Smelling Everything Disorder

What causes the urge to smell everything? What is it called when someone smells everything? Is there a disorder for smelling everything? We can consider this behavior, which we think is excessive, as a type of obsessive-compulsive disorder.

What is Obsessive Compulsive Disorder?

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a real psychological disorder that leaves the person and those around them completely powerless. It is unwanted thoughts that the person does not want, but that are constantly revived in his mind and have a repetitive quality. It’s not something faked-up. The person becomes very disturbed by these thoughts and can ritualize various behaviors (compulsions) to relieve himself.

Why Do I Smell Everything?

There are many different types of OCD. If a person is often smelling something that he/she encounters or takes in his hands, then there is a possibility that the person has a cleaning obsession. But, is the sniffing thing really an obsession for this person or is it something we exaggerate? It is extremely difficult to distinguish this as someone who observes from the outside.

The person who will know best if he/she has an obsession is himself. If there really is an obsession with smelling, the person is already aware of this, but cannot prevent himself; because with his sniffing behavior he/she suppresses the thoughts that tire his brain. If he/she is not aware that he/she is smelling everything, this situation should no longer be interpreted as a behavior, but as an expression of a mental ritual; so smelling everything can be a compulsive mental ritual.

What is a Mental Ritual?

Mental rituals are much more dangerous than obsessive thoughts. Because in obsessive thoughts, although the person is aware of these thoughts and the compulsive behaviors they cause, he/she cannot prevent himself; but, mental rituals are hard to notice. These rituals are now the thoughts that the person creates to solve the problem instead of compulsive behaviors to relax and are actually the problem itself. In fact, we can describe these rituals as an obsessive form of compulsive behavior that will relieve the obsessions. Compulsions, on the other hand, are behaviors that they are naturally aware of because they take action to get rid of the discomfort caused by obsessive thoughts. In short, people are generally aware of obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviors caused by these thoughts; but they are unaware of mental rituals, that is, compulsions in the state of thought in the brain.

Smelling Everything Disorder

If the person is aware of a behavior that he or she constantly does, such as smelling, then we can describe it as an obsession; but if he/she does this without being aware of it, this situation may be caused by mental rituals, unlike obsessions. Because these rituals now provide subconscious relief and it is perfectly normal for the person not to be aware of this situation.

You can also look: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

You may also be interested in this article: Cleaning Obsession

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