Smells which are not there

Phantosmia is also called a phantom smell or an olfactory hallucination. The smells vary from person to person but are usually unpleasant, such as burnt toast, metallic, or chemical smells. Problems with the nose, such as sinusitis , or conditions of the nervous system or brain, including migraine , stroke , or schizophrenia can cause phantosmia. In this article, we look at the causes and symptoms of phantosmia, when to see a doctor, and how to differentiate phantosmia from related conditions, such as parosmia.

It happens when a person can smell something that is not there. Phantosmia is relatively uncommon. It makes up around 10 to 20 percent of disorders related to the sense of smell. In most cases, phantosmia is not a cause for concern and will go away on its own.

However, phantosmia can be a sign of a serious underlying condition, so people should always discuss this symptom with their doctor. Some phantom smells are pleasant, but people with phantosmia more often describe unpleasant, foul, or disgusting odors.

These may include:. People are often unable to identify the specific smell, or it may be a smell that they have never encountered before. Phantosmia can feel distressing and may get in the way of daily life. People may experience phantom smells for many reasons. They may be related to the nose, when the condition is known as peripheral phantosmia, or to the brain, which is called central phantosmia.

Problems with the nose or nasal cavity are the most common causes of smell-related disorders such as phantosmia. These include:. Otherwise, phantom smells can arise because of problems with how the brain understands smells. When phantosmia is related to nose problems, people may notice a stronger smell in one nostril than the other.

Saline rinses and anesthetic pads can often help reduce the smell. When phantosmia is related to the brain or central nervous system , the smells are often more persistent.

They can be noticeable during the day and night, and both nostrils rather than only one experience the same smell. In some cases, people may believe they are noticing a phantom smell, when they may instead be noticing a real but unexpected smell. People with parosmia are smelling real-life smells, but they are distorted. For instance, the smell of flowers could trigger a smell of chemicals instead. Many people with parosmia also describe the distorted smells as unpleasant. Preparing for the holidays?

What can cause someone to smell something bad, like heavy cigarette smoke or old garbage, when neither is nearby? Could it be caused by a vitamin deficiency? And why does it make some foods taste funny when it happens? Having an altered sense of smell is actually quite common. A survey of American adults found that two-thirds had experienced a problem with smell sometime during their lives.

Smell disorders are often classified as one of the following:. Hyposmia commonly happens as we age. But what you describe falls under the category of dysosmia.

With dysosmia, the distorted smell may be dramatically different from what you expect known as parosmia. Or it could be an odor that isn't actually present known as phantosmia. Your symptoms suggest you have periods of phantosmia: your brain registers an odor when none is present in the environment. But at other times, it could be parosmia, meaning you are more sensitive to a smell that doesn't bother other people.

When this occurs, the odor is usually described as unpleasant. As to what might cause dysosmia, there are several possibilities. While vitamin or mineral deficiencies can cause an altered sense of smell, this would be unlikely unless you follow a restricted diet or have an intestinal problem that impairs the absorption of nutrients.

Here are some other causes of altered smell:. Regarding food having a funny taste, our ability to fully enjoy food requires stimulation of many nerve endings in the mouth and nose. I am VERY careful who I ask if they smell an overwhelming smell of"basement" or musty mildew and dust--beer--burning chicken feathers I was raised on a farm and during the time we slaughtered our chickens we dunked their bodies in hot vats of water to remove feathers, and it's a very strong smell --and several other scents I've been assaulted with but can't remember them all now.

For me? I'll have one of those for months. I'll always have just one of the above and am usually relieved when it changes to another. Usually for me? It portends a sz is coming on. Sometimes I'm just bedeviled by the other whelming smell that yes, can have a taste for me like my epileptologist said. What my epileptologist told me is thisAll five senses can have "hallucinations" or memories of past experiences - such as smelling burning chicken feathers which was my worst and lasted several years.

The 5 senses. The reason for this is that the brain is malfunctioning and reviving the memory of these sensations. IOW if you have never smelled for instance "spring time in Paris"?

You have no ability to do so in an alfactory hallucination. I will hear "I'm home" in a totally empty house, it's my husband's voice very clearly heard, and he is not home,he's at work. That's an aura of hearing and I personally find it extremely unnerving. She then suggested I try smelling coffee grounds. Because if you go into a specialty store only smelling perfumes, after perfumes our smell discrimination between one brand to another falls apart but if you smell coffee grounds?

It tends to clean up all the other smells. So we keep coffee grounds, not beans because their smell we've found isn't heavy enough, i a tightly sealed cannister I can bury my nose into to relieve a smell aura. Usually it helps a lot, but sometimes is just doesn't. If I have an uncomfortable smell aura I now either get out my essence of violet or more usually smell coffee grounds.

