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[Vector]

Welcome to my fun thread. I have/had COVID and could mostly smell and taste stuff normally until recently. Then three days ago I almost completely stopped eating. I thought it was just me being moody because I do that sometimes.

Well, I got hungry last night and ate some food, but then I discovered it was rotten! Yes, the texture and visible mold gave it away. But I couldn't smell or taste it.

PURPOSE of thread: to make myself feel better. Please be nice to me, I'm scared. Specifically of my sense of smell and taste not coming back. I love to cook and drink tea, and it's one of my only hobbies.

[EuchreJack]

It's important to remember that bad news sells, so the media comments that the sense of smell and taste might not come back are just exaggerations based upon a very limited data set.  I mean, who had COVID in 2018? 2017?

It is perfectly normal to experience a loss of taste & smell for several weeks.

I've had the experience where I eat something, go back for more, and find mold in the container. Yuck!
^Nothing to do with COVID, just me being absentminded.  I have only rarely smelled mold.

[Vector]

thank you ;_;

I've eaten moldy food on purpose before, but seldom by accident. It was scary!

[nenjin]

Lost my sense of smell and taste completely in December 2019 in the first wave of Covid that we didn't know was Covid at the time.

I think I lost both for maybe.....a week and a half. Along with my voice. I lost my taste and smell maybe just shy of mid-way through the whole month-long ordeal.

They came back eventually. And this is after having sinus surgery a year prior, which definitely reduced how sensitive my sense of smell was. (Used to be uncomfortably acute at times. The whiff of rotting anything, even like at a few feet from a closed kitchen trash can, was usually enough to make me gag. Even when other people could barely smell it. It's still somewhat sensitive....but I can no longer smell people around corners, for example.)

You'll be fine. Although maybe be a little extra vigilant. Not sure even in my condition I'd have overlooked the texture and appearance of molding food. Partially because, as stated, almost nothing grosses me out more than rotting and molded food.

The real downer of losing those two senses is they're what brings joy to eating. Without taste or smell, food is just a texture and appearance and an assortment of nutrients. I tried to order Pho from my favorite place while I was sick to cheer myself up......and I couldn't taste it. Which made me even more down.

You'll get through it though. And that first good meal after your senses come back, it will remind you why you like food.

[Vector]

I had a habit of eating moldy stuff when I was a kid and young adult so I worked really hard to make myself stop doing that... about seven years ago. Eating it by accident made me feel like a gross garbage-eating person again ...

OK >:[ It will be ok ! It's just COVID.

[anewaname]

You should still enjoy the flush/warmth from eating spicy foods. Hot peppers, ginger, and garlic are good options even if you don't like them, because your sense of taste will not object and they will help the immune system.

[ChairmanPoo]

[Vector]

I can now smell ... a little bit!

[EuchreJack]

Have you tried body spray/cologne/perfume/musk?
You could smell a lot!

[Shazial]

While sense of smell is probably the biggest factor in making food taste awesome, you could have some fun trying to spike your appetite with other sensations - like the texture of food. Somethings are delicious because they're prepared in a certain way. Bacon and chips for the crispy crunch, chocolate for the silky meltyness, marshmallow for the fluff, etc. Could try to scout out something that you really enjoy biting or suckling on to snack at while your sense of smell and taste recovers.

I've had partial hyposmia (smell blindness) for most of my life so it's been interesting with the Covid going around. Most scents are dulled or lightened for me, and there are certain things that my nose just doesn't pick up (most of them perfumes) at all. Luckily my sense of taste seems to be fine and making up for the lack of effort on the wind breaker's side of things.

Some folks have also reported their sense of smell or taste getting warped, like flavors tasting all wrong, while recovering from Covid. Anyone had that happen here?

[anewaname]

During covid, coffee tasted utterly foul. I usually have it without sugar/cream and intentionally avoided sugar/cream during covid, and it was bad bad bad, like having a nightmare within a nightmare.

[Vector]

Some folks have also reported their sense of smell or taste getting warped, like flavors tasting all wrong, while recovering from Covid. Anyone had that happen here?

I was really worried about this, but luckily there's none of that so far.

My sense of smell isn't fully bounced back yet, but I have enough of it now that I can navigate normal situations, at least mostly. My fingers are crossed that it keeps recovering. The good/bad thing is that the skill I most want to use -- my tea sommelier training -- is both highly impacted, and exactly the kind of thing you are supposed to do to recover more fully.

[Shazial]

The good/bad thing is that the skill I most want to use -- my tea sommelier training -- is both highly impacted, and exactly the kind of thing you are supposed to do to recover more fully.

Have to say Tea Sommelier is the most awesome unexpected skill / occupation to run into out in the wilds. X)

[Vector]

I only spent a year as an apprentice, but it was a wonderful and life-changing year which taught me a lot of valuable skills :>

[EuchreJack]

It would appear you'd be better off teaching a course on Tea than engaging in any more mainstream training as a Tea Sommelier. Then again, that article was from 2016, so maybe things have improved.

Clarifier: I'm not being critical of the Art of Tea, but rather the alleged state of Tea Sommelier training.  I come from a line of "super-tasters", but I personally am allergic to some red wines and probably some beer as well.  Hence, if I wanted to enter the profession of fine beverages, Tea/coffee is a likely avenue (or liquor).