Stories from the community

You are not alone.

These are real stories from real people living with anosmia. Some were born without smell. Some lost it after COVID-19, the flu, a head injury, or a sinus condition. All of them describe an experience that millions share but few talk about. We’re grateful to everyone who let us publish theirs.

  • I Hesitate to Admit It

    I was diagnosed with congenital anosmia around 1973 to 1975. My father never had a sense of smell either. I remember the doctor explaining it to my mother with an anecdote about someone born without sight who later gained it by happenstance. He believed I had all the faculties, but that for some reason my…

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  • No Idea What Roses Smell Like

    I suffered a fractured skull as a child, and I believe that is where my smell was affected. I could smell certain things throughout my life — gasoline, peaches — but beginning in my mid-40s it faded. At 50, I now smell nothing at all. I once saw an EMT who asked me how far…

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  • Beyond Smell

    They always say you want what you can’t have. But in my case, I am perfectly content with not being able to detect the aromatic chemicals floating around in our atmosphere. Oftentimes, I share my invisible disability with people around me, and the reactions I get are filled with furrowed brows and quizzical expressions, as…

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  • It Does Matter

    I was born with congenital anosmia, though I wasn’t diagnosed until four years ago. I realized early on that I couldn’t smell like other people, but my nerves could still detect strong chemicals, so for a long time I thought I just had a very bad sense of smell. Then an ENT explained that I…

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  • My Secret Disability

    Do you remember that scrawny kid in school who was always sick, had a runny nose and huge eyeglasses? Well, I certainly do, as that was me. I missed a lot of school days in elementary school. It seemed I always had a bad cold, sore throat, ear infection or some other ailment. My mother…

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  • Smell That Comes and Goes: A Post-COVID Story

    I lost my sense of smell after contracting COVID. It took a few weeks before it came back — and my sense of taste took much longer, returning only months later. Now, from time to time, both senses lose sensitivity whenever I come down with even mild flu-like symptoms. When I got the flu last…

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