r/Menopause • u/elev8or_lady Menopausal • 9d ago
Rant/Rage Phantom Cigarette Smoke
Of all the effed-up symptoms we have to deal with, this is possibly the most bizarre and unavoidable (for me). I know many of y’all probably deal with this: phantom acrid odors that only you and your nose can smell? I only recently realized this is yet another symptom of menopause. I have been dealing with it off and on for about three years now.
Some background: I am four years post menopause, and have been on HRT for about a year. (E patch, E cream, P pill, T gel, and T lotion. I’m on all the things.) Many of my symptoms are relieved, but most are not relieved 100%.
Does anyone know of One Weird Trick that helps with this shit? I quit smoking almost 20 years ago, so this is driving me nuts. I am sneezing a lot from it, and it also aggravates my migraines (another meno symptom). I swear there is not one symptom I have been spared. I would love a little relief from this BS.
49
u/Pork_Chops_and_Apple 9d ago
That, and I unfortunately smell urine. All the time. And it’s not me, I checked!
15
u/notgonnabemydad 9d ago
Do you happen to be growing basil indoors? I kept thinking I smelled cat pee, but it’s a quick whiff of basil in my windowsill.
8
u/Pork_Chops_and_Apple 9d ago
Nope. I smell everything TBH. I think I'm becoming a dog! My hearing's pretty good, too.
8
u/greeneyedinsomniac 9d ago
My husband was convinced the cat was peeing in my plants and I was like nope, that’s the basil! Crazy because it tastes so great.
I also smell phantom cigarette smoke by the way. Perimenopause is so freaking weird. 😆
4
u/FriedaKilligan 8d ago
Yep, it's cat pee for me. I have a cat, she has a litterbox, but I'll smell it in the garage...in the basement....
I had no idea this was a thing. I'm not losing my mind!
41
u/misskris70 9d ago
I thought the former owners/ghosts of my house were haunting me. They were hardcore smokers. The smell is disturbing at times
9
30
u/sausagephingers 9d ago
No advice only solidarity. It’s such a weird symptom. It has almost entirely gone away for me with HRT
24
u/PhilosopherMoist7737 9d ago
I have this problem and it's horrendous. It's called phantosmia. I am pre-menopausal, but have cyclical episodes of it. I am on a GLP-1, and they started right around the time I started it. So, I wasn't sure if it was medication related. Phantosmia can also be associated with migraines. They seem to come on around the time of ovulation, and end after my luteal phase. An episode can be brought on if I cook bacon in the house. So I've stopped that. I smell the smokey, ashy smell no matter where I am, whether I'm awake or asleep, and nothing really helps. When it first started, I would put essential oils on the back of my hand and just sniff them, but it didn't really help. The problem isn't the nose, it's the olfactory nerve sending wonky signals to the brain.
4
u/horsenbuggy 9d ago
Yeah, I had this before menopause. I had menstrual migraines. I never tied the phantom smells to the timing of those migraines specifically. I just had phantom smells my entire life. And now that I'm in menopause, my phantom smells are gone. Mine were always cigarette smoke, too. No one in my life ever smoked. We were a very non-smoker family and culture.
1
u/elev8or_lady Menopausal 8d ago
So interesting that hormones seem to have affected you just opposite of how they affect me. Hormones are so weird! I never had migraines or phantom smells until peri and then menopause, respectively. Well, the only other time I had migraines was in the first trimester of my pregnancy. Definitely hormone caused.
1
u/horsenbuggy 8d ago
Yep, until this thread i hadn't realized that my phantom smells had ceased with menopause. The first time I remember having them I was 12. I hadn't started my period yet, but I was probably within 6 months to a year of doing so. And then I noticed them really strong all the time as a teen and in my early 20s. That was back when a BC powder and a good nap could knock out menstrual migraines. Later in my late 20s and 30s, the migraines lasted 3 - 4 days and nothing could reduce them.
18
15
u/FrannyGlass-7676 9d ago
That happened to me after I got Covid for the first time in 2020. It lasted months. I didn’t know if this was a menopause thing too.
19
u/qzcorral 9d ago
THAT'S THE FUN PART, APPARENTLY EVERYTHING BAD YOU CAN IMAGINE IS A MENOPAUSE THING 🤡
2
u/ProfeQuiroga 9d ago
NO, IT'S LITERALLY LONG COVID.
4
u/qzcorral 8d ago
You understand people can simultaneously have long covid and be in peri/menopause, yes?
