent odor. Just a light foul scent.
And this isn't particularly foul smelling. But it is unpleasant and it is VERY strong.


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## Maggie3fan (Apr 21, 2020)

ZEROPILOT said:


> I wish!
> I'd know that smell.
> And my house is cement block with a poured cement fountain.
> Nothing to get under.
> It's not as horrible smelling as that. But it's very strong.


OK...you certainly know better than I...but one last suggestion then I'll shut up (well maybe that's a lie)..., you said cement block...like my 'cinder' block? It rains here for 7 months, with breaks for ice and snow...I'll post a picture of my blocks, they grow mold and moss and Brown Recluse spiders...and I think they smell swampy...gotta be at least that wet in Fla??


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 21, 2020)

maggie18fan said:


> OK...you certainly know better than I...but one last suggestion then I'll shut up (well maybe that's a lie)..., you said cement block...like my 'cinder' block? It rains here for 7 months, with breaks for ice and snow...I'll post a picture of my blocks, they grow mold and moss and Brown Recluse spiders...and I think they smell swampy...gotta be at least that wet in Fla??


Oh, yes.
Cement blocks crack and they're also not immune to getting moldy.
I originally looked for mold.
I appreciate your suggestions.
It makes almost no sense.
Let me use dog poop for example.
If there was a big pile of it in my back bed room. I might get a whiff of it in my living room. Walking down the hallway, that smell would get more noticeable and then entering the bedroom, you'd know you have found it.
This smell is so strong, it's like the dog poop in right in front of my face. It's that strong at times. And thankfully smells slightly better than dog poo.
But not a whole lot better.
And walking around the house to investigate the source does nothing.
I cannot locate the source or identify the smell.
I also rarely smell it away from home. And sometimes while at home, I don't smell it at all.
(Like at this moment)


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## Maggie3fan (Apr 21, 2020)

ZEROPILOT said:


> Oh, yes.
> Cement blocks crack and they're also not immune to getting moldy.
> I originally looked for mold.
> I appreciate your suggestions.
> ...


Ghosts...your house is haunted by ghosts...stinky ghosts...do you think this phantom smelling is going to fade away? Isn't that a symptom of Covid-19?


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## Maggie3fan (Apr 21, 2020)

maggie18fan said:


> Ghosts...your house is haunted by ghosts...stinky ghosts...do you think this phantom smelling is going to fade away? Isn't that a symptom of Covid-19?


not funny to joke about...sorry...


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 21, 2020)

maggie18fan said:


> Ghosts...your house is haunted by ghosts...stinky ghosts...do you think this phantom smelling is going to fade away? Isn't that a symptom of Covid-19?


I hope it just goes away.
But I don't know why it started.
Yes, a lot of COVID-19 patients say that they lose the sense of smell, so that part might be good. Up to the point that I croak due to heart issues and diabetes....


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 21, 2020)

maggie18fan said:


> not funny to joke about...sorry...


It absolutely IS funny.
Why the Hell not?


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## Maggie3fan (Apr 21, 2020)

ZEROPILOT said:


> It absolutely IS funny.
> Why the Hell not?


Because not enough ppl are laughing lately...road rage...and there's only 2 cars on the road, rude ppl in the stores...tension...I'd rather spend time building Sulcata pens in blackberries...


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 21, 2020)

maggie18fan said:


> Because not enough ppl are laughing lately...road rage...and there's only 2 cars on the road, rude ppl in the stores...tension...I'd rather spend time building Sulcata pens in blackberries...


I laugh at everything possible.
Almost everything is comical if you look at it the right way.
Including something as REDICULOUS as smelling something that doesn't exist and stories of ghosts.
I've shared both.
I find humor in a lot of things
I'm also curious about some unusual things


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## Maggie3fan (Apr 21, 2020)

ZEROPILOT said:


> I laugh at everything possible.
> Almost everything is comical if you look at it the right way.
> Including something as REDICULOUS as smelling something that doesn't exist and stories of ghosts.
> I've shared both.
> I find humor in a lot of things


Ok so I'll confess then...I really only need one other car to get road rage...


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 21, 2020)

maggie18fan said:


> Ok so I'll confess then...I really only need one other car to get road rage...


Yes.
But I already knew that!


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## Maggie3fan (Apr 21, 2020)

ZEROPILOT said:


> Yes.
> But I already knew that!



