It’s fine. Really.
Humans have approximately 2-5 million sweat glands on their body. All humans are different, some humans sweat more than others, and some humans sweat less. It’s natural. It’s fine. What isn’t fine though is when that excessive sweating becomes an embarrassing problem.
You’d actually be surprised at how many people experience excessive sweating, or ‘hyperhydrosis’. I remember that first patch of sweat under my arms when I was about 12. From then, it’s been a battle with fabrics, deodorants, doctors, layers, and yes, embarrassment. I have a good decade of experience with dealing with hyperhydrosis though, and I might be able to help you.
Try not to hide.
As a very shy child and even more awkward teenager, I was inherently embarrassed about those pit stains that happened regardless of the weather, the season, or what I had ate. Because I was embarrassed the easiest thing to do was to hide under layers of clothes. This is the last thing you want to do. More heat means more sweat. Your skin needs air.
Are you eating though?
What you put in your body really has an effect. Avoid fatty processed foods, food that’s high in sodium, and hot and spicy stuff. Also avoid Caffeine. Just avoid it. Foods that can help you stop sweating as much includes stuff high in potassium and whey since they calm your nervous system down. Make sure you hydrate, and eat more foods that have a lot of calcium since calcium helps to regulate your body temperature.
T-shirts matter.
My first bit of advice is to carry around an extra T shirt in your bag to change into. Fabrics are your best friend, and your worst enemy in your battle against the patch. Wear light cottons. Avoid anything that’s going to trap heat and moisture. These clothes are you enemy. Also sweat is going to get baked into clothes. As a sweater, you can’t get attached to garments. There’s no amount of detergent that’s going to get out those yellow stains. Bite the bullet and just throw them away.
Go to the doctors.
Your GP can help you. Your GP will probably give you prescription deodorant. This stuff works. I was prescribed ‘Driclor’ which is just aluminium chloride. However, if you are prescribed this stuff please follow the instructions. Don’t do what I did and use too much too often with the hope I’d never sweat again. I just got a painful rash, and then bullied in the P.E changing rooms because I had ‘rashy pits’. I can laugh about it now. I swear.
You can also get Botox injected into the problem area, this is a long-term solution that needs to be topped up about every six months on average. I haven’t tried this because Botox is expensive.
Anti-perspirent, Duh.
Store bought deodorants can work well too, but the first one you pick off the shelf isn’t going to be the best one for you. Like anything fun you have to experiment, just make sure you get an antiperspirant. There’s a lot of choice out there. Find two or three that work really well for you and alternate them every week or so. I’ve found deodorant works better if you don’t let your skin get used to it.
Allow yourself to cool down and dry completely before applying deodorant, and always carry an extra bottle in your bag, put one in your car and your draw at the office. You can never have too much deodorant.
Be free.
Start and be more conscious of how you position your body. A good posture can honestly help reduce the visibility of sweat stains. Also, don’t exist with your arms perpetually clamped to your side in the fear of the patch because this is inevitably going to make those patches bigger. Let your pits breath and air out.
Shave.
If you’re not opposed to it, shave your pits. It’s more hygienic, you aren’t going to smell as much, and it allows a bigger surface area of skin for deodorant to land on and work its magic
Hide in plain sight.
If all else fails just go to the gym. It’s probably the only place you don’t have to give a shit about that patch of moisture under your arms. This is where us sweaters are actually at an advantage because it looks like we’ve done an hour on the treadmill before we’ve even stepped foot on it.
Who gives a shit?
A final thing to remember is that you are going to notice your pit stains more than anyone else in the world. The majority of people probably don’t care. If they do care, they’re either really into sweat stains, or not worth your mental energy.
Alex.
Dealing with... 