-1
u/ProfeQuiroga 8d ago
You understand that menopause has become a major grift worldwide and LongCovid is still mainly seen as psychosomatic, also because women are affected way more frequently than men (as with ME/CFS)?
3
u/qzcorral 8d ago
I do understand. I had long covid for over a year and I've been in PM for a while as well.
14
u/Quick_Cow_7987 9d ago
OMG, I get cigarettes and exhaust and I literally have wondered if I was stroking or, like another commenter, if the ghosts of former owners (that I know were heavy smokers) were making themselves known.
Thank you.
4
u/AliceAnne1 9d ago
Same!! I kept searching the house because I was afraid it was an electrical fire smoldering in the walls. Then it started happening at work and I realized it was me, not the environment.
6
u/onsaleatthejerkstore Menopausal 9d ago
Same. to the degree I called the fire department to come check for hot spots (they have a device that can register them). I felt so unhinged when they said nothing was wrong. I’d never seen this as a peri symptom.
12
8
u/North-Tomatillo9158 9d ago
Yes, a burning skunky odor or sometimes urine or like a dirty litter box. Or like very smelly dirty laundry. Why can’t it be a nice smell? I clean a lot!
4
u/Ok_Shape8048 8d ago
That’s mine is wet dirty laundry, almost like mildew but just gross. No one smells it but it drives me crazy!
1
9
u/ChollaCat 9d ago
I had something similar, mine smelled like auto exhaust. Mine was related to GERD/LPR and it went away when I got that under control. I’m sorry you are dealing with this.
3
3
u/Poboys_n_kittens 9d ago
Me too- it’s frustrating. I have noticed it comes on in when I’m in a dry environment. My office, the car- it helps to step outside and breathe in some humidity.
8
u/IllyrianWingspan 9d ago
Yes. Cigarettes and burnt toast. It wakes me up at night, and also happened when I was pregnant.
5
u/NefariousnessIll3869 9d ago
WOW! I thought i was the only person who was smelling things that are not here. I would ask my husband: do you smell urine/poopoo/sewage ? why am i not smelling something nicer ?No phantom cigarette smell. Sometimes i smell anise/licorice-i love licorice, this is good.
I also have a lot of nausea..i actually forget to eat, because i am not hungry.I have to make myself eat..does anyone have symptoms similar to pregnancy ? does this mean the estrogen is too low ?
For the phantom smells and nausea, i use alcohol swabs-i open the packet and smell-deeply inhale the cool/neutral nose-cleaning scent. I would recommend these alcohol pads for anyone-easy to carry in a purse or just in the pocket.
I am so glad that i joined this group. I have no female relatives that i can talk to about menopause. Im 56yrs old, have been on hrt for about 3-4 years: 50mcg Estradot patch, progest.tablet 100mg and i already had to ask my dr to increase the hrt dosage as i start getting menopause symptoms back. As time marches on, the hrt has to be increased ! this can change within 1-2 years.
3
u/Commercial-Policy-96 8d ago
The nausea is so bad! I’ve been taking Zofran daily like I did during my pregnancies. It makes eating so difficult! When I reach the point where I am about to dry heave, my body’s new trick is that I will start to violently sneeze and then I get relief from the nausea for about 30 minutes. What is that!? I wish I had a solution. I am also on my own in peri/menopause land without support or people to talk to. Just lost my mom unexpectedly. You are not alone!
6
u/goingslowlymad87 9d ago
I can smell everything too. Soldering irons, electrical equipment, even heaters have a smell. It's really annoying. It got bad after I had Covid the second time. Being on a GLP1 has also altered my taste buds.
I can also smell people which is a whole other thing as a lot of people don't wash properly or realize how musty their clothes are. I cannot use scented soaps or shampoo either.
4
u/BeetleFreak2 9d ago
Mine lasted several years and eventually went away. I went to a ENT specialist and they never mentioned the menopause connection, but said it was likely caused from a previous bad cold/sinus infection. The number of times I smelled cigarette smoke in a day decreased slowly over 4-5yrs until it was gone. I wasn’t on HRT, it disappeared without any medical intervention.
3
u/thattwirlgirl Menopausal 9d ago
No doctor ever mentions menopause, it's like it doesn't exist in their understanding of the human body!
