weird smells

[lchou]

This is weird, but I seem to keep smelling a dirty sock smell everywhere I go, and no, it is not stinky socks, we don't wear them here:o)

Week 4 and just started feeling crummy.  Nothing drastic, but decided to stay home today.  I look kinda pale (according to my husband) and have dark circles under my eyes (don't usually have them).  Really I hate even saying anything after hearing some of the stories on here, but other than the cough, some chills, and nausea after taking the pills...not too bad so far.

Also is it weird to have an injection reaction at one site and not all of them?  Three turned bright red after a few days and then faded into a bruise, but the last one hurt like a burn??  I hope there wasn't something wrong with that shot.

So glad I followed everyone's advice and didn't go out and buy all the "stuff" I was going to.  Haven't needed anything yet other than a couple of tylenol.

[ladybug52]

So glad you asked that question! It's so nice to think back on tx and relate to what someone else is going through, and know that someday they'll be past this too!

I always smelled cat pee. It really made me sick to my stomach. I was never convinced it was just a side of tx till after I finished. I think I was really smelling the cat box, but my sense of smell was just heightened and I could smell it from another room. Any room.

Thanks for posting.

Bug

[PegM]

Taste and smell have been a source of joy for me most of my life.  I can't tell you how many things I've thrown away on tx because they smelled or tasted wrong, so it's a big loss for me, but probably not especially important.  Also, nearly everything I cook tastes wrong to me, although that's not the feedback I get from my friends and family, and my son is a chef.  Yep, I think treatment badly disrupts the taste/smell program of many.  I smelled FISH in my closets, yuck.  None in there that I could find.  I can also sometimes smell the meds from other people, but not myself, even though I must have it too.

Regarding the reaction areas, they do vary.  Some people find that increasing the angle of the injection helps skin, if you have enough fat tissue to keep it out of your muscle.  After I began giving it a little deeper  I had very few skin irritations from the injections and little injection site pain.  You just have to make sure it's in subcutaneous tissue.
Take care.
Peggy

[stubby226]

Thank you so much for your questions, The responses you recieved really made me feel better.  I can remember after tx It smelled like everything in my house was rotten.  I drove my husband crazy.  My refrigerator got cleaned and emptied out.  I scrubbed as much as I could but I could not get rid of the smell.  My water and juice tased like they were bad.  I thought I was going crazy, after reading all the posts Ifeel so much better.  It is possible the reson one area is ws then the other with your shots could be some skin areas are tougher then others. I had less rashes on my arms and thighs.  I found my abdomen would bruis more, hurt more and devlop a rash more.  I also developed a rash on my body and I tried every thing under the sun.  I finally tried a thick night creme that was fantastic do not know if we are suppose to use specific brand names.  If you want the name I will send specific info on pm.Take, keep a positive attidue and 1 day at a time.

[semosig]

After 35 weeks tx, 13 more fridays for the shots and being ud since first blood test,  viral load was 18,900,000 and since 10 weeks has been >5, I have had so many awful side effects, I forgot about that one.  I smell the strangest things coming from my mouth and nose that I can't breath sometimes.  No one has told me they have also smelled it.  My wife of 35 years hasn't mentioned it, although she moved out of the bedroom as I roll around like a ship in a hurricane and hardly sleep.  I have stayed in bed for most of the days and nights due to fatigue, that being undetectable since early on I feel so encouraged that I just try to not notice the little things.  Life will be better, I really do know it.  But glad to hear I'm not the only one with taste and smell issues along with all the other stuff.

[lchou]

I have to agree with you about all the mess with the alcohol swabs, kinda overkill.  I haven't gone in the sun yet, well except every time I go out of the house, but try to limit it to going to and from places.  No more sitting in the sun for now.  But that is totally fine.  No whining from me yet :(  so irritable though...god is my husband going to divorce me before this is over?

[scruples]

I also feel weired smell in the start of my Tx and it was almost the smell of rotten food and i couldnt eat properly during week 5-11 because of that smell and change in taste . My taste turned metalic and especially all sweet thing ( Containing sugar or artificial sugar ) ware impossible to be taken. But after week 11, the things started getting better and within 1-2 week it went. Now i dont feel weired smell but one thing i should mention, my smelling sense is much more active then before..... :)

For injection site rashes, try to reduce the use of Alcohol slabs it really creates mess sometime. Uptill week 14 of my Tx no injection site reaction , just a lump appears shortly after shot and vanished after 3-5 minutes and nothing else. Then one two time after the shot i keep on rubbing alcohol swabs o the injection site for 40-50 seconds and there were rashes and red spots and GOD these rashes does hurt when i come in sun.... very irritating. My doc after after examination concluded that it may be due to alcohol swab and ask me to reduce its use and belive me after that no further rashes and injection site reaction...  

