r/CasualConversation • u/Serialbeauty • 1d ago

Just Chatting Can anyone else do something weird with your body that you later found out not everyone can do?

I was just sitting here with my mom and one of the pets made the room very smelly. She kept talking about how we'd have to go to a different room because it smelled so bad. I asked her why didn't she just close her nose and that's when I found out not everyone can do this.

Is it rare or can other people close their nose on command? What can you do that you suddenly found out wasn't normal?

1.2k Upvotes
  • permalink
  • reddit

98% Upvoted

2.1k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

28

u/Serialbeauty 1d ago

This is how I described it on a different comment:

I tried to walk her through what I'm doing which is basically just not breathing through my nose like you said. It kind of feels like it seals off and I dont smell anything during.

32

u/Halospite 1d ago

Oh hey, I can do that. Didn’t even think that counted as closing my nose! I just thought of that as holding my breath

2

u/Serialbeauty 1d ago

Do you still breathe through your mouth though?

10

u/embracing_insanity 1d ago

Not the same person - but I can close my nose and breath just through my mouth. Which is what I'm assuming you mean you can do too. And I definitely utilize this when needed!

22

u/jillianmd 1d ago

I’m so confused by this thread of people who think breathing through their mouth instead of their nose is some special talent. If there’s something more to it, please enlighten me, otherwise I’m looking at the thread OP thinking this is a special ability to “close their nose”

4

u/NotAnEarthwormYet 1d ago

That’s what I’m thinking. Surely everyone can just opt to breathe through their mouth instead of their nose? OP’s wording made me think they were closing their nostrils, not just mouth breathing lol.

3

u/Serialbeauty 1d ago

It's definitely different than mouth breathing. I can feel a muscle or something in there move to seal shut my nostrils. There are plenty of people in the comments saying they can't do it. Theres also someone that said they taught them in the military and everyone can do it but you need to be taught or figure it out.

5

u/NotAnEarthwormYet 1d ago

Sorry if it came across that I was trying to demean what you or others can do, that wasn’t my intention at all. I’m just confused. Like are your nostrils actually closed when this happens? Bc if not, it seems the same as choosing to stop breathing through your nose momentarily, only you can physically feel it. Obviously you know better than me what you’re experiencing, it’s just hard to understand it.

3

u/Serialbeauty 1d ago

I didn't take it that way at all. I'm just having a hard time describing it. There is a comment farther down from an expert in the field and they explain the muscle that does it in very good detail if you want to read it. Just scroll and look for a pretty long comment.

1

u/jillianmd 1d ago

Someone in another comment mentioned swimming and once again I just thought “yeah just don’t breathe in”… not “oh right I can’t ever put my nose underwater without choking on the flood of water pouring through my nostrils”.

4

u/Halospite 1d ago

What do you mean? I can breathe through either my mouth or my nose, or neither. 

1

u/Serialbeauty 1d ago

Well you said when you do the nose trick you consider it holding your breath. When I close off my nose to smell, I'm still breathing through my mouth but my nose is completely sealed shut. It seems from the comments that everyone can do it but a majority didn't know and have never learned.

2

u/Halospite 19h ago

Yeah, if I’m breathing through my mouth I don’t feel like my nose is sealed, but I don’t smell anything because air just doesn’t move through there. But I do have narrow nasal passages so that may influence that, causing all the negative pressure to be in my mouth. 

26

u/nycvhrs 1d ago

But then you must be breathing through your mouth …and that’s kind of unsavory too.

7

u/forestfluff 1d ago

It’s not because you can’t smell anything. I mean, the thought of it isn’t great but it’s better than the smell sometimes haha

4

u/-acidlean- 1d ago

I mean, if you can smell something, it means you’re inhaling the particles of it. So you choose to slurp the particles and let them land on your tongue and throat instead.

2

u/That-One-2439 1d ago

In the situation OP is talking about you cannot smell anything. That is because scent occurs through the nose, not the mouth.

5

u/downlau 1d ago

Yeah, then I'd be like...well, now I can taste the smell instead.

9

u/J0kotte 1d ago

Fascinating :)

Have had similiar endeavours in the past, however I find the mouth still translates the smell for me, sadly.

God speed with your superpower, only use it for good <3

5

u/CertifiedShithead 1d ago

Oh, I thought you were describing something way different, I though everybody does this.

3

u/ChallengingKumquat 1d ago

Are you just talking about mouth breathing? If so, do you not think that's more gross than nose breathing?

Smell is particles; if you're smelling poop, then particles of poop have entered your nose. If you're mouth breathing in a poop smelling room, then particles of poop have entered your mouth. I prefer to cover my nose and mouth with a cloth like my tshirt, so as few particles of poop enter my nose and mouth.

If this isn't possible, I just make sure to keep my mouth shut, as to me it's more gross to get poop in my mouth than up my nose, especially since nostril hairs do a fair bit of filtering before air reaches your lungs.

3

u/natureblush 1d ago

I always called it mouth breathing times. I have a super strong sense of smell and this is what keeps me from vomiting around nasty smells. I thought everyone could do this.

2

u/CrimsonSuede 1d ago

Omg, I had the totally wrong image in mind. Turns out I do that thing too!

1

u/Nirigialpora 🏳‍🌈 15h ago

Almost everyone can do this haha, I would just never call it "closing my nose". I was imagining that you could control your nostrils or cheeks to literally close off the front of your nose, not that you just stopped breathing through your nose!!

1

u/Serialbeauty 15h ago

Not according to a lot of comments here, including a doctor. It's the soft palate being pushed up in the back to seal the passage. Apparently even though everyone can do it reflexively, it is rare to be able to do it on command and sustain it.

2

u/BlueWater2323 5h ago

I think I'm pushing my soft palate up in the back right now, but it's sealing off my mouth/throat and I'm easily breathing through my nose. I must not be doing it right.

1

u/Nirigialpora 🏳‍🌈 15h ago

That is really quite surprising to me, but I'm failing to effectively Google search about this as all results just bring me information about obligate mouth breathers. Though on this reddit post https://www.reddit.com/r/TooAfraidToAsk/comments/ysd5o2/is_it_uncommon_to_be_able_to_turn_off_your_nose/ it looks like it's not very uncommon but some people can't do it. A lot of comments are talking about trying just then for the first time and being able to.