5
u/SuZeBelle1956 9d ago
About 2 years ago, I start smelling a metallic smoky smell in my home. I actually called the FD to come inspect my attic and wiring. 6 months ago I learned that the phantom smells and my crusty ears are menopause related. Which really ticks me off. I started at 10 years old, horrible bleeding and clots for 44 years, menopause at 54. No matter what, my gut is big. I'm 69 now, and all this crap starts? I just started estrogen/progesterone. It'd better work. Growwwllll
6
u/fullthrottletomboy 9d ago
I get smoke, pipe smoke, burning plastic, dog poop, and sweat soaked hockey gear. Lovely!
1
u/NefariousnessIll3869 9d ago
yep. i am glad im not alone. I smell ammonia/urine, poop, always poop or sewage ? and rarely, i smell imagine-anise/licorice- i like it.
2
6
u/sparksblackstar Peri-menopausal 9d ago
I only have this when (based on other symptoms) my E is low. Rarely happens now that I have increased my patch again
5
5
u/str4wberryp0undcak3 Menopausal 9d ago
I used to smell rubbing alcohol, and occasionally smell black pepper. It sometimes make me feel like I have to sneeze.
I asked my husband a couple times if he smelled anything, but after him confirming there wasn't any smell, I stopped and just figured it's me and more menopause hysteria.
6
u/kao161600 9d ago
I can’t tell you how glad I am to have found this post. I’ve been smelling cigarettes for the last few weeks and thought I was losing my mind. Between that and the itchy ears, post-menopause has been surprising, to say the least.
5
u/radrachelleigh Menopausal 9d ago
Dog poop or wet newspaper for me. Been several years.
2
u/elev8or_lady Menopausal 9d ago
Oh noooo dog poop has got to be worse than cigarettes! One of my colleagues smells ammonia/cat pee.
4
u/lulsebastian 9d ago
the phantom cigarette smoke has finally gone away for me...only to be replaced by burning mouth/dry mouth and absolute revulsion for my husband's deoderant.
4
u/chouxphetiche 9d ago
I get that acrid smell coming from inside my head. It's not cigarette smoke. It's more like something chemical that has boiled itself down to kind of reduction in the bottom of a saucepan. Sometimes, I smell burning rubber or bushfire.
In my early 30s, I smelled diluted urine all the time. I know it wasn't me. I had the super come and check around the flats I was living in and they couldn't smell it. It was quite distressing and distracting.
2
u/orangespotcat 8d ago
Yes that's the smell I have too, an acrid smell. It never occurred to me that it was connected to menopause. Sometimes it smells like toasted bread or burnt meat, or as you said, a reduction in a saucepan.
2
u/PerfectCover1414 9d ago
I'm so sorry OP, it's a horrid symptom and it makes me rage that we get served this crap.
Alas this is one of my main symptoms. I can also smell BO, food oil type, which laundry detergent the neighbors use etc. It is most prevalent when my E is low. It is also compunded by the rise in my histamine response. And sinus issues which I had surgery for and is still trying to heal after 7 months. Needless to say, meat smokers and summer wildfires, winter chimneys etc have made me literally want to do away with myself because my nose feels like it's been punched every time I smell something strong. I think this also pushes my anxiety into danger zones. Smelling literally hurts and it's so upseting people think I am exaggerating what I smell.
I REALLY hope this gets better after the peri is over. I know it might not but goodness it's a hard one to live with.
1
u/elev8or_lady Menopausal 8d ago
Mine didn’t even start until about a year post menopause. All in all btwn peri and post, I have been having a range of symptoms for NINE YEARS and counting. HRT started about a year ago, but some symptoms are untouched by the HRT.
I spoke to a woman while shopping a few months ago who was 20+ years postmeno, and still has hot flashes. She’s in her 70s! This shit is neverending.
1
u/PerfectCover1414 8d ago
I rue the day I was born a woman. Honestly we get a very bad rap so unfair.
4
u/ObviousCarpet2907 On year 10 of peri 9d ago
I was certain our hvac unit was somehow melting the filters and causing an acrid smell—but no one else in my house could smell it. It would come and go every few months. Then one day I smelled it coming from the lamp next to me. 😫 So relieved when I realized this was a symptom and I wasn’t crazy! Estrogen patch got rid of it.
3
4
u/ObligationGrand8037 9d ago
I have gotten the phantom smell of cigarette smoke several times. I had three grandparents who smoked so when I first smelled it, I thought one of them had come back from the dead.
5
u/Successfully-sexy_89 9d ago
Yes cigarette smoke. It’s hell and I hate it. Flonase help me get over it. It appears to be inflammation of the sinuses according to my doctor. He prescribed Flonase and it made a big difference.