[lchou]

Some of the many advice items I did take was to get my teeth cleaned right before starting (I do every 4 mos. anyway), and get my hair color done before treatment.  I honestly tried to make sure I gave myself every advantage in doing this as "easy" as possible.  Got the result from my first blood tests and it is good AST & ALT are normal and my doctor said he fully expects undetected at 8 wks!

Lauren

[merryBe]

your sense of smell will really be heightened on tx.

I told me husband for 5 days there was a rotten orange in the house.

Finally I started looking under things cause he wouldn't believe me...

and sure enough there was one section of orange someone had dropped that bounced under the couch...

it may be you need your teeth cleaned....if you haven't in a while, do it...any meat stuck in teeth or infection in gums can give wild odors.

first few shots can get hot/painful..use an ice pack....usually this subsides after a couple months, but the first few can get pretty red. Doesn't mean the drug is bad, just your body reacting. If it doesn't settle down tell your doc...they can switch you tupe INF, but Pegasus works statistically best so don't switch unless you are having bad allergic reactions.

mb

[lchou]

BTW you guy are all too funny!  Really helps to laugh.  I hope I don't develop some complex about this smell thing.  I thought I was the only one that could smell it, but maybe I smell like a stinky sock:( eewww!

[lchou]

Yeah my taste has gone weird too.  I usually love pineapple, and my husband cut a big juicy one yesterday and I couldn't stand the taste.  

Regarding the burning sensation: I did use ice pack and alcohol swabs.  The first three shots didn't do that, just the last one.  It took a few day for the big red spot to appear as usual, but this time it felt like a burn.  Hot skin, tender, but its all gone now, so I guess it was nothing.

Now the fatigue kicks in, last night felt like I could barely make it up the stairs to bed:(

[portann]

I haven't experienced any burning sensation with my injections . Are you using a gel pack on your injection site for about 20-30 minutes before injecting? And swabbing with alcohol?

I bruised for the first few weeks but not afterwards. I don't know if it's because I got better at injecting and grabbing the 'roll of fat' ( I don't have a lot) or just time.

Funny about the smells. I'll be prepared. So far for me it's been the weird tastes, wanting to throw out almost everything in the fridge because I think it's gone bad. My husband never agrees but what does he know :) ?

[GSDgirl]

Funny you should mention sweat.  I am 7 months post TX and I honestly stink under my armpits.  This is something new since TX.  I have bought 7 different deodorants.  I can take a shower and within an hour I can smell myself, drives me crazy.  I do not sweat, just have a smell which I can't stand.  Hope it goes away in time

Denise

[R Glass]

“a lot of people can smell the medication coming out of thier pores and it's really gross”
I blamed my wife’s Yorkie.
I became obsessed and furious. thinking that the dog was P1ssing in my bedroom.
I would open the windows but no one else could smell it but me.
After awhile I realized my clothes were reeking, that’s when reality hit me.
It wasn’t the dog, it was me. My bedroom stank because that’s where I stayed most of the time. Even now, 6 months later, I can still smell it when I sweat.

[alagirl]

I smelled smoke all the time.  Kept thinking the house was on fire.  Then there was one point where I could smell my hair - but I think that was legit.  It had been so long since I had washed it that I suspect there was mold or something growing in it.  ewwwww

[sfwandwow]

i dont mean to laugh but its funny but in reality it ***** lol.. I REALLY KNO WHERE U ARE COMING FROM.. just wanted to add some humor..

[charm27]

I had an odd smell sensation at the beginning of my tx as well. I was smelling something burning all the time...It will subside in time.

Best of luck to you in tx.

[nygirl7]

Unfortunately not only does your entire smelling factory get totally destroyed...a lot of people can smell the medication coming out of thier pores and it's really gross. I can remember how much I felt like I needed to constantly put some extra Vicky's Secret body spray on because I was SURE everyone could smell it too.  

Still sometimes now even almost two years afterwards my nose gets all messed up and I hallucinate wierd smells!  But it should start to go away a bit as treatment goes along...your body will start go get used to having poison dumped in it and it levels out somewhat. AT least it did in my case.
--
BTW, I know now that it was probably just CanCanMan's socks all along that I could smell but at the time, I thought I was a bit crazy!

[can-do-man]

Sounds like the way my tx started. Injections sites and all. Best to you going forward.

BTW, in my case it was my socks......

cando