Lost My Sense of Taste and Smell Looking for Advice

Last Sept/Oct I contracted the Delta variant, It wasn't bad for me even with COPD. I was taking the protocol mostly even before I knew about it, most of the things on the list I was already taking for other things like depression, COPD and arthritis.

Protocol here: covid19criticalcare.com...

There is just one thing that has persisted, the loss of my taste and smell hasn't fully recovered. Eggs, anything with garlic, gas, bathroom visits all smell the same, smells like chemicals. I raise chickens for eggs and haven't enjoyed an egg for months. So it would seem I have an olfactory sensitivity to anything sulfurous.

Is there any tips or tricks any one knows of that could help recover my smell and taste back quicker. I've been told hot and spicy food can help, I like hot sauce and spices. Cooking has been difficult since garlic is a staple in my house to judge taste I've been relying on memory.

Whats odd is my stepson all food tastes normal to him, with the exception of scented bathroom products like body wash shampoos etc all smell like feces to him.

So please if you know of a method that may help, Post whatever you can that you KNOW has worked for you or someone else. I'm sure this may help others too.

a reply to: enament

I lost the bulk of my taste and smell senses last year. Only recently have they returned to more or less normal function. Whatever hit them did enough damage that recovery took a year.

Cheers

a reply to: F2d5thCavv2

My doctor said up to a year, sometimes people don't ever recover fully. Its been 5-6 months now, even when not eating or smelling anything the horrible chemical taste can persist in my olfactory scenes without any odors present.

I just feel fortunate greater than 95% of my taste and smell have returned.

My taste is hit and miss. Can't taste peanut butter but cinnamon rolls are fine. Everything seems off a bit.

So sad to have to put in this link:

www.nbcnews.com...

www.al.com...


COVID linked smell damage is brain damage, smell is a huge component of taste and damaged sense of smell means a damaged sense of taste.

So sorry for you and hope it ends eventually.

A pox (literally) on those who created this virus, they belong in a world tribunal.

a reply to: The2Billies

A lot of these symptoms are normal in other flu's from the past. i can remember loosing my taste and smell as a child.
I take the NBC article with a grain of salt since their broadcasting has really turned into them being shot salesmen.
The stuff in the article is ligit but scare mongering at the same time.

a reply to: enament

If you are able can you fast?

If you fast, followed by an extremely clean eating schedule that might be enough to
Regain it.

Also, you might want to try olfactory training, I forget the exacts but you have to actively smell strong scents like coffee, perfume etc.

Also make sure you don’t have some other issue like a sinus infection that is making what you have worse.

PS. If you smoke/drink a lot, I find that some people already have a very dull sense of tastes/smell.

originally posted by: enament
a reply to: The2Billies

A lot of these symptoms are normal in other flu's from the past. i can remember loosing my taste and smell as a child.
I take the NBC article with a grain of salt since their broadcasting has really turned into them being shot salesmen.
The stuff in the article is ligit but scare mongering at the same time.

I have lost my sense of smell and taste multiple times during my life, sometimes just from the common cold. When I had the Delta and the alpha, eighteen months apart, I didn't totally lose my smell and taste, but the taste sensors got messed up and everything seemed to smell like fermented meats or something. Both times my smell and taste returned back to normal within a month. When it did, boy did food taste great again. Usually when I get the loss of taste and smell from a virus, it recovers maybe a week after the cold or flu is done, this seems to have a longer recovery period for some reason.

I have no solution and have not heard of any way to speed up recovery. I read someone said that it is brain damage...but maybe in rare cases it could be but I doubt if one in a thousand have that brain damage issue who have lost their taste and smell temporarily. If the virus caused a small stroke in that area of the brain, it is possible. Most people get tiny strokes regularly, but the damage is quickly fixed in the brain...we are actually used to those because they are so common. Those baby strokes might effect us for a day or so...think about it, how many times have you felt crappy for a few days with brain fog.

a reply to: JAGStorm

At my house because of my COPD we mostly eat non processed meals. We eat from scratch mostly and do not use a microwave. Mostly fresh food. We do buy breaded chicken at times and also enjoy a hotdog once and a while. Processed food cause my COPD to act up luckily I found a brand of hotdogs that don't make me react, must be good quality.

