I was jolted awake by the smell of burning toast this morning I immediately think my son must’ve got up and made breakfast. So I sent my husband to look around and he goes didn’t you throw the toaster away. ( I did we need a new one). I said no no go look something is burning- so he looks and nothing! He tells me I have no clue what you’re smelling but I don’t smell it and I can’t find any evidence of food cooked.
Am I going crazy?
Sounds pregnant to me, but I could smell things states away.
Well I know 100% it’s not that 😂 I was doing some research apparently MS can cause “phantom smells” and it’s usually stuff that smells gross. 🤷🏼♀️
I think my sense of smell is slightly enhanced because of keto, but it was really sensitive to begin with. I’m sorry that MS isn’t giving you roses to sniff, that would be nice!
Don’t get too comfy though thinking it’s just your brain acting out and something really is on fire 😵
I know! It really freaked me out we searched the house— looked outside. And nothing, it went away after about 10 min. But I am super big on fire safety (things being turned off etc) so if it happens again yeah it’s gonna send me around the house like a crazy person every time. It is just strange that it was a distinct burnt toast smell 🔥 🍞
ha ha no you are not crazy. With two of us having ms, the phantom smells are enough to .....
Trust me you're not crazy...that's my job! My husband and I were in the store the other day looking for trunks to use for packing. I kept saying that I smelled something burning in the store. My husband was finally able to pin point what I was smelling. It was the plastic from those trunks!
But it's always better to be safe than sorry...and this is coming from someone who has survived a house and a car fire. Always check and make sure you have working fire extinguishers on hand. They should be checked annually and replaced after 10 years. Since I'm a bit paranoid about it I change mine every 5 years.😊
I was talking to my mom about it who has Lupus she said it’s like smell hallucinations common with CNS/Neuro issues. She then pointed out I kept smelling “wet dog” at her house last week and no one else could smell it. 🤷🏼♀️ and non of her dogs were wet. I completely forgot about that. I’m just going to take note of it and talk to the neurologist about it next time I go back.
Many say that when one of the 5 senses goes on the fritz the others are heightened. MS puts so much on the fritz that smell is all we've got left. 🤤too bad those smells are always bad😵i guess we should be glad it's not perfum ala skunk. 😉
I can agree with you ktaylor8899, you should go with your instincts. Better be safe than sorry. Discuss with your neurologist. Best of luck to find an answer 🤞
They're coming to take you away, ha, ha. They're coming to take your away!
Nope. Just another unexplained phenomena that surrounds those with M.S.
I'd wake with crispy charred feet after a night's burning feet!
And the skunks that come in the backyard filling the house with their odor, is real. Got game camera pics!
Ktaylor8899 you are not going crazy. I cant speak for everyone here, but I suspect many have had similar experiences. I have and have a friend without MS who has.
It unfortunately happens. For me, it's an odor of cigarette smoke. I've been out walking at 5:30 AM in our sleepy (literally !) community with no smokers and suddenly smelled cigarette smoke. I could chalk it up to a secret smoker who lives close, but I've smelled it in our house, too, when I'm alone and in which no one smokes. Weird. I'm grateful that it happens only rarely. I hope your neuro gives you some guidance.
Gross!! 😵
Oh yuck! I’ll take my burnt toast lol
Hey ktaylor8899,
Yes, I have also smelled smoke when no one else does. It could be something that is worth talking to your neuro about. Let him/her know at your next visit, and if you have that happen again, do not wait until your next visit. Just saying.
Keep smiling,
Carole 
It's been about 3 years since I experienced this but I went through a period of a couple of months where I would wake up smelling something I can only describe as burnt Spam. I don't think I've even had any Spam since I was a very small child and it was only served a time or 2 so it's not like it's a familiar smell like toast. I got up the first couple of times to check the kitchen to make sure I didn't leave something on the stove. My husband didn't smell anything either. It's interesting in your story and mine that we experienced it when we had been sleeping or attempting to sleep at night.
Yes it was very strange- woke me up from a dead sleep.
I've heard that smelling burnt toast is a sign of a stroke.
That was another thing I read 😮 it hasn’t happened again yet 🤷🏼♀️
I've smelled burning toast before. Whenever I do my husband will do the stroke test sign thing on me.
Burning across chest and down arms
Burning skin
