# Leaky gas as olfactory hallucination (esp. for headache sufferers)



## Payitforward (Nov 1, 2013)

Hello, all. I arrived at these forums after my own six-week bout with what I thought was leaky gas. Without any sensation of gas build-up, and without any sound, gas seemed to be seeping out of me. The smell was noticeable and embarrassing. At first, the incidents were isolated, but during this critical past week, gas seemed to be coming out of me almost continuously (every two or three minutes). As a result, I canceled a personal trip, stayed in the house, told a business client I might have to cancel a meeting the following week, etc. I was distraught, to say the least.

I went to see a gastroenterologist yesterday, who told me what others here have been told...that he'd never heard of anything like this; that in light of my physical condition (good), this should not be happening; that there really was no physical mechanism for such a thing to happen, etc. He then seized on something in my medical file: that I have daily persistent headache, for which I take Topomax. Long story short, he believes that the smell I am perceiving is an olfactory hallucination, a not uncommon condition for headache sufferers, and a possible side effect of the medication.

Evidence in support of this thesis? The doctor and phlebotomist couldn't smell gas that I thought I could smell. Clothes that I'm wearing when I think I'm producing gas don't smell like gas. I didn't eat for 2.5 days--not a morsel--and still smelled gas. I laid on my back, crossed my legs tightly, put a pillow over my crotch, wrapped myself in a quilt, and put a pillow on top of that, so that no gas could escape--and I still smelled gas (but when I lifted up the pillows and quilts, there was no gas smell underneath). I asked a friend, whom I trust, to tell me what she smelled during an episode when I thought I smelled gas. She said, "Nothing...you smell like you. You smell good."

Now, clearly, many of you say you know that others can smell what you can smell...if you're certain of that, then the foregoing information won't be helpful to you. I'm sorry for that, and I hope you find a solution. (I will say prayers for you.) If you're not certain that others can smell what you're smelling, though, before you drive yourself to despair, please consider the possibility that the smell you're smelling might not *really* be there at all.


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## embarrassed (Mar 15, 2013)

Not possible for me. I get daily confirmation from my co-workers that I smell.


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## bent&broken (Aug 26, 2013)

I think in many cases (such as mine) that gas escaping from the anus isn't causing the smell. With me, it seems to be coming from my stomach or somewhere higher up in the digestive system and seeping out through my skin. I know this because of reactions I've had from others. When I've smelled the smell, they have also smelled it.

Also, my colo-rectal surgeon told me that bowel hypermotility could be causing gas to escape even when the anal muscles are perfectly in tact. So he certainly doesn't think that there's no physical mechanism for such a thing to happen.


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## westr (Jan 27, 2012)

bent&broken said:


> Also, my colo-rectal surgeon told me that bowel hypermotility could be causing gas to escape even when the anal muscles are perfectly in tact. So he certainly doesn't think that there's no physical mechanism for such a thing to happen.


i think thats what i might have, as much as i think i have a damaged rectum i never get the sensation of gas escaping.

did your doc say when it happens it gets absorbed by the intestine and released in breath/saliva/skin? and when it happens can it be as instant as if it were being released by the anus?


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## bent&broken (Aug 26, 2013)

He didn't say anything like that westr. He just said that because the intestines are moving too fast, gas can escape even though the anal muscles are intact. Something to do with pressure differences? I'm not exactly sure. He explained to me and then basically kicked me out before I could ask many more questions. I swear my smell isn't coming from my anus though, at least not most of the time. I've experienced very few sensations of leakage lately, but I still smell awful every now and then (especially 1.5 - 2.5 hours after eating), so I'm convinced the smell is coming from my stomach or small intestine, like leaky gut causing all the crap to enter my bloodstream or something like that. Or maybe it's to do with bile? I really don't know, but this is beyond just gas escaping the anus, at least in my case.


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## bent&broken (Aug 26, 2013)

I'm starting to think that maybe fat causes more problems for me than sugar. I realise that sugar can feed the bad flora, but my smell often seems to get worse after I consume a high fat meal, especially when I have protein and carbs in that meal as well. When I eat just fruit by itself, or a meal consisting mainly of protein and carbs, I don't seem to stink. I think I'm going to try a low-fat and low-sugar diet when the holidays start, but I've decided to keep eating brown rice for complex carbs and get lots of protein and vegetables.

I seriously wish this was all in my head. If it was though, I must be having psychotic symptoms that are completely limited to olfactory hallucinations, without affecting any other part of my mental functioning other than causing depression when I know I smell bad. I'm going to start seeing a psychologist because I need to learn techniques for dealing with the anxiety that results from me smelling myself when I'm around others. I need to get some reassurance that it's not the end of the world if I stink a bit. I'm worried I'll just be told that it's all in my head though. I guess I'll just have to tell them to shove it until I can find someone who's actually willing to help.


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## horizonzero (Nov 17, 2013)

It's not in your head, the paranoia and constant checking occur due to the physical symptoms actually happening


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## tummyrumbles (Aug 14, 2005)

Most of us feel the gas build-up but some don't. I think we all have different perceptions of pain from the build up of gas against the colon wall. For some reason constipation seems to lead to an irritability or hyper-motility in the colon for IBS sufferers especially Leaky Gassers. And food too high in fibre and some complex sugars cause irritation as well. Leaky Gas is the involuntary leaking of gas from the colon whether you feel it or not. Gas is always from the action of bacteria on undigested food. People who don't get much gas have digested all of their food. I think this is the main difference between leaky-gassers and non leaky-gassers. A lot of normal people complain of constipation but they don't get leaky gas; no-one around them smells anything. My guess is they don't have an irritable bowel like we do. If they do have gas in their colon there's no hyper-motility pushing the gasses out. And if they don't have food intolerances to begin with then all their food will be thoroughly digested.

The best test for gas is a rectal tube and flatus collection device. This should be a simple enough laboratory test, although I don't know if it's done routinely or how much it costs. Leaky gas leaks, so it's not as powerful as a fluff which is forced out. Starving yourself for 2 days doesn't solve anything. The gas is from undigested food already in the colon and which needs to be evacuated.


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