Thank you for trying Qualia Mind. Our Customer Support team has issued a full refund on your purchase. Typically, the biggest issue that will prevent you feeling the full effects of Qualia is sleep. Qualia works along the same pathways in the brain that move your memories from short to long term storage when you sleep. If you are not getting enough sleep or the right kinds of sleep than those pathways are unavailable and you will not feel Qualia working. Our recommendation is to pause taking Qualia and work on getting a lot of rest to get your body back on track. Get a lot of well uninterrupted sleep for 3-5 days and then resume taking Qualia to see if you notice a difference and can feel the effects of Qualia working properly. Additional things that can make it less effective: Not enough healthy fats in your diet, Caffeine desensitization, Too small a dose, Not drinking enough water, Cannabis or alcohol use, Desensitization from other past stimulants or psychotropic drugs or meds. The pills and their contents definitely have a smell to them. This is normal and is due to the ingredient AlgaDHA, as you mentioned, as it is derived from algae and can have that smell/taste to it if you are sensitive to it.