Horrible Taste and Smell (burning garbage) post COVID: Anyone else?

Hi @traceyn, you must be very worried about your husband. It sounds like the horrible burning garbage smell is worse that the loss of smell and your husband isn't able to keep anything down. As a result he's lost a lot of weight.

Fellow members @ilovemary4749 @chrissy188 @bettyjackson @strongevergreen @linderr @nlc @luisa22 @gmsouth who have also experienced the loss of taste and smell may have similar experiences or tips to offer. You can read more in this related discussion that @seanc6437 started a while back.
- Lost Smell and Taste after COVID https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/smell-and-taste/

Tracey, have his doctors suggested that he may have to get nutrition intravenously or another alternate method until his sense of taste and smell returns?

Loss of smell and taste make life more challenging for sure. I try to resurrect memories of how food tasted once upon a time and that actually helps. I have always loved spicy food, even when it made my eyes water. By the way, it still does, even though my taste and smell are diminished. I tested myself with a tiny bit of ghost pepper sauce and I was in full-blown tear mode. By the way, if you try this test yourself, get the authentic stuff from a shop in El Paso or a similar location. The only “cure” as far as I know is a glass of milk or a scoop of vanilla ice cream !

Thank you for the recommendations of who to follow. Hearing what has worked for others that may have it to this extent would be helpful and hopeful. Would a GP be the best dr to go to for nutritional iv rx? The neurologist at the post covid clinic suggested that he hold his nose. That did not go over well. Finding a dr. that believes this is really a problem is a challenge.

I had covid a year ago and did not lose taste or smell. I had a fairly mild case but started to smell like something was burning all the time! Even thought the house was on fire one night! Kinda like burnt pizza!? Then several months ago I started getting a disgusting stink kind of like my grandchildren’s diaper smell! I feel like it’s coming from me but husband doesn’t smell anything! I can really smell it when I’m working out and sweaty. Had Pap smear and blood work recently everything is excellent health wise, am I imagining it or from covid?

Hi @saucy, this sounds awful. But I can tell you that you're not going crazy and you're not the only one who has experienced this. I actually moved your post to this existing discussion that @traceyn recently started complaining of the same, strange possible COVID side effect.

- Horrible Taste and Smell (burning garbage) post COVID: Anyone else? https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/garbageburning-taste-and-smell/

Her husband, like you, also smells burning and a stink, almost like burning garbage. Unfortunately this has led to his not being able to eat properly. Does this prevent you from eating normally or enjoying food?

It hasn't made me lose my appetite but makes me very self conscience especially around my husband who swears he doesn't smell it! I feel like it's coming out of my pores!

@saucy like many people I lost my sense of smell and when it came back most everything had a burning cigarette ash mixed with gasoline smell-especially anything with nuts! I was still able to eat normally during this time, but it was very odd. It went away completely after many months. I hope yours goes away soon!

Yeah, I lost smell and taste months ago but my latest odor disaster happened just two days ago. I live in a high rise building with 100 apartments, so pulling the fire alarm can be a major disaster with firefighters, fire trucks, police, and ambulances rushing to our building.

So two days ago, I’m making myself some breakfast, yuck, when I smelled paper burning. It’s very strong and I’m frantically searching my apartment for something burning. There’s no smoke visible but the smell of burning paper was getting stronger and stronger. OMG I’m thinking, the building’s on fire somewhere, why hasn’t the fire alarm gone off. The alarm handle is only 4 feet from my apartment door. I’m seriously telling you, I was so positive paper was on fire somewhere and was reaching for the handle of the fire box to pull it, setting this place into a panic along with all the responders rushing to a high rise fire. That’s when I took a deep sniff and nothing, no odor of burning paper. I went back into my apartment and nothing. It was all my imagination or rather my messed up nose having a field day with my brain.

My food usually taste like it’s spoiled, rotten or no taste at all. My smell is the tricky one, I’ve been tricked into thinking I smell something but it’s not real and this past near disaster tops them all.

Did you ever have a very bad cold and you had a stuffy nose. That’s the clue, you can’t taste anything because the nose has the receptor for odors. If you can figure out a way to block up the nose while he’s chewing, then release as he swallows, it might help him to get passed the odor the brain is creating in his mind. Just a guess but could be worth a try. Good luck.

Hello, I had Covid in October 2021. Mild Covid lost smell and taste maybe 3 days. Started experiencing weird symptoms December 2021 with food. Over the past 8months most foods taste like a chemical. Almost like ammonia. I have the taste in my mouth some mornings when I wake also. Things smell terrible especially greasy foods. It’s a chemical smell that’s unbearable. I don’t eat out at all and pretty much only eat salmon or tilapia baked or grilled raw veggies and fruit. I have constant chronic pain that started in my kidney area but seems to be mainly in the spine area and throughout my upper back area. It’s a constant deep throbbing pain. I’ve seen numerous doctors. My blood work comes back liver or kidney problems but ultrasounds show both organs fine. It’s very frustrating. I’m 35 and lifted weight 5days a week prior to Covid and can only manage maybe 2 days a week now and very limited due to it causing pain in my back to start and extreme fatigue if I exert too much energy at once. I just want answers and to be normal again. I feel like I’m going crazy.

@hlott, you are not alone in this unpleasant late side effect of COVID. As taste and smell return or even if they were never lost, some members have reported horrible taste and smells, like burning garbage, rotting, and other unpleasant smells that only they can smell - not the people around them. To connect with others experiencing this, like @strongevergreen @traceyn @saucy @loons @becky1024, I moved your message to this discussion:

– Horrible Taste and Smell (burning garbage) post COVID: Anyone else? https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/garbageburning-taste-and-smell/

As for the pain you're experiencing, you may wish to join these discussions or browse through the others:
- Sciatic Pain: Does anyone have any tips on how to get rid of it? https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/scatic-pain/
- Joint inflammation and muscle pain after COVID https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/joint-inflammation-and-adults-possibly-from-covid/