Loss of smell & taste

Posted by marciachess @marciachess, May 1 11:17am

I loss my ability to taste and smell over 3 years ago. This was during a bout with COVID. Anyone else this lengthy? I recently had a C scan, which showed inflammation. Prednisone was prescribed, but didn't help. Also had allergy testing done - again without results.

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Have you tried nicotine gum? Some people have success with that. Google nicotine and loss of taste and smell for tips.
It’s an easy thing to try. Good luck.

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I’ve lost about 80% of my sense of smell. Had Covid late 2/20

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I have post covid syndrome and smell/taste disorder, but mine also involves a bitter taste. It’s constant bitter, as well as reduced smell and reduced taste. The only real hope I have is that there will be relief.

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@celia16

I have post covid syndrome and smell/taste disorder, but mine also involves a bitter taste. It’s constant bitter, as well as reduced smell and reduced taste. The only real hope I have is that there will be relief.

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Yes, COVID in April 2023 so 1 year ago. Loss of smell and taste since then. Smell and taste are slowly coming back, very slowly. While here at Christmas, my adult daughter reminded me to use a clean dishcloth every day because they get nasty if left overnight. But I couldn't smell a thing. One day I totally cremated the salmon I was broiling because I didn't set the timer - not being able to smell, or taste, can cause problems. I lost the salmon and also the broiler pan which was warped beyond use from the heat. Fortunately, brain fog and exhausting are both decreasing, as well.

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@joanland

Yes, COVID in April 2023 so 1 year ago. Loss of smell and taste since then. Smell and taste are slowly coming back, very slowly. While here at Christmas, my adult daughter reminded me to use a clean dishcloth every day because they get nasty if left overnight. But I couldn't smell a thing. One day I totally cremated the salmon I was broiling because I didn't set the timer - not being able to smell, or taste, can cause problems. I lost the salmon and also the broiler pan which was warped beyond use from the heat. Fortunately, brain fog and exhausting are both decreasing, as well.

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That’s great that it’s improving. How can you tell? Have you done any scent retraining?

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No, no retraining. I've simply noticed that I can occasionally taste food, food that I've prepared following one of my recipes and WOW! I can taste it, just barely, but better than before. I still have very little sense of smell.

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I’ve worked on scent retraining. I think mine is better than it was last year. I guess they’ll retest me to see at the ENT. My issue is that I have little faith in those paper test booklets. They looked old to me, like they had sat in a cabinet for many years. How can they tell if the scent has degraded? Anyone else have that kind of scent test? I scored really low.

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Hello, I am so sorry you’ve suffered for so long. I lost my taste and smell in December of 2022 and have had 3 Stellate Ganglion Block injections, which only have given me a slight improvement. I will be having a 4th on May 13th 2024. I made an appointment for a phone consultation with Mayo Clinic as living like this for the rest of my life is not appealing to me.

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@dloos

Have you tried nicotine gum? Some people have success with that. Google nicotine and loss of taste and smell for tips.
It’s an easy thing to try. Good luck.

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Thanks! I'll look into this!

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@celia16

I’ve worked on scent retraining. I think mine is better than it was last year. I guess they’ll retest me to see at the ENT. My issue is that I have little faith in those paper test booklets. They looked old to me, like they had sat in a cabinet for many years. How can they tell if the scent has degraded? Anyone else have that kind of scent test? I scored really low.

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By "scent training", are you referring to sniffing essence oils? I've been doing this for over 3 years . . .although not as regularly after the first year or so.

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