Serious side effects I hadn't anticipated

[Lannie]

I've been off cigarettes now for almost two weeks (which is in itself a miracle) and hubby has not had any for the last couple of days. I've been enjoying getting my sense of smell back, except when I pass the litterboxes or go out to the cow barn.

But now that HE'S getting his sense of smell back, EVERYTHING smells bad to him. He complained about the smell of breakfast this morning (fried eggs and toast), and he can barely feed the cats anymore, because the stench of the Friskies is overpowering to him. I LOVE EGGS. Eggs are probably my most favorite food in the world, besides ice cream or cream cheese (sorry to nauseate anyone who doesn't like eggs), and we have a rather large flock of chickens on the farm, so we're rarely short on eggs. It's what's for breakfast. But now Rich doesn't want to have eggs because they smell so horrible. Of course, I won't be able to eat them, either, because he'll still smell them cooking. He said he'd have to smoke a cigarette every morning at breakfast to mask the smell of the eggs, but I told him then he'd just have TWO horrible smells to deal with because he's going to quit liking the smell of burning tobacco very soon, if he hasn't passed that point already. I know it didn't take me very long, just a couple of days.

I'm sure he can't be the only one who's been overwhelmed by smells when they quit smoking. Can anyone offer some advice? Tips? Anything? I will DIE if I have to eat oatmeal every day for breakfast (and then I might as well get rid of all my chickens if there are no more eggs tolerated in the house). There has to be a solution other than him going back to smoking analogs full time.

Help? PLEASE?

~Lannie

 

[TFL!]

Start making poached eggs instead of fried no smell.
PS tell him to man up.

 

[nyiddle]

Eh, sounds to me like he's just whining because he can't have his cigarettes.

There are things you can justifiably complain about in switching from smoking to vaping (cost of authentic devices, sketchiness of juice companies, fake batteries...)

"Regaining sense of smell," isn't really one of those justifiable complaints. I agree with @TFL!, tell him to man up.

 

[Caro123]

I suspect this too shall pass. At first the smells can be quite overwhelming

 

[Baditude]

How about burning some scented candles in the kitchen when you two eat? Or use an air freshner spray? There must be some type of aroma that he likes.

 

[Ou2mame]

Hahaha seriously.. It smells so bad! Yeah man the world stinks. He just didn't notice. His senses will dull once he gets used to how the world really smells.

 

[retired1]

One word. Bacon

Covers up the smell of frying eggs. And you can use the bacon grease to fry the eggs in. Double win!

 

[andy0liver]

It's amazing how soon you get used to the smells you find overpowering when you first stop smoking. A sense of smell won't kill you, although it might one day save you, a small price to pay when you consider what smoking takes away

 

[herb]

Industrial grade alligator clips are perfect for this situation , clamp one on to his nose, he won't smell anything at all , might look a little different but no biggie.

I would break up that "eggs 7 days a week" breakfast routine as well , nothing wrong with some good ol oatmeal , good stuff, especially with raisins and slices of banana .

I would kill for oatmeal right now (well maybe not kill) but seriously injure someone if they got in my way (sorry got carried away) it happens.

 

[k702]

I didn't really start to get my sense of smell and taste back until a few weeks after I quit smoking. Even then I thought it was a great thing. I was able to taste things much better, and the smells of food were great... I can't understand how the smell of things that he's liked to eat would suddenly be a bad thing to him.. Cat food/dog food sure, some of that stuff can be waaay overpowering, but eggs and toast..

Eh, sounds to me like he's just whining because he can't have his cigarettes.

There are things you can justifiably complain about in switching from smoking to vaping (cost of authentic devices, sketchiness of juice companies, fake batteries...)

"Regaining sense of smell," isn't really one of those justifiable complaints. I agree with @TFL!, tell him to man up.

I gotta say this seems to be the most likely to me. people get cranky when they quit, and those first couple days are the worst.

 

[twgbonehead]

I've been off cigarettes now for almost two weeks (which is in itself a miracle) and hubby has not had any for the last couple of days. I've been enjoying getting my sense of smell back, except when I pass the litterboxes or go out to the cow barn.

But now that HE'S getting his sense of smell back, EVERYTHING smells bad to him. He complained about the smell of breakfast this morning (fried eggs and toast), and he can barely feed the cats anymore, because the stench of the Friskies is overpowering to him. I LOVE EGGS. Eggs are probably my most favorite food in the world, besides ice cream or cream cheese (sorry to nauseate anyone who doesn't like eggs), and we have a rather large flock of chickens on the farm, so we're rarely short on eggs. It's what's for breakfast. But now Rich doesn't want to have eggs because they smell so horrible. Of course, I won't be able to eat them, either, because he'll still smell them cooking. He said he'd have to smoke a cigarette every morning at breakfast to mask the smell of the eggs, but I told him then he'd just have TWO horrible smells to deal with because he's going to quit liking the smell of burning tobacco very soon, if he hasn't passed that point already. I know it didn't take me very long, just a couple of days.

