Odors During Partial Complex Seizures

After quoting Daly, Couperus goes on to say that the “seizure experience is usually initiated by a so-called signal symptom,” such as “the hallucination of smelling something.” He then states that “apparently” “the smell of roses,” “violets,” or “simply ‘flowers’” was “a frequent part of Ellen’s visions” ^{13Couperus, p. 23.} and implies that this is evidence she suffered from partial complex seizure disorder.ViOSe 20.5

It is true that in his description of this kind of seizure disorder Daly does include hallucinations of “recognizable odors,” but he states that such occurrences are “rare.” ^{14Daly, p. 61 (emphasis supplied).} By claiming that such occurrences were “a frequent part of Ellen’s visions” and evidence of seizure disorder, Couperus contradicts the very authority he cites in support of his contention. In addition, it should be noted, the sensation of a pleasant odor is very rare.ViOSe 21.1