Friday, December 8, 2006

Anosmia

Has anyone ever heard of this word? Maybe it can be Alyssa's word of the day on her next post. Anosmia is the condition I find myself in currently-that being the loss of the sense of smell. I really like to smell anything and everything I come into contact with. I also really like food. I love to cook and I love to eat. About a month ago I signed up for a cooking class and I was looking forward to making and tasting all kinds of delicious treats. Well, I got a cold last week and when Tuesday night came my sense of smell and taste left. The class was excellent and I am sure the food was too but I couldn't even taste it. How ironic is that. Now losing my sense of smell has happened before, but never for such a prolonged period of time. Last night they had a Christmas Enrichment party where you were supposed to bring your favorite Christmas treat. Once again, I had been looking forward to this activity because it involved 2 of my favorite pastimes, cooking and eating. I made a yummy almond bread to share which went on a table filled with tasty treats. But alas, my smell and taste were nowhere to be found. What's the point of eating sweets when you can't even taste them? So now it's been 72 hours since I've been able to smell or taste anything. This really is torturous for me. There is, however, one advantage, I can't smell the poopy diapers that I change several times a day.

Please tell me my sniffer will work again. In the back of my mind I am terrified that I am going to be like the lady I met at the doctor's office several months ago. She told me that she went to Europe on vacation and picked up some kind of flu that has left her unable to smell and taste in the 2 years since. How horrifying is that. So the moral of the story is, don't take your sniffer for granted because life really is dull and boring without it.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I honestly can't imagine how you are surviving. You sniff EVERYTHING! I don't think that temporarily losing my sense of smell would bug me in the least. I hope that your olfactory sense returns soon!

Emily said...

Amy, have you been taking Airborne? Because I think it contains zinc which I've heard can affect your sense of smell. My dad says his sense of smell is very limited, and might be because he takes zinc. Just a heads up.

Suzie Petunia said...

I'll never take my "sniffer" for granted again! I hope your's gets better soon!

pepper said...

I hope you get better quickly. What a horrible time to loose your sense of smell. The Christmas season is such a cornucopia of smells.

Kate said...

A year ago I used Zicam (a cold remedy). I was warned after the fact that losing your sense of smell was a risk factor of the product- HELLO! I couldn't smell for about a week, and naturally it affected my sense of taste. Many daily pleasures in life suddenly became dull. I was scared that I'd never be the same. I remember thinking the condition would make for a great weight loss plan-- but who'd want to live like that?!

Amy said...

Amy - you are the funniest person!! I really can't imagine you not being able to smell. It'd be like andy not being able to smell. He's a total sniffer too! The S*t*a*n*s*e*l family is a bit strange! Anyway, hope your sense of smell comes back soon! I really can't imagine you not eating sweets! Good luck!

rebecca said...

Crazy stuff Amy. I've never had this problem, but I hope your sense of smell returns soon!

Emily said...

How's your nose, Amy?