COVID-19 Took My Sense of Smell Nearly a Year Ago
Without it, the world is a very different place.
February 13, 2021
Mirrorpix / Getty / The Atlantic
Last March, I contracted COVID-19. Like many people, I lost my sense of smell. I assumed at the time that it would return reasonably quickly. But nearly a year later, it has not.
I do not feel debilitated the way I would if I had lost my sight or my hearing. But the absence nags at me nonetheless and has, if anything, become more difficult to accept over time. Memory, emotion, and intuition all have a direct line to the sense of smell. Without it, the world is a very different place.