I don't know how this would abort a potentially worse sz coming on than a simple, but often it does. All I just typed? Is anecdotal information and should not ever be considered as the medical gospel but only experiences of my life. I personally could skip this aura and not miss it one bit. Gretchen, I wasn't brave enough to list the voice thing, don't know why-I'm already considered crazy. Since you are the brave person that you are,I'm gonna ride on your coat-tails and ask if anyone hears radios that aren't on or people talking in the next room that aren't there?

This doesn't happen all the time but it does happen. I can't ever make out what's being played or said when that happens but when I hear my name,it's always loud and clear.

One of the taste and smells I didn't list was hairspray. I not only smell it I taste it! That is definitely one I can do without. Well Spiz you and I and Dayna seem to be traveling down the same path - a lot! YES I do hear my name when I'm totally alone in the house and it is heard slightly louder than normal, but very clear. Many times just as I laid down I'd hear a very loud rifle shot go off.

I'd jump up in bed sure someone was in the house and had discharged a gun. I'd tell my obstetrician about this, very unnerved, and he had no explanation.

Acted like I had some lurking little mental problem but I knew - I heard a very loud rifle discharged. I think right there, that experience of mine, a doctor I trusted saying he had never heard of that, is one of the reasons a lot of epileptics including me, start questioning sanity.

AND how very weird but also reassuring for me I DO hear music or more specifically if there is some kind of noise going on, for instance that constant patter that never lets up of a play by play broadcast of a football game on TV drives me nearly nuts. I'll go into another room and often that noise of the crowd, the constant announcing starts literally sounding like I'm hearing in the distance a song I know.

Same for driving on the highway. The hum of the tires in our compact car is very noticeable and some times instead of the tire hum? I'll start hearing music. My current song is one a daughter just mentioned to me which is "Stand by Me".

So, we rented that movie, where that song is played? Interesting how very accurately I had hallucinated the exact tempo, sound of the singer's voice, everything about that recorded song, I hear when it's not being playing. Hey Spitz let me reassure you of this: when I was a hospice nurse, another time a consultant in a sensitive area of another type of nursing, and when I had my standard rule out neuro psych eval testing when I was diagnosed with epilepsy, I had to go through extensive psych testing to make sure I wasn't dragging around all kinds of neuroses and my testing was A-ok.

IOW I'm not crazy. And neither are you. We just FEEL crazy - at times. And my fav radio station is called KGOD around my house. When I lay down it starts playing and helps me go to sleep. Hubby says is my Ex and my son serenading me from Heaven. OK,with me. But yes I hear them too Now I never said anything about the garlic Getchen, I've also been startled awake alot from hearing a loud noise. I've never been able to distinguish it-only that it's sudden and very loud.

And now we know who to blame for the garlic. Dayna-if I'm gonna taste or smell the garlic, I wanna taste the manicotti that goes with it! Seriously though, thank ya'll for coming back with your answers.

You don't know what a load off my mind this is and how scared I was to post it. Hello everyone! I too am in the same catagory as you I get the smells, tastes and tingling as well. The only thing that I can't relate too is the voices. My smells come and go and I will get a chemical smell and taste several times a month and they will happen anywhere from 6 to20 times in a couple of days and then they disappear for about 2 to 3 weeks and then they start again.

I am thinking that they may be brought on by hormones if you know what I mean. Then there are the days when I will smell something such as a lotion that I recently used and that will be all that I can smell for a couple of days then it goes away.

Very frustrating!! I never have anything else happen such as losing time so my doctor took me off of medication about 6 weeks ago and I am still having them at the same rate as I was when I was on medication. The good news is that I am off the meds and feel like a new person. So far I am dealing with my episodes pretty well although when I have several or more in a day I am more tired than usual but you know it could be worse so I am counting my blessings!!

The coffee grounds tip sounds like a good idea and I will try it the next time my smells start. I just got through with the lotion smell so it probably won't happen for a few weeks but I will let you know how it works! I am really glad that I found this website and it is nice to know there are people out there who know what you are going through. Take care and have a great day! Well, I went to the N yesterday and finally came clean with the gasoline smell and she immedialty started telling me about olofactory sp?

I did finally also decide to mention that I hear things that are not there. I really thought she would think"Get the psych down here!! We were in her office for nearly 2 hours. She was amazed that I have gone so long with uncontrolled migraines and this. I am now taken zonagran? I really hope that this is going to help me. Not too keen on the shot thing but I do know that this does help.

Kelli, I'm so happy you found meds that help and your Neuro sounds like a definite keeper! I know being able to talk to her and finding she listened took a load off right then. Keep us posted,ok?