Just frustrated as I like food and cooking so much.

a reply to: enament

Wish I could help I just know that sometimes those changes can be persistent and you may have to adapt. My dad spent years working with anhydrous ammonia and it destroyed his sense of smell. I am on a medication that altered my sense of taste and it ruined my enjoyment of red pizza sauce.

a reply to: rickymouse

Not much problems with brain fog, I'm circumventing that with NAC and DMG ( NAC N-Acetyl Cysteine and DMG Dimethel Glycine )

The thing that sucks about this is I am also suffering a concussion the same time, I do not believe the concussion has anything to do with the taste and smell issue even though its one of the side effects of the concussion. My GF has taste and smell issues too with the same food items. The concussion has made my reading vision blurry, but I don't think its related.

originally posted by: JAGStorm

PS. If you smoke/drink a lot, I find that some people already have a very dull sense of tastes/smell.

Well excuse me madam, but 25 year-old scotch taste much better than 12 year-old scotch....

a reply to: enament

Lost my smell back in dec 2019 and still don't have it back. Not sure what can be done about it either.

Lost my taste and smell for a couple of years for no known reason. Patience. You have to wait it out. Nobody can "fix" this for you.

a reply to: enament

I have both DMG TMG, and NAC in stock, another one of importance for cataracts is the other NAC...N- Acetyl Carnatine. I gave my bottle of the Carnatine to my daughter for her husband and her boys, I guess it helps with making muscles and creating better signaling somehow in the muscles to make the muscles work smoother. I should get another Carnatine, starting to get cataracts a little, taurine boosted to once AM and once PM seems to be helping a tad, but I kind of want to reverse it if I can.

DMG is also used for body building, TMG is used for methylation problems and broken down to DMG to build muscles. TMG is found in Spinach, popeye used spinach to gain strength.

a reply to: enament
Well that's interesting. I don't have any advice to help improve it but experienced something similar and in time most resolved. I had the flu in 2005 and also happened to be wire brushing old cadmium/lead paint off some metal at the time (with a mask) which may have made it worse. Lost my hearing for about two weeks as well.

Many things had no smell and some, mostly coffee for me, smelt like feces which is really interesting as to how your nephew also perceived bathroom soaps.

Most of it resolved within six months but to this day I still can't smell certain flowers that are extremely strong to most people, daphne and honeysuckle. I have a winter daphne that is blooming right now and I can smell it this year if I get my nose into the flower. Before I got sick, that bush could be smelt about twenty feet away.

The weird benefit is that ammonia smells like mint, so when my barn is minty I know it needs cleaned.

I'd be interested to hear how it turns out for you and reading all the responses seems a year is a good measure to recover probably what will return.

a reply to: enament

The best thing you can do is to take all steps possible to restore brain health. We know that the virus crosses the barrier between the olfactory nerve and the brain - prolonged loss of these senses is likely due to changes within the brain.

Therefore you could try taking a number of supplements that help with brain health.

All the obvious basics like Vit D, turmeric/curcumin, cayenne, a good multi-vitamin, and tons of healthy fats in your diet from fish, nuts, seeds and eggs.

Also definitely take DHA and omega 3/6.

You might also look into lionsmane mushroom supplements.

Good luck!

Edit - and it might sound stupid, but perhaps try exercising different areas of the brain. Learn something new - an instrument or a language perhaps? Try doing some crosswords or number puzzles. Anything you don't normally do. The goal is to turn on your brain so that it starts creating new neural pathways.

a reply to: rickymouse

I just checked TMG not available in Canada. If anyone is interested I found A place in Canada that stocks hard to find supplements at decent prices. I waited months for NAC at my local health food store but then found this site which carries a lot of hard to find stuff ( Except TMG ).

I got my order in under 5 days.

www.vitasave.ca... I have no monetary affiliation with them other than they stock the supplements I need that are hard to find anywhere in my city.

a reply to: enament

Yep I have friends that took almost a year to be normal again after covid, I had the same problem a few years ago after a series of none stop sinus infections, could not smell and taste for weeks, but not months, Is terrible, but it will not last forever.

a reply to: enament


Curry seems to seep through walls in apt bldgs. Especially when my neighbor cooks. Would you like to borrow her? 🤣