Olfactory Progress

In the review of past blog posts, I have found several which describe the creation of a blog post as an all day event. I am now able to enter a blog post in a matter of hours. This led me to reflect on what else may have changed.

The incidence of headaches has decreased. These once were daily events. They were experienced predominantly on the left side of the head in the region immediately above the left ear. Their onset was associated with new tasks, unfamiliar terrain, or cognitive intensity. I cannot remember the last instance of such a headache.

The incidence of fatigue sleep has decreased. Fatigue sleep was associated with cognitive intensity. It was also triggered by new modes of interaction and new settings. The onset was immediate and dramatic such that I had the feeling that I would fall asleep on the spot even when situated in a public space. If I did not take a nap then a headache would quickly ensure. I cannot immediately remember the last incidence of such a fatigue event.

I presently feel fatigue but this is experienced in relation to the physical exertion associated with my exercise routine. This is a very different form of fatigue. Exercise fatigue seems to encompass the whole body and is felt in the muscle. It is almost an “afterglow,” a form of muscle memory. Cognitive fatigue was different. It was an immediate and compelling desire for sleep and arrived independent of physical exertion. It is hard to provide a conclusive differentiation of the two modes of fatigue but the experience of each was very different.

Olfactory Progress

It sounds like a joke but I believe it to be true.

My sense of smell is stronger. I first had a sense of this about month or so ago, when I began to notice aromas that had escaped me before. This change became noticeable on a regular basis fairly recently. Because the increased sense of smell was coincident with the start of my walking routine, I initially attributed this change to the exercise. In truth, I believe it actually commenced well prior to this but it has became more regular and noticeable recently.

I have remembered evidence for a past impairment in my sense of smell. To save money, I buy day old bread. This proves economical if the bread is truly only a day old. If it has been sitting on the shelf for close to a week then it is likely to go mouldy within days of being brought home.

On several occasions, I have bit into a slice of bread and immediately had to spit the bread out due to the harsh taste of mould in my mouth. I should have noticed the presence of the mould due to its very noticeable smell but I did not. I suspect that this smell defect has been present for some considerable time but was not observed by me. This is something that I need to discuss with my Doctors.