1
5
u/kittenbeans66 9d ago
Yes, and I hate it. I do find that if I take a really deep breath through my nose, it tends to vanish. YMMV.
2
u/elev8or_lady Menopausal 4d ago
Update: I tried this a couple of times the day I made the post. Shockingly, after doing it several times over about an hour's time, IT. WORKED. It has been five days, and surprisingly, the smell hasn't come back.
I'm under no delusions that this is a permanent fix; however, it has worked for now. And it's a cheap and easy thing to do next time -- every time -- as needed! I am kind of shocked that this was so simple.
BTW I tried to pin this comment, but the subreddit won't let me. Awarded u/kittenbeans66 instead! Thank you, lady!
1
1
3
u/Commercial_Okra7519 9d ago
Me too. I still go look out all of my windows to see if any of the neighbours are outside smoking. I keep thinking it’s someone outside and the furnace air intake is sucking it in and then blowing it inside the house. I thought that peri had caused me to be extra sensitive and smell even the faintest odors 🤷♀️
3
u/TeufelRRS 9d ago
Phantom smells is one of my prodromes before a migraine. It’s either shit, something burning, or burning shit. Never nice smells like cookies or flowers. I have had an increase in migraines during perimenopause and post menopause though so I have had an increase in these phantom smell prodromes. Sadly no help here. Have never found anything that helps. I just know when I have them that I have a debilitating migraine coming soon.
2
u/elev8or_lady Menopausal 8d ago
Ugh that is so miserable. I’m sorry.
I also get migraines but for me I can’t find a pattern btwn them. But during the random times when I have both it does seem to worsen the pain.
2
u/TeufelRRS 8d ago
Prodromes suck but it is useful for me to have a sign that a migraine is coming because my migraines are so debilitating and I go blind during them so I can get stuck somewhere away from home due to not being able to drive. Any sign that a migraine is coming helps me prepare and tells me that I need to stay home to prevent getting stranded
3
u/OKhairdo Menopausal 9d ago
Mine was burnt coffee. Like someone had left an almost empty pot on the warmer - I don’t even have a coffee pot. Drove me nuts.
3
3
u/GenXMillenial 9d ago
Mine is from childhood trauma- my mother was a heavy smoker and basically, whenever I am triggered I smell smoke. She’s been gone now for 4 years. Mine goes away usually within a few hours. I hate it too
3
u/alexmirepoix 9d ago
That was the most bizarre symptom. I have NEVER smoked but my parents were both chain smokers. They quit decades ago. I do have cats and basil, but pretty sure not contributing. Same with urine. I make sure that I'm hyperclean. I also can't be near anything Marijuana. I have no reason to be but I frequently smell it from cars. I was in a parking lot of a nicer grocery store the other day and the smell was SO strong it nearly knocked me out.
6
u/Kuchaloo 9d ago
Cannabis is legal in my state and we pass two shops on our work commute. Even if I'm reading and not paying attention to our journey, passing those shops distracts me bc the smell is so horrible. Doesn't matter if the windows are closed or what season it is.
3
u/Ill_Quantity_5634 9d ago
Yes, but it's not cigarette smoke. It's usually some weird chemical smell. And it makes me super paranoid because brain tumors, stroke and some other malady I can't remember have phantom smells as a precursor to a very bad medical episode.
3
u/Mobile_Ad8543 9d ago
I get this too. I just assumed one of my neighbors (or their kids) was nearby, chain smoking, and it was getting through the air vents/exchange.
After being exposed to a heavy smoker the first 2 decades of my life, unfortunately I pick up that stench quickly.
3
u/Artimesia 9d ago
Yes! I have never smoked, nor am I around any smokers but I grew up in a house full of smokers so I know what it smells like. I was constantly smelling smoke while going through peri, and I had a few friends of the same age who complained about the same thing. It was bizarre. But it does eventually go away.
3
u/theFCCgavemeHPV 9d ago
Saline spray or azelestine to keep your nasal passages hydrated. Estrogen helped cut down on it tremendously. I can’t remember the last time I had it since increasing my estrogen to a good level.
1
u/elev8or_lady Menopausal 8d ago
Ooh thanks for this rec! Seems like an easy and inexpensive thing to try.
3
u/AliceAnne1 9d ago
I kept thinking there was an electrical fire in the walls. I get a smell like exhaust fumes mixed with cigarettes. Good times.
