While some survivors lose their sense of smell completely, others experience something equally disturbing: smelling things that aren’t there. This phenomenon, called phantosmia, often involves putrid odors, such as “fecal-like, burned, chemical-like, or metallic” and may persist or come and go unpredictably, according to research published in The FASEB [Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology] Journal. One survivor who had been recovering from a TBI for two years shared in January 2024 that they developed a persistent smell of cigarette smoke that wouldn’t go away. Another person reported that after a concussion from a blackout, everything tasted and smelled like burnt plastic, profoundly affecting their quality of life and ability to work.

Distinct, but similar to phantosmia, is parosmia, which involves the distortion of smells and has been proved to be caused by many medical conditions, one of which is NIH-confirmed to be traumatic brain injury. As a NIH review states, “The condition was first documented in 1895 and can affect up to 5% of the general population.”