Oh, I see. I think there is a definite difference though. Relying on other people's reaction to you is really not 100% fool-proof. People will cough, clear throat, sneeze, blow their noses due to a multitude of reasons, not just because you smell bad.
If you can smell yourself, at least you have a reliable way to measure your own progress when you're trying out various remedies. Granted you still have to find the correct remedy, which I agree can be extremely challenging given the fact that we don't really get much help from medical professionals.