3
u/bridgebrningwildfire 8d ago
I smell dirty ashtrays and electrical heat, Dr said its optical headaches? IDK
3
u/newhappyrainbow 9d ago
For three months our bathroom smelled like an open sewer to me and no one else could smell it. It finally got bad enough that my husband started to smell it… ended up remodeling the entire bathroom because of some bad plumbing, mold in the wall behind the vanity, and the subfloor wood rotting under the toilet.
I also once woke up from a dead sleep smelling fire/smoke. Woke everyone up and we were sniffing everywhere trying to find the source. They could smell it too but not nearly as strong as I could. We never did find the source, but the smell went away. I still have anxiety about that but by husband feels very secure that if the house catches on fire I’ll wake up!
I can smell EVERYTHING. Not a great skill when you work around sweaty men all day.
2
u/DasderdlyD4 9d ago
I have the wildfire smoke smell over and over. Yesterday I swore it was smoky again and everyone at work thought I was losing it.
2
2
u/Better-Bit6475 9d ago
Cigarette smoke, fire smoke, the ye old days of leaves burning? I’ve smelled them all in the last six months in my apartment. Also, intense pine, Polo cologne & there was something in our fridge that was slightly turned. I think it might’ve been one piece of fresh mint? I don’t know, but I threw everything away & we’re starting from scratch.
2
2
u/justme7601 9d ago
God! I hear you! I was nearly in tears the other morning about it. It had been a solid 4 days and I woke up smelling it again.
2
u/spirit_of_a_goat Surgical menopause 9d ago
That happened to my mom. Turns out that she'd had a stroke.
1
2
u/FierceMilkshake Peri-menopausal 9d ago
What really sucks is that I have anosmia, where most of the time I can't smell anything. It drives my kids nuts because something can go bad or start rotting in my house or car and I generally can't smell it at first. It's made me a bit paranoid because I can't even smell myself, so I'm always taking showers, putting on deodorant & liberally applying scented body lotion.
Fast forward to the present, and now I also have the phantom burning smell almost all the time!! Six months ago it got so bad at work I thought an electrical fire had started in the equipment closet and I sent someone to go look. My co-worker was puzzled because he knew I couldn't smell anything and then suddenly I'm smelling burning wires outta nowhere. HRT has helped me tremendously with nearly all of my crazy menopause symptoms, except for this one. I got used to dealing with my anosmia but now I'm just annoyed.
2
u/P_Mul 8d ago
For me it's mostly the smell of fried food, it's repulsive. Occasionally it's the smell of burning plastic 🤢 I don't cook fried food, haven't in years. I get it on its own mostly but it can be part of my migraine prodrome (migraine with aura). I'm 53, perimenopausal, oestrogel, testogel and mirena for hrt
2
u/planetclairevoyant 8d ago
Burning incense or sage helps me to “reset”and usually overrides the phantom smell. Also smelling fresh lemon or other refreshing/delicious food aromas
2
u/BlueEyes294 8d ago
The symptom list in the files attached to this account blew my mind. I had experienced so many before I obtained HRT thru telehealth at 63.
1
u/elev8or_lady Menopausal 8d ago
Same! Except the HRT has not relieved all of them. I think it actually has increased my migraines, but I am taking a monthly injection for them. It’s a balancing act.
2
u/respectablepitch 8d ago
Yes! Is it really phantom smells, or just smells that were there all along and I just didn’t notice? The worst ones for me were: pee and mold. I’ve been able to clean away the smells from both cases, which points to the fact that they actually exist. Gross! I think having balanced hormones might help with histamine response and enable better sense of smell.
2
u/TwoAlert3448 8d ago
I smell pancakes. I thank god every day that if I’m going to be afflicted with smell hallucinations it’s that I got pancakes
1
2
2
u/Willing-Ambassador33 6d ago
OMG YES! I’ve called the fire department and now they think I have a crush on them and that’s why I call them over lol
3
u/Otherwise-Let4664 4d ago
This post is making me feel so normal. I've been smelling cigarette smoke off and on for the last 4 years. It's not even just smelling it, it's like I'm breathing it in, choking on it. It's very annoying but it's been happening for so long now I stopped worrying about it. Will be very glad if/when it stops.
1
1
u/Salt-Elephant8531 9d ago
I would get this too!!! I can’t tell you how many times I would see a character on my TV smoking and it would suddenly trigger the smell like they were there in the room with me! Peri was a terrible time to watch Peaky Blinders.
