Olfactory Hallucinations

[NotCool]

Hello.

I have sleep issues. I'm pretty sure that I have sleep apnea, combined with other (anxiety related?) sleep issues (frequent nightmares, episodes of Sleep Paralysis, fragmented sleep, I move a lot in my sleep etc.).

Today when I was waking up, kind of drifting in and out of sleep (twilight state), dozing off and waking up, I experienced a burning smell. This has lead me to reemergence of one of my main hypochondria fears, the big Brain Tumor fear. Trying to tell myself it's hypopompic hallucinations of a sort (I also heard "sounds" in the past), but the reasoning part of my brain is on strike.

Guess I want to know, if anyone can relate, perhaps?

[RoseEve]

I smell things all the time that aren't there. I often smell poo but I think it's because I have a 2 year old so I am constantly on the look out for it. I also smell burning toast. Sometimes when I watch an animated cartoon I smell plastic. People smell things all the time that aren't there. No biggy. Why do you think you have sleep apnea?

[NotCool]

I smell things all the time that aren't there. I often smell poo but I think it's because I have a 2 year old so I am constantly on the look out for it. I also smell burning toast. Sometimes when I watch an animated cartoon I smell plastic. People smell things all the time that aren't there. No biggy. Why do you think you have sleep apnea?
I have woken up several times gasping for air, (from dreams where I was getting chocked/drowned), with dry mouth, I have memory problems, low energy, restless sleep..., overall I fit the profile. I also have a deviated septum, which results in regular chronic sinus blockage.

[RoseEve]

You should see a doctor about that but I have also woken up gasping for air I think it's my anxiety. It's only happened a few times.

[Rennie1989]

I've had this a lot. But then with years of smoking my sense of smell is vastly reduced and I don't get it so much now (I DON'T RECOMMEND THIS AT ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!) but I've had friends and hubby say they thought they smell things that aren't there. So this is a very common thing indeed!

[AnxietyDJ]

I have also definitely had strange sensory things happen in my sleep, but its all pretty normal and nothing to panic about when looking at the bigger picture :)

The worst is seeing myself in my dream and knowing that I am asleep and dreaming and then trying to force myself awake, but feeling like I can't... I get that all the time... So weird and I always wake up with a real start and very out of breath... 5 mins later I am sound asleep again, so it can't be anything too major :blush:

[NotCool]

Yes, these happenings in the twilight state can indeed be weird and make one question their mental/physical health.

[cattia]

I was interested to read this as this very issue is what triggered my major brain tumor anxiety around three years ago. I also experienced these whilst waking from a deep sleep but I definitely wasn't dreaming and they were incredibly vivid. I remember I used to get tye burnt toast smell a lot, and cabbage, to the point where I would actually have to go downstairs in the middle of the night and see whether some intruder was cooking! The ONLY thing that ever came up on google was brain tumours, but I actually now believe after some further research that mine was caused by a combination of anxiety affecting my sleep pattern and my chronic sinus issues (I have nasal polyps and post nasal drip). My Dr was not concerned about this either and would not refer me for tests. In the end mine went away, but every so often I get it again. It's weird but I figure if it was a brain tumour I would know about it by now!