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Anyone else with Altered Taste All Day Long?
Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT) | Last Active: Sep 15 10:54am | Replies (49)Comment receiving replies
It is interesting that you were in talk therapy for quite a long time. I am pretty stressed out over this issue and other things going on. and I sometimes wonder if these taste issues are due to anxiety? What exactly does functional mean? I googled it and I'm not sure if it means that they have ruled out all physical causes and maybe it's more of a neurological issue that can't be found by any testing? I am taking Gabapentin now which is supposed to help neurological issues in case that was the cause and it does not help with my taste issue at all, but it's helping with the headaches I was experiencing every single morning which were waking me up. So I conquered one problem but not the one bothering me the most!! Have you been on an antidepressant since that might be be the next thing the doctors try!!
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@neisie13 , I’m not an authority on functional disorders, but have explored them since I have been desperate to help my conditions. I was a relatively healthy person until I got a number of odd things which sent me to the neurologist, ENT, and subsequently rheumatology and allergist. My symptoms did scare me and I was anxious, so I sought therapy. I was prescribed Gabapentin at one time and I tried it for 2 weeks. I liked it a lot, but it caused blurred vision and I had to stop taking it. Otherwise, I would have continued it. It didn’t affect my bitter taste though. I was also prescribed Lexapro, but tried talk therapy without meds and it worked out ok. I had a lot of anxiety. Talk therapy really helped me. I am now so much better and don’t have anxiety flares. Even though I recently suffered the loss of my Dad, my anxiety has been manageable. I do intend to reach out to my therapist for a few sessions to discuss that. But, I’m in a good place. Oh, my neurologist prescribed me Klonopin, low dose, for times I needed it. I used it conservatively and it was very helpful. It had no impact on my taste issue. (I was experiencing a lot of other symptoms that occurred suddenly and was evaluated for conditions like MS, Parkinson’s, etc. Paresthesia in hands and feet, body wide fasciculations, sudden hair shedding, sleep disorder, plus smell/taste issues,)It was like a tsunami. I was simultaneously working with my endocrinologist and primary to keep blood sugar managed. I wear a pump with integrated cgm for automated insulin delivery. Pretty good management. Better now.
So, functional to me means they don’t know exactly why you have a symptom…..you just do. So they treat the symptom. It doesn’t mean it’s imagined. Is it caused by anxiety? I’m not sure that matters. If you treat anxiety and it helps, then it works. But, idk. There are functional doctors.
Oh, in my reading, I have wondered if there is a possible connection between burning mouth syndrome and my constant bad taste issues. If you read about burning mouth syndrome you’ll see why. Bitter taste can be a part of it. I never had the burning though.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/burning-mouth-syndrome/symptoms-causes/syc-20350911