Ongoing health complications following my time living over a suicide victim who decomposed for two months

Mental Clarity & Brain Health
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Back in April, I resided in an apartment where I began noticing a sickly, sweet odor. Having no prior experience with human remains, I assumed it was a dead animal. I reported the smell to management multiple times. Whenever I returned home and blasted the AC due to the local heat, the stench became unbearable. Once the unit cooled down and the air settled, the smell would subside slightly.

Soon after, an infestation began. First, swarms of flies appeared; I’d find dozens dead near my balcony door. I suspect the freezing temperatures I maintained to mask the odor were killing them, as I rarely saw them flying. Then came gnats, followed by small crawling insects and eventually a strange type of beetle, mostly concentrated in my guest bedroom.

By June, management still hadn’t addressed the odor or the pests. Late that month, I suffered through sleepless nights feeling like insects were swarming over my skin. It was agonizing.

One evening while taking out the trash, I met a couple on the floor below. They were considering renting and had just walked in because security was lax. They mentioned they were curious about the building because a Yelp review claimed someone had passed away there recently.

I looked it up immediately. A reviewer had complained about the complex and mentioned a death in the unit directly underneath mine. The following week, I went to housesit elsewhere, and the “crawling” sensation vanished, leading me to believe I actually had bugs. Due to family circumstances, I never returned to live there and moved my belongings out that same month.

I later discovered a man had committed suicide by hanging in the unit below me and wasn’t found for two full months. It’s heartbreaking that nobody checked on him for so long. The situation has left me mentally shaken.

Since those initial sensations of skin-crawling—which I now realize weren’t actually bugs—my health has deteriorated significantly with numerous symptoms. Most are neurological, and I’m currently undergoing testing for MS and autoimmune disorders. I haven’t mentioned the decomposition situation to my physicians because it feels so awkward to bring up.

TLDR: Can residing directly above a body decomposing for two months, sharing the same ventilation system, lead to chronic health complications?

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I’m not certain, but if your physical exams come back clear, the intense stress and psychological trauma of that experience could certainly be manifesting as physical symptoms.

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This is a new one for me. It’s quite possible that the timing is just a very unfortunate coincidence. Regardless, it sounds like a deeply traumatic ordeal for you to go through.

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It is highly improbable that the situation caused a direct physical ailment, though getting blood work from your primary doctor and a neurological evaluation is a good idea. Your neurological symptoms might stem from an autoimmune condition or could be psychosomatic in nature. It’s actually quite frequent for psychiatric distress to present as neurological issues in a clinical setting. A neurologist can typically identify this during an exam, but they will likely request an MRI, spinal tap, or EMG to rule out progressive diseases. Either way, this is clearly a heavy burden, and speaking with a therapist to work through the trauma would be a wise move.

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I appreciate the feedback. Sorry for the delayed reply; my nerve pain and other symptoms have been particularly severe lately. I suspect it might just be a coincidence, with the extreme stress likely intensifying whatever was already happening with my health. I have an MRI with contrast scheduled for next week, followed by a nerve biopsy and a lumbar puncture. I’m also consulting a rheumatologist. I’m hoping for some clarity soon. My mother has lupus, and while my ANA test was negative seven months ago, the specialist wanted to retest me after six months. We’ll see what happens.

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