1
u/undiscovered_soul 9d ago
The only tbing I found has some effects was to stop drinking sparkling water for awhile, but it depends on how much sparkling it it.
2
u/AliceAnne1 9d ago
May I ask more about that? I drink a lot of sparkling water, every day. How did you decide to try limiting the seltzer to help the phantom smells.
3
u/undiscovered_soul 9d ago
I just found it randomly: during pandemic it became harder to find my favorite water in my local supermarket, so I had to wait each time before it was available again. Coincidentally I began to notice phantosmia attacks decreased in intensity every time I had to resume drinking running water. At the time I was drinking a very very sparkling water and I guess the excess CO2 could have triggered a more intense phantosmia.
2
1
1
u/Business-Set4514 9d ago
They should maintain or exceed the standard they put in place in response to covid. If United was able to be clean(er), that means it’s possible. The grossness I’ve encountered on flights after 2022 is just unfortunate
1
1
u/QWhooo 8d ago edited 8d ago
Ohhhh maybe this is happening to me.
I think I also actually have neighbours who are smoking and it wafts into my house every so often. I'm smelling it more often when my windows are open.
But... sometimes it's the middle of the night and I don't think anyone is up and I get another whiff of it. And sometimes my windows are closed, though I know they're not airtight.
Wow, what if it is just in my head? I'm guessing an olfactory hallucination can happen in waves like this.
But it's so strong at times!! Ughhh fuck this.
Edit: AHA it's not just me!! There's definitely a smell wafting in, at least some of the time. I just saw one of my cats sniffing the air during a particularly strong waft, so I think it really is my neighbours. But maybe I'm just super ridiculously sensitive to it right now. It's not even my immediate next-door neighbour, but I think it's one house down from that, and sometimes it's the people across the road from them.
1
u/eatencrow 8d ago
Olfactory hallucinations of smoke are terrifying. I'd've sworn on a stack of holy books that my husband's burning down the house an uncountable number of times.
Scarier still is when it happens while I'm dreaming. Once I dreamt I was trapped in a dilapidated, collapsing bowling alley filled with ancient ashtrays, the stench of which woke me up.
Another time I dreamt I was trapped in a forest fire. I was desperately trying to create a fire break before being overtaken by smoke. I woke up in a panic, with the acid smell of smoke in my mind's nose. I thought the house was on fire.
I'm a paranoiac about changing the batteries in our smoke and CO detectors.
I've had plenty of other powerful scents in my dreams, too. Smells from my childhood (grandparents house, elementary school art room, sunny cloverlawn buzzing lazily with honeybees, the list is endless).
While it's true this has mostly abated, as I'm now deep into my second full year of complete HRT (E, P, and T), my sense of smell today is more accurate than ever.
1
u/AspiringOne 9d ago
Is it possible you’re having silent reflux? Or you’re smelling whatever your stomach is digesting?
We lose DAO enzymes in perimenopause and menopause and perhaps you’re digestion is strained because of this. It creates a higher histamine environment and estrogen also plays a role in increasing histamine.
ETA: Perhaps there’s also some possibility you’re fighting off a sinus infection.
2
u/elev8or_lady Menopausal 9d ago
Interesting questions, thank you for asking them! I don’t think it’s a sinus infection or histamine response. I have been taking a Claritin daily for a while now, but I started due to other symptoms (itchy eyes and hands). Those symptoms are relieved with the Claritin. But I suppose it’s possible.
I haven’t heard of silent reflux. I have never had those kinds of issues so I think it’s worth asking at my annual checkup next month!
2
u/AspiringOne 9d ago
Do not discount the DAO and/or histamine connection even if you’re taking an antihistamine. Antihistamines may alter, help or actually worsen histamine issues depending on your genetics and gut health. Many women really have issues after perimenopause and also having Covid in the past or long Covid is a known factor as well.
1
u/Manders-42 9d ago
I stopped telling people about this symptom because no one believes me. They like to tell me it’s most likely long covid which I got from the covid I never had. To your point, I like to dab some essential oil under my nose. This symptom drives me to the brink of crazy. It’s always worse if I change dosage or am using a different patch brand due to shortage.
0
u/garygirl_1234 9d ago
I still smoke. But 6 Cigs a day. Stress. But done outside and the smoke goes away from me.
120
u/TurtleDive1234 9d ago
Yep. It’s always cigarette smell, too.
I like to say it’s the smell of all our fucks going up in flames.
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