A Loss of Taste

Recently, I lost my sense of taste.

Evidently, through the course of a sinus surgery, and tonsillectomy--yes, at my age, I had to have my tonsils out--I lost my ability to taste most foods. Thankfully, I can still smell.


Now, if a loss of taste were on the menu for weight-loss methods, I don't know that I would have chosen it.

But, I will use it.

I seem to be dropping a pound or two a week. Not bad. Until you consider what I was forced to give up; not just the loss of eating food in the course of a diet, but also the decided disadvantage of not being able to savor the juicy tang of a nectarine, the melting deliciousness of an icecream sundae, or the oh-so-divine Cadbury Mini Eggs that are back on store shelves for the upcoming Easter holiday.

All of it. Gone.

I'm handling it. I can do this. It very likely will come back. My taste buds might repair and come back. Eventually.

It's been 3 months already.

  

All that said,  I must add that a loss of taste, in no way has affected my taste for life. I have to tell you, the 40's are AWESOME!

Every day I find more of who I am, what I love and an increased ability to accomplish what I desire.


It's debatable if my sense of taste--my style sense--was in any way impaired or altered, either by my lack of taste-ability, or my zest for life-ability.  As evidenced by my posting of this photo--I kind of look like a dork--I just don't have much besides skiing pictures at the moment.


To wrap up, for the more curious folks:

A loss of taste is interesting. I can feel heat, as in jalapeno heat. I can feel mint. But I can't tell if I have bad breath. I hate that part. I'm an annoying gum chewer.

I find that cold, sweet items are gag-inducing gross. Chocolate is a tasteless waxy coating in my mouth.

I can almost, just almost, taste a savory, juicy, warm pot roast. Salt and vinegar chips, on the tip of my tongue have become a favorite, as I can feel the vinegar and salt. Although, as soon as it gets to the back of my tongue, it might as well be chewed up cardboard.

Along with taste, I have lost the brain connection between hunger and food. I almost always feel hungry, but I don't crave food. I have the hardest time associating eating as the way to end the hunger. I no longer get that burst of flavor reward that has you reaching into a bag of cookies or chips for 'just one more'. I eat because I have to. Nothing satisfies and despite some cravings for something, anything, to light up that reward center again, I never find it.

I do have one flavor that I can taste... bitter. There is an almost constant bitter taste on either side of my tongue that I am forever trying to drown with water, soda, tea --anything to wash it away.

For now, I savor those moments of smell; from warm cookies to a fresh-cut apple, from a piping hot wasabi burger to having a Wal-mart mountain of pastel packaged marshmallows stop me dead in my tracks.

I just wish I'd know that my last taste of chocolate was going to be my last taste of chocolate.

p.s.
WARNING: Be wary of any and all Pinterest repins that are on my Food and Cooking board. I pin for looks and possibilities, no longer do I pin food items for taste.

Double p.s.
I do have hope. I am saving a Milky Way bar--this exact bar, the one I was resisting until Christmas--for that day when I get my taste back. I know it will be stale. It's what it represents at this point.