Scents And Sensibility

Like hundreds of other people, when I got covid-19 , I lost my sense of smell. And unlike most others, it did not return within a few weeks. There was a persistent weird in my nostrils.

 What seems like months ago, May I think, my friend Jenny said she had seen a "Sense of Smell" Retraining Kit advertised online at some exorbitant cost. I said I would hold on to my cash, and see if nature sorted it out for free.

Then an informative article in The Guardian on Saturday caused me to rethink things. I'd already become aware of grapefruit [handwash] and coconut [shampoo] - even if fresh bread and strong coffee still elude me. But this article spoke of two conditions - anosmia [complete loss of smell] and parosmia [a distorted sense of smell- often a sign of recovery] and pointed me to AbScent, a charity devoted to helping people with smell-loss. 

The idea is that you purchase a selection of 'essential scents' and every morning you sniff them. For twenty seconds you do a series of short sharp sniffs [known as 'bunny sniffs'] with the first perfume, then move on to the next. The kit contains four scents -  rose, eucalyptus, clove and lemon fragrances, in impregnated discs inside glass jars. Cost £30.

I checked out our health food shop who were waiting for deliveries, but had lemon and cloves as "essential oils". "But rose is the most expensive, £24 for a little bottle" they told me. The first evening, Bob and I did a 'wafting test' - I closed my eyes and he put a bottle under my nose. Yes - I could identify these two. Next day I went into the large Boots - and found eucalyptus - and that was on offer with tea tree and lavender.  So I got 5 bottles in total for round £20. 

This morning I did my bunny sniffing - using a kitchen timer, and taking each in turn. I followed the instructions - concentrating and being 'mindful' of each smell. I tried to focus on memories involving those perfumes - 

lavender, pruning the shrubs in the front garden at Cornerstones, and also making 35 lavender bags for a friend. 

lemon - meals eaten on holiday in Sicily, and also the legendary lemon meringue pies made in my childhood by my mother's friend Gwen.

cloves - Christmas baking, and Mum's apple pies

eucalyptus - I'm struggling a bit with this one, there has to be something beyond Hall's Cough Sweets - any ideas out there?

tea tree oil - this is the hardest one for me to smell, it seems vaguely antiseptic, and I keep thinking about hospital visits. 

But I shall persevere. The perfumed candle purchased for a Christmas present definitely smells of cinnamon for me now. When it arrived 3 weeks ago, I couldn't smell it at all  - but Bob was acutely aware if its perfume [and this is before it has been lit] I've also printed off the helpful self-assessment sheet, to keep a record of my progress.

I do think these conditions sound like bizarre party guests - "Please would you welcome Ann Osmia, and her esteemed father, Pa Osmia". There is light at the end of the tunnel [or at least, a smell at the end of my nostril] Will this fifth sense return to me completely? 

Nobody Nose!!