It's a sad state of affairs when someone who doesn't 'really' know you...'really' knows you...lol


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## Blackdog1714 (Apr 21, 2020)

maggie18fan said:


> Ok so I'll confess then...I really only need one other car to get road rage...


OMG I just need to see one! If I am driving to a perfectly scripted beat do not make adjust! Why are you using the highway if you want to drive at a roadway speed?


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## Maggie3fan (Apr 21, 2020)

Blackdog1714 said:


> OMG I just need to see one! If I am driving to a perfectly scripted beat do not make adjust! Why are you using the highway if you want to drive at a roadway speed?



hahaha see @Yvonne...it isn't just me....woo hoo....the speed limit sign reads "SLOWER CARS DRIVE TO THE RIGHT"...not slower cars drive to the right unless you are doing the speed limit...you are not a freakin speed cop would you rather have me tailgate you??? Just move over...cuz I will be obnoxious...really...I get irritated just writing about it...lol


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 23, 2020)

On the outside chance that this smell is real. And that I've just had some inexplicable heightened reaction to it, I e still been looking.
And I found this. Fungus or mold on the Sheflerra plant pots in my Chameleons cages.
....Though I don't smell it. I suppose getting rid of this is still a great idea.
The mold was on the rear of the pots. I guess it never got fully dry back there.
So, I'm going with all fake plants.
Then I can also remove those LED plant lights.
I'll know in 24/48 hours if that helped with my mystery smell.
It has been light today.
Thank GOD.
I've been GOOGLING but haven't found anything supporting anyone ever being super sensative to the smell of mold, etc.
It's likely just wishful thinking.
But my wife pointed out that my Phantosmia started shortly after I put those plants in the Chameleon enclosure.
I had previously added activated carbon to the plants soil.


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## Pointydog (Apr 23, 2020)

That looks more like dried minerals that were washed out of the soil and left behind on the clay when the water evaporated. 
I've grown all kinds of plants and the only bad smell from a potted plant was either a rotting potato or a flowering Dracunculus.
Glad the problem seems to be lightening up though, regardless of why


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 25, 2020)

Pointydog said:


> That looks more like dried minerals that were washed out of the soil and left behind on the clay when the water evaporated.
> I've grown all kinds of plants and the only bad smell from a potted plant was either a rotting potato or a flowering Dracunculus.
> Glad the problem seems to be lightening up though, regardless of why


Well.....
THAT WASN'T IT.
The smell is back in full force. Though I've had actual HOURS where I barely noticed it.
Wintergreen flavored LIFESAVERS drown it out briefly. And I'm experimenting on seeing if certain food or drink or medication ramps it up.
So far, nothing.


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 25, 2020)

Also, I cooked up a pile of brussel sprouts with garlic and carrots.
The phantom smell is similar to that. It's as close as I've been to being able to describe the smell.
That with a hint of awful, cheap perfume and some ammonia.
Perfect.


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## Blackdog1714 (Apr 25, 2020)

Don’t freak out Zero I have a super mold sensitive nose too! We have a restaurant in the basement of a building that EVERY time I go in all I smell is mold. Only until my food is under my nose will I not smell it. I developed it doing basement and crawl space waterproofing years ago!


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 25, 2020)

Blackdog1714 said:


> Don’t freak out Zero I have a super mold sensitive nose too! We have a restaurant in the basement of a building that EVERY time I go in all I smell is mold. Only until my food is under my nose will I not smell it. I developed it doing basement and crawl space waterproofing years ago!


This evening I've smelled it so strong that anything I've eaten or drank tasted like that smell.
We had a friend over.
He and my wife could smell nothing.
I guess it really isn't there.


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 28, 2020)

Room fresheners/deodorizing products have all just made the issue worse (for me)
But popping a powerful mint into my mouth overpowers the smell.
What I can't find is mint or wintergreen home air freshener. Something about the mint helps cancel that phantom smell a bit.
Maybe I'll look into one of those "essential oils" diffuser things.


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## jsheffield (Apr 28, 2020)

ZEROPILOT said:


> Room fresheners/deodorizing products have all just made the issue worse (for me)
> But popping a powerful mint into my mouth overpowers the smell.
> What I can't find is mint or wintergreen home air freshener. Something about the mint helps cancel that phantom smell a bit.
> Maybe I'll look into one of those "essential oils" diffuser things.



