What's that smell in the air - in the clouds and mist?

Various literature (not going to reference any here, I'm on the road all day typing on my craptastic so-called "smart" phone with its millimetric-cum-Lilliputian keypad, with spacey connectivity -- often roaming, possibly better described as "wandering", "meandering", "migrating" or "on walkabout" -- and I'm certain there are about half a million sources that can be found in a heartbeat online) describes an acutely metallic -- some call it, "coppery" -- taste that often begins near the back of the mouth / throat and is especially prevalent at or near the roof of the mouth when someone's adrenaline (epinephrine) is elevated. In cases of extreme anxiety, stress.and duress, this sensation can be accompanied by tingling in the extremties, especially the fingertips, and also the lips and tongue. One of the other, less well-understood (from a physiological perspective) effects of stress, fear and anxiety is that it frequently renders the "victim" hyper-acutely aware of all manner of sensations -- exceptionally observant of and responsive to the vagaries of sight, sound, and, especially, touch, taste, and smell. In many cases the elevated senses and sensitivities SEEM to be communicating "new" realities, when in fact the person is simply more aware of what has always, or normally, existed in their environment and they are simply having their attention drawn to it in a fashion and to an extent not normally possible for them. The ability of the person experiencing heightened adrenaline to FOCUS on specific sensations and sensory input is another element to this; the hyper-awareness persons subjected to VERY acute stressors is thought by some to explain the famous "slow-motion" experience often cited by those in exceptionally dangerous or fear-inducing situations, and MAY also explain, to some extent, the equally well-known "life flashing before the eyes" experienced by some, since the mechanisms of the brain may be temporarily altered by such circumstances, triggering memories in rapid fashion.

However -- being stressed-out and even hyper-awareness is NOT, by itself, necessarily exclusive of or a total reftation of observable sensory input. I will say this: From a personal perspective, having experienced several immediately life-threatening circumstances and also being a "veteran", if you will, of a few longer-term stressful periods in life, I can attest that ALL of these "symptoms" associated with adrenaline and extended periods of anxiety do, in fact, happen. Not always, and never the same way, certainly not to the same extent or conveying the same exact sensations, each and every time... But it DOES happen. The funny thing about such an experience is, especially with regard to the longer-term, it builds on itself; the more freaked-out you are, the more acutely aware of everything you are, the more likely it is that you'll notice something "new' that freaks you out even more, and on and on and on. Fear becomes its own exponentially aggregating feedback loop, and when you add in the impact of lack of restful, reborative and restorative sleep, proper diet and stable emotions, it just becomes overwhelming and pretty soon you're wigging out about anything and everything.

My advice: Keep a daily journal, charting WHAT you experience, with HOW you FEEL. If you are experiencing the same stimuli in "good" times as you are when you're feeling stressed and worried, you MAY be able to "eliminate" adrenaline as a causative trigger. Of course I realize that many of us are, because of Fukushima, pretty well stressed all the time, these days; and a few of us may be pretty damned flaky generally. But, it's a start, perhaps. I would always counsel: Try and seek out alternate rational explanations. If you remain convinced, do just what's happening, here: Try tp find others to corroborate what you're experiencing. THEN start sounding the alarm, if possible and if you can on your "due diligence" find NO other benignly reasonable explanation.

Rick Cromack.
Allen, Texas

Perhaps the taste and smell correlate with the high readings because you were experiencing alot of anxiety and worry after seeing the levels.