On this wonderful Friday the 13th, I thought I would post a short blog about a fascinating word and condition: phantosmia. Eerie sounding, isn’t it?

In fact, it’s the technical name for the phantom smells I experience now and again. (See my previous article about it here.)

A few days ago, the burning smell/taste sensation returned, heralding what feels like a minor sinus infection. My only conclusion is that this phantosmia serves as my own personal warning system.

I did some more digging about the condition, and turned up much of the same information as I did the last time I poked around. (Though, this time I discovered the actual word for it.) After everything I’ve read, were I to experience the burning smell and not have sinus issues soon after, I’d be very worried. The main causes listed for phantosmia are brain tumours, seizures, schizophrenia and the like.

It also seems I’ve gotten lucky in the type of smell/taste I get. There are a number of reports of more drastic sensations such as rotten meat, garbage, sulfur, etc. The burning smell is one of the most common ones cited.

There also appear to be some more innocuous types of phantosmia. One reporter told a story of how she would always experience one type of smell or another for years at a time, and that other smells would sometimes trigger the phantosmia and replace the previous smell. She started out smelling damp earth after working with some house plants, then it was burning chili from her husband cooking dinner, followed by lavendar from a trip to France and so forth and so on. There was no telling what the next smell would be, and no way to actively try to alter it.

I also found accounts of extreme cases of phantosmia that led people to consider and/or attempt suicide. Their phantosmia was so drastic, and so relentless that everything they consumed would taste rotten and unpleasant. Lucky for me, mine is distracting, but not unbearable.

If you’re interested, there is a Wikipedia article on phantosmia, but it’s very brief. A general search for the term will yeild a lot of personal accounts and advice about the condition.

-

It never ceases to amaze me how astoundingly varied the contents of the Internet are. Sure there’s a lot of misinformation and a slew of jackassery, but where else can you research moon-based deities, look at scary people from Wal-Mart, keep up with your friends (at 140 characters or less), and more, all at the same time?

A quick Google search today revealed almost instantly that I am not alone in experiencing a strange (possibly sinus-based) phenomenon. Every once in a while, and more often when I have a cold, I have had recurring “phantom” smells. I’ve tried on numerous occasions to explain this to people, and it’s been exceedingly difficult. The best description I can give is that I sense/taste something akin to burned coffee/smoke in the back of my throat and base of my nostrils. It seems to localize right where the nasal cavities open to the throat.

I’ve always assumed that I wasn’t alone in this experience. (How often is one truly the only individual to encounter something?) Even then, it was comforting to find so many other people with the same problem and that it can be caused by any number of things and can mimic a variety of “smells”. The most common culprits causing this seem to be allergies, fumes from electronics, issues with certain brands of dryer sheets, sinus infections, and more. My guess for what’s causing my issue is sinuses; likely a mild sinus infection. Granted, there could also be some more severe causes such as brain tumours, but as I’ve experienced no other symptom I’m pretty comfortable ruling it out.

If this continues much longer I’ll check in with my doctor, but for now I feel much relieved.

-