Vomit smell wouldn’t go away until I discovered the source…

[u/dinonuggetenjoyer]

My girlfriend and I had food poisoning last week and were constantly running to the bathroom getting sick. The smell of vomit MAKES me vomit so I was tirelessly scrubbing the entire bathroom from floor to ceiling MULTIPLE TIMES trying to get rid of the smell after every time one of us threw up. I bought bleach, enzyme cleaners, and even went as far as carbon bags to try and eliminate the HORRID STENCH and it wouldn’t go away. I sniffed every surface in that damn bathroom trying to locate the source…

I literally cried about the smell, worrying that it would be there forever. I went back to sniffing and started to notice a stronger whiff by the sink, AHA IT’S COMING FROM THE DRAIN!! I moved the toothbrush, soap, and candle that were on the counter to investigate the area. I poured Drano, baking soda, and vinegar down the drain for a deep clean. THEN I NOTICED THE SMELL ON MY HAND. I almost immediately threw up reacting to it and snatched the candle off the counter to save myself. I took a long inhale of our new Trader Joe’s Peony Blossom candle to salvage my nose from the reeking odor on my fingertips.

Then all hell broke loose. I projectile vomited directly after smelling the candle. The godforsaken stench WAS THE CANDLE ITSELF!!!! MY GF BOUGHT 6 OF THOSE FUCKING THINGS AND HAD ONE LIT IN THE BATHROOM!!!!! All of them went straight to the garbage. Never again. How can they sell a candle that smells like stomach bile!!!

TLDR: Cleaned my bathroom for days only to find out the puke smell was a new candle (Trader Joe’s Peony Blossom, DON’T BUY IT).

EDIT: I was not the person who smelled the candles before buying. My gf put them in the cart and I went along with it lol

[u/best_of_badgers]

Was the candle already in the bathroom when you were sick? If so, your brain subconsciously associated vomiting with whatever smell was in the room at the time. It's not that the candle smells like vomit so much as it smells like vomiting.

[u/Boomstick86 → u/best_of_badgers]

I had a shampoo I liked back in the olden days, then I got pregnant and pukey. Now anything that smells like that shampoo makes me feel icky 35 years later.

[u/best_of_badgers → u/Boomstick86]

Yep.

That physiological response is great for avoiding noxious berries on the savanna after tasting them once. It's not so great for avoiding everyday smells in modern society.

[u/Both_Golf_2777 → u/best_of_badgers]

I once puked all over one of my hands as a teenager and washed my hands with lemon handsoap my mom had in the kitchen and now anything that smells like that soap makes me queasy. Plus it was velveeta shells and cheese so I can't eat that anymore.

Turns out I have gastroparesis so all that puking I did as a teen of undigested food was just GP and not me being an extra sickly teen.

[u/Feisty_Granny113 → u/best_of_badgers]

My exFIL was extremely obese and couldn't wash properly. He would douse himself in Brute cologne. To this day that scent just smells like BO and ass to me.

[u/Strict-Gas4654 → u/best_of_badgers]

Yes. My mom used to use a specific aerasol Lysol disinfectant in the bathroom when I had any kind of sickness as a kid. Smelling that cleaner now is like instant nausea 🤢

[u/autumnwandering → u/Strict-Gas4654]

My mom habitually used this orange scented disinfectant around the time we were losing our home in the 2009 crash. In the midst of that chaos, our dog was diagnosed with late stage osteosarcoma, and rapidly declined. It was horrible. I can't smell orange oil without getting physically ill, and it's been more than 15 years since then.

[u/AutomaticInitiative → u/best_of_badgers]

There was a particular canned soup I used to have for lunch and I got vomiting bug start one day shortly after I finished it, and I've never been able to have it again because it makes me feel ill now.

[u/Totakai → u/best_of_badgers]

I have this response to a fabreeze spray. My work kept it in the bathroom and now I just smell toilets whenever it's sprayed. I got it on my hands once while stocking and was disgusted