Trouble with my sister.

My sister, who is 43 with diagnosed social and generalised anxiety, is not medicated and is having some issues.

She caught covid in November and since then has had trouble with her smell. This has therefore made her anxiety flare up terribly.

She has spoken to and seen many doctors about this who say it’s related to covid and the bit of inflammation she has in her sinuses. They prescribe sprays to help, which as soon as she uses she believes that they have taken her smell away even more. She has also taken supplements to assist in sinus problems, but then also believes it is them that have broken her smell too.

She has had a CT scan and seen an ENT who has said she has no issues and it is just the covid and small amount of inflammation.

However, even after all this she thinks she is doomed and will never have her smell back.

She has been withdrawn from us for a while but it is progressively getting worse and she barely is eating due to the fact she can’t smell anything so “what’s the point”.

She is rapidly losing weight and all attempts at getting her to start on anxiety medication or anti depressants won’t work as she reads the side effects of anything and finds it to say “smell loss”.

She has set up smells in rooms of the house and will go and smell through a cracked up door and when she can’t smell it she spirals downwards.

We have been trying to reassure her but she does not listen or cares.

She has always had high levels of medical anxiety even when she was a child. This is now taking it to a new level and I am concerned for her.

She has never been suicidal or threatens anything like that. At the moment she is saying she can’t go on if she can’t smell anything. I don’t think she Is immediate danger but I do think she needs help.

I don’t know what to do. This has been going on for almost two months

I too had covid at the same time and am still having issues with my taste and smell, but that doesn’t matter to her as she thinks hers is worse and will never return.