Just wondering if anyone else has had this since their stroke. Hubby had his stroke last year and once he is washed and dressed he practically bathes in his aftershave. Before he would just do 2 or 3 splashes but now when he puts it on it is so strong. Any ideas on how I get him to put on the minimal amount, Luckily the scent is nice but it is overpowering. He has short term memory so I can tell him not to put on so much but the next day he has forgotten.
Hello & welcome @Sonia158
it takes quite a lot to raise a new topic on the forum that we canât say has been dealt with before and youâve managed it
I hope you donât take this comment the wrong way because itâs only meant in camaraderie but if hubby using too much after shave is a highlight of your post stroke problems then youâve done well.
I think the starting point which I guess youâve tried is to tell him that the stroke has reduced his perception of smell? If he doesnât remember from one day to the next you can tell him each day and he wonât get tired of hearing it and if he does then youâll know that the message has stuck
Caio
Simon
@Sonia158 hi & welcome to the community. Sense of smell can definitely becaffected by stroke. Has he lost his sense of smell completely or is it just reduced? Mine wwnt the other way. I could smell everything really strongly.
I donât know if it would work the same but to get sensation back in my hand I tried touching lots of different objects. I wonder if getting him to smell lots of different things might help get his smell back to normal levels?
Worth a try?
Best wishes
Ann
Hi and welcome to this forum. We are a merry band of stroke survivors and their carers and families. There is always someone here to offer some words of wisdom and information, so feel free to jump on and ask away .
My stroke definitely affected my sense of smell and I can never smell my perfume or scented candles. Just one more thing to deal with following a stroke. Maybe as someone else suggested just keep reminding him (easier said than done I know). Good luck with that, at least itâs a nice smell .
Regards Sue
Thanks Sue. Ha ha yes as you say at least it is a nice smell.
Hi @Sonia158 and welcome to the forum
A simple temporary measure is to just put a reminder note on or near his bottle of aftershave saying âOnly 3 splashes requiredâ, this is really only until his senses and memory improve with recovery.
Thats a really good idea putting a reminder note next to the bottle.
And my hubbyâs just asked âwhat if he still forgets heâs done it and puts more onâ. So I suggested you could have a tick box on the note for every day of the week. So once heâs put it on just check it off the note.
I had so many reminders dotted around the place for the same reason after my stroke. Hubby and kids would leave me little âdonât forgetâŚâ notes too for appointments and such, even what time weâd need to leave for them
Itâs just because our short term memory is so taken up with brain repair and recovery in the first 6 months, in order to get as much functionality back onboard. It should get easier over time
Good point, I am hoping that he will not put more on as aftershave is upstairs, he comes downstairs and doesnt go back up until bedtime. I am going to have to start putting reminders everywhere as when I leave the room I tell him that I am off to the kitchen etc. and 2-3 minutes he will call out asking where am I?
Yes, it requires a lot of patience and understanding; itâll be just as frustrating for him too. The notes are also a good training aid to help retrain his brain with short term and recall, cognition, etc. So keep it up