I'm sure he can't be the only one who's been overwhelmed by smells when they quit smoking. Can anyone offer some advice? Tips? Anything? I will DIE if I have to eat oatmeal every day for breakfast (and then I might as well get rid of all my chickens if there are no more eggs tolerated in the house). There has to be a solution other than him going back to smoking analogs full time.

Help? PLEASE?

~Lannie

Hi, Lannie!

Congrats on quitting smoking, and getting your husband to quit as well!

It may take a while, but his renewed sense of smell is actually a good thing! Living on a farm, there's lots of things that smell (most of them not particularly good!). Interesting that he's complaining about the fried eggs, but since he's also complaining about the Friskies, I bet he's just not happy with how his world has always smelled, but just beginning to notice.....

Vicks Vapor-rub under the nose might help. (It's what some coroners use to deaden the smell of corpses).

But time will also help; as time goes on, his sensory system will start to adjust. Other things that might help are incense, or scented candles. Just be aware that a) he might not be as dedicated to quitting smoking as you are, and therefore might be more touchy about discomfort, and b) he might REALLY be struggling with the new smells he's experiencing, and they might be much stronger for him than they are for you. Please don't imagine he's making it up just because you don't smell the same things!

Best advice I can think of? Clean the kitty litter, settle for boiled or poached eggs for a week, and LET HIM SMOKE ONE CIG EVERY MORNING BUT NO MORE if that helps. Your path to quitting and his might not be exactly the same, and what is easy for you might be really difficult for him!

And 3 weeks from now, when you find yourself struggling, you're going to want to make sure he's there to support and help you!

Hope this helps, congrats and good luck to both of you!!!

 

[Hans Wermhat]

Your noses will get used to their new super powers in a few days/weeks and it will get better. I love reubens, but couldn't eat them for a week after I switched because of the sauerkraut. Just hang in there.

 

[GccTxs67]

Yeah, what they all said.....Oh yeah, my dog smells horrible! Like a Dog!

Taste buds are weird too, I use to love Dr pepper, 4 - 5 Cans a day, now ALL Sodas taste like crap! So I quit drinking them..

 

[Jode]

Right now he is either discovering these new smells that will not necessarily go away but will get better or he is looking for an excuse to have that ..... I would definitely try Baditudes suggestions. GL

 

[mcol]

Yup, the smells will level out for him soon.

 

[twgbonehead]

I think the most important thing is to recognize that your experience using vaping to quit smoking might not be the same as his.

There are many folks here on ECF that have said, basically "I got this e-cig and never smoked another cigarette'.

And while I love to hear that, there's a part of me that's really jealous. E-cigs alone did not get me to quit smoking, it's much harder than that for me (and I still do smoke on occasion, and sometimes a lot, depending on the occasion).

It might seem like a miracle to you (and it does seem like a miracle to many folks) but it just might not be the same for your husband. The best advice I could give is to talk with him - Is it working for him? Is he craving a cig? Work it together, and realize that although it might have been easy for you, that doesn't mean it is/was easy for him. And he might need to work on it a little longer to catch up to where you are. (And if you are with him now, he's likely to be much more helpful if you find yourself struggling, in the future, and that's not an uncommon occurrance)
Seriously, my best wishes to you both!

(And if I find myself in the neighborhood, I've always wanted to taste fresh eggs! I hear they're amazing!)

 

[Sir2fyablyNutz]

Worst thing that happened to me when I got my sense of smell back was I had to wash everything in the house... every towel, sheet and curtains.

I second the bacon suggestion.

 

[GccTxs67]

Worst thing that happened to me when I got my sense of smell back was I had to wash everything in the house... every towel, sheet and curtains.

Yep....

And when I walk through the garage I can still smell the old Nicotine., YUCK

 

[jseah]

The funny thing is when I quit smoking and started vaping, I didn't really notice a huge change in being able to smell things....except for two things. When I am outdoors and someone is smoking, I can smell it from half a block away. And I can definitely detect the smell of dog poop when I have to pick it up outside now.

 

[Troy Noh]

that what I noticed as well when I got my sense of smell back, I could smell someone smoking from the far end of the parking lot at my local wallyworld, yuck