Am I going mad?

[MyOtherCarIsAPorsche]

I can smell smoke constantly but I am never in a smoky atmosphere. I have never smoked.

It's like cigarette smoke from a particularly nasty, cheap cigarette. Very acrid and strong.

I can convince myself that I can taste it at the back of my throat.

When it first started happening I would ask my husband if he had been smoking and he would react a little bit too strongly which made me think that he was hiding secret smoking (he gave up when he was 25, he's 62 now).

So if I can rule out him and we live alone, where is this strong smell coming from? It's not a slight whiff every now and again. I'm sat watching tv and grimacing at the awful stench.

It's been happening for ages - at a guess, since before last Christmas.

I've been driving myself bonkers going around sniffing everything/everyone.

What on earth? I can't find the source.

I'm not a health care professional, but what you are talking about is an olfactory hallucination, aka phantosmia.
There can be lots of causes, some concerning, some less so.
If it were me, I would get in to see the GP. It's been going on for a while.
Hope resolves easily for you, OP.

Do you suffer from Migraines at all? My mam does and when she's getting one she can smell peppermint. Apparently phantosmia is a more uncommon migraine symptom.

Oooo - I do get migraines. They seem to be Spring/Autumn and connected to stormy weather. I get a reliable warning before the pain hits - I see half of everything I look at. I get a 20 min window where I can take a triptan and painkillers and they're quite effective.

But this smell is very strong and constant.

I can see me becoming OCD in the near future as I'm becoming obsessed with cleaning and room sprays. There's just two of us and no pets.

It can get claustrophobic almost and I can feel panic rising. I can feel it in my mouth and I can feel on the verge of my eyes watering.

I genuinely feel like I'm going mad.

I try my best to stop myself accusing H and visitors of smoking but can't stop myself being upset by it.

Sometimes when I'm in bed I convince myself that the house is on fire because of a dropped cigarette. I keep having to get up and check - even though we have wired smoke alarms.

I would rather smell peppermint or roses or a pleasant smell but this awful, sharp smoke aroma sets me on edge.

Do you smell this everywhere or just at home?

Have you had Covid? I've read about people's sense of smell changing afterwards and not just losing it.

Think I read the other day it can be linked to menopause? Something to do with hormone deficiency?

@Frazzled0

It's everywhere. Inside and outside.

I assume people are smoking when they're not.

I daren't ask 'is someone smoking?' anymore because people seem to take it personally/offensively (especially H).

It's real because, as well as the smell, I'm sure that I can taste it and it makes my eyes water.

I've had a bad cold which has left me with a cough recently - tested for Covid twice and both negative.

This has been going on a long time. I'm realising that this is imaginary because no one else can smell anything. It's the weirdest thing. I'm physically doing all sorts to 'disguise/clean' a smell which is probably not there.

It's tormenting me to behave irrationally, which I can't stop. I'm looking at people and thinking - why can't you smell this, it's so strong?

I have this but not all the time. It started after a really bad dose of covid after I lost my taste and smell for weeks. Even though I only get it now and again it can be really strong.

Oh - I'm probably deficient of all sorts.

Just finished a course of 50,000 units per tablet vit D - last blood test indicated total depletion. Not had any other specific vit/min tested.

Definitely in the menopause for last couple of years at least.

What an awful symptom of the inevitable decline into old age. I'm 57. Depressing.

I'm at my daughter's house today and had to stop myself a few times from saying 'can you smell smoke?'. I think that they think I'm a crazy old woman.

You need to see a doctor. Phantom smells can be a symptom of all sorts including some serious things that need ruling out.