Two ideas:

Vick's Vaporub
google an olbas inhaler (strong herbal smells)
Both of those have helped me out when the smells get to be too much.

Jamie


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 28, 2020)

I'll be looking for those Olbas things.
The internet says that CVS Pharmacy carries them.


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 28, 2020)

I also just ordered some peppermint "essential oil" from Amazon.
I'm not sure how to use it. But peppermint seems to be able to counteract this smell somewhat.
Nothing else has except smoke from burning paper.
(I relit the pilot light on my hot water heater and I noticed that the smell from the strip of paper I burned countered it also.)


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## Rianne (Apr 28, 2020)

ZEROPILOT said:


> Well, @Pointydog
> I sure wish you lived closer.
> I could use that nose here right now.
> I just made dinner and smelled none of it. Just this stank.
> One more friend, a neighbor, also confirmed that there is no smell in my house.


Usually is a sinus infection if you smell bad odors and no one else does. Also they are correct about having a brain tumor, although sinus infection is most likely. It would be a good idea to check with an ENT Dr. ( ears nose throat dr)


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## ZEROPILOT (Apr 29, 2020)

Rianne said:


> Usually is a sinus infection if you smell bad odors and no one else does. Also they are correct about having a brain tumor, although sinus infection is most likely. It would be a good idea to check with an ENT Dr. ( ears nose throat dr)


I joined a Phantosmia group on FACEBOOK.
Most people smell smoke.
There are a few remedies that some have used.
Right now, it would be very difficult to get in and see a new doctor.


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## ZEROPILOT (May 4, 2020)

For some reason my days are better than nights.
Working around the house holds it back.
It comes on strong when I stop and try to relax.


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## ZEROPILOT (Jun 4, 2021)

I'm happy to report that my Phantosmia has gone away just like the internet said it would.
But it also says it can return at any time


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## Yvonne G (Jun 4, 2021)

Srmcclure said:


> I haven't experienced that, but my husband definitely is. He thinks he smells mold, but NO ONE else does (and we ask lol) and we can't find it either. We've swapped shower curtains multiple times in just 2 months in both bathrooms, bleached everywhere, but still he smells it... it makes him sneeze like crazy, but hes the only one. Idk. Its crazy


Maybe your washing machine needs to be sanitized insi de


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## ZenHerper (Jun 4, 2021)

ZEROPILOT said:


> I'm happy to report that my Phantosmia has gone away just like the internet said it would.
> But it also says it can return at any time


Brains are weird places to live...

Definitely consider sinus or gingival infection if it comes back.

Food grade essential oils should be diluted: 10 drops in 15 ml of a "carrier" oil (like EVOO that comes in glass bottles, not plastic or metal). Then you can safely use a clean finger to dab it on skin (under the nose) or on the tongue.


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## Jan A (Jun 4, 2021)

ZEROPILOT said:


> I had also read the brain tumor link to this thing.
> Today, it's pretty sharp and strong. I've been using nasal spray and it seems to help. But not for long.
> Apparently it is NEVER a phantom good smell. Only bad ones.


For me, it's phantom cigarette smoke. It's more pungent some times than others even though I haven't lived with smokers since I was 18. But moldy humidifiers or moldy anything give me terrible runny sinuses.


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## ZEROPILOT (Jun 5, 2021)

Jan A said:


> For me, it's phantom cigarette smoke. It's more pungent some times than others even though I haven't lived with smokers since I was 18. But moldy humidifiers or moldy anything give me terrible runny sinuses.


That is the MOST commonly reported smell on the Phantosmia discussion group


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## ZEROPILOT (Jun 5, 2021)

ZenHerper said:


> Brains are weird places to live...
> 
> Definitely consider sinus or gingival infection if it comes back.
> 
> Food grade essential oils should be diluted: 10 drops in 15 ml of a "carrier" oil (like EVOO that comes in glass bottles, not plastic or metal). Then you can safely use a clean finger to dab it on skin (under the nose) or on the tongue.


I had oil misters and febreeze and everything I could find.
But the damp, moldy smell outppwered them.


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## ZenHerper (Jun 5, 2021)

ZEROPILOT said:


> I had oil misters and febreeze and everything I could find.
> But the damp, moldy smell outppwered them.


_It's coming from inside your head..._

No point running away, I suppose. Do the people working on your spine/legs know about this? It is a neurologic symptom...


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