Friday, May 17, 2013

What's your sweat?

"Strong enough for a man, but made for a woman". 

Motionsense, clinical strength. 

I bought it all, hook, line and sinker. In fact, step into my bathroom and you will find just about every deodorant/antiperspirant on the market. Here's a sampler from my collection: 

I even have the underarm maxi pads. Yes, those are real, you can order them right on Amazon.com. You see, I suffer from excessive underarm sweat. It doesn't just happen when I am nervous or anxious. No, it could be an exceptionally calm day. It could be in the dead of winter. Doesn't matter. 

I cannot tell you how many perfectly good shirts, blouses, sweaters I have ruined. I cannot wear black all the time! Even then, the sweat mixes with the deodorant and causes a nice chalky puddle underneath my arm pits. Nice. 


They say to wear loose, cotton types of shirts. Which I do, and it still rains down. 

My doctor even prescribed something for me to apply nightly. I've tried just using powder. See, I don't really need the perfumy stuff. It's the antiperspirant part. 

Don't get me wrong, I know that sweating is a natural process. I love feeling/seeing sweat drip off of me when I am gettin' it in at the gym. But seriously, don't need it when I am just sitting at my desk. Not so much. 

I cannot tell you how embarrassing this is. My field of work oftentimes calls for me to facilitate meetings and trainings. Imagine, being up front, in front of an audience. In the words of Tupac Shakur, all eyes on me. Being too embarrassed to lift your arm to write on big wall post it note. Or sitting in a meeting with your arms clamped to your side. 

I've done the research. There are a few options:
  1. Have my sweat glands removed. Side effects - excessive sweating in other areas of the body
  2. Botox shots - this could affect other areas of your body
  3. A new procedure, as described by my mother so of course, no details. Well, the only detail she provided was that Dr. Oz says it costs $2500.
Speaking of my mother, I blame her for this. Or my dad. One of them is to blame. My sister shares this burden with me. Somehow, my brother was relieved of this burden. I certainly hope that this isn't passed on to Yogli or Hummingbird. I can already tell that they both have some parts of it now. Yogli with the sweaty hands, Hummingbird sweats pretty easily. I'll have them call their grandparents and thank them. 

My latest remedy involves applying Certain Dri at night. In the morning, applying Tom's of Maine Naturally Dry. It says Powder Fresh but, ya'll (that GA peach coming out), it has no smell at all. Then on top of the Tom's, I use a lil layer of Degree. This method has served me well for the past two weeks. I knew I would need it this week because I have been at an off site work meeting with colleagues from regions outside of Georgia. Basically, I knew I would be involved in some high level stuff. 

So, you can see how this could have possibly taken away from my focus at work. If I would have let it. There are plenty of things that try to draw us away from where we should be focusing. Of course, a situation like this could make me feel insecure. If I let it. I could have very easily paid attention to the puddles under my arms. Instead I realized that I had a great career opportunity. I focused on presenting information exceptionally, paying attention, networking and representing my department. I find that once I ignore the sweat, it stops. 

What's your sweat? What's keeping you from focusing? Ignore it, see what happens. It may take a few instances of ignoring it in order to regain your focus. Keep doing it. 

Of course, when this was all over, I texted MonkeyMan and whined about my sweaty armpits. 


21 comments:

  1. Ha. This is certainly a break from all the food posts I read all day lol! As one of the co-hosts from the My Favorite Posts Weekend SHOW OFF Party! I wanted to personally thank you for linking up with us. Also, I'm hosting a Facebook like party on my blog where you can link up and increase your Facebook likes! I'd love it if you joined in too! It's here: http://anyonitanibbles.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/skinny-apple-cherry-ombre-smoothie.html

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    1. Lol, I try to be a little different, hoping my honesty will connect with others out there. Thanks for stopping by!

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  2. I'm so forwarding this to a friend of mine that swears she's all alone with her sweat attacks. I told her she wasn't but she can be a tad dramatic at times! It's amazing some of the things you can take for granted. Thanks for sharing and letting others know they are not along. #MBC

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    1. Thanks, Michelle! I used to think it was just me with this issue but then my sister told me she'd been going thru it also. It is so irritating, especially since it's not triggered by nervousness. Thanks for sharing, glad to get the word out.

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  3. Hey Tiffany! This is great. I have seen people experience what you're speaking of and this is very helpful information. Trial and error goes a long way with things like this. So glad this is working for you and love that positive outlook. Thanks so much for linking up. #MBC

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    1. Hey Joi! Hope you have a great day today. A couple of weeks ago, I noticed that when I concentrated on something else, it wouldn't happen so much. But if I solely concentrated on the sweat, it increased. At first I was little embarrassed to put my business out there, but that's part of the purpose for my blog, to be transparent to encourage others to talk. Thanks!

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  4. Hi Tiffany,

    My sweat is oily skin which has improved tremendously with a change in diet. As it heats up outside, it is so hard to ignore it! I enjoyed reading your post.

    #MBC

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  5. BTW - your avatar reminds me of Ephesians 6. You are standing with your shield and sword!

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    1. Victory,
      it's funny because even with the cold, my armpits heat up, lol! Aaarrrgghh!!! And yes, Ephesians 6 is definitely my foundation scripture for this blog. I find that most of the time, the battle is from things unseen and those are usually harder to take down than the things we see. Awesome, have a great day!

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  6. I've heard of others who have this issue, I don't blame you about the Botox shots either. Good luck girl, I didn't know they made pads.

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    1. Yeah, just thinking that those Botox shots would mess with my skin or something. I don't have any wrinkles and wouldn't want that crazy shot to have adverse effects. And yes, see my comment below to Wanda regarding the pads.

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  7. Underarm maxi pads...now that's something I've never heard about.

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    1. Lol, so Wanda, I altered the name a bit. The title as listed on Amazon is underarm shields/pads. Some have adhesive others, somehow wrap around your arm or clip onto your bra! The possibilities are endless.

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  8. hahahaha! I don't have a problem with sweat, however as of late this Texas heat is irritating that I may need to invest in underarm maxi pads! LOL!!! Thanks so much for sharing your story @ My Favorite Posts SHOW OFF Weekend Blog Party :)

    Jessica
    The Wondering Brain

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    1. Hey, Jessica! I can only imagine Texas heat! Stay cool, sister.

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  9. How frustrating! It's nice that you shared this because I am sure there are plenty of people with this problem wondering what on earth to do and probably would love your advice. I am sorry to hear you have to deal with this though! It sounds like you have found a good solution! #MBC

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    1. Thanks, Michelle. I hope that I am able to help others with this problem. Or at least let them know they are not alone.

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  10. Hi there! I found your blog from the Modern Hippie Momma blog hop. Wow what a post! I actually never thought about sweating being a medical condition. That was so brave of you to be transparent about it. Wouldn't it be wonderful if by posting this someone going through the same thing would be able to offer a solution that actually works for you? I'll pray that that actually happens for you. It was a great read. Feel free to stop by my blog: http://getfithealthylife.blogspot.com

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    1. Hi Brittnei, thanks for stopping by. Yep, it's a medical condition, sometimes called hyperhydrosis. Some folks sweat heavily in other areas. I welcome your prayers, gotta be a solution out there.

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  11. Loved the metaphor/analogy you used, great build up to it. And speaking of buildup...3 deodorants?? Wow and woah. Gonna call up my cuban Grandma to see if she knows of any homeremedies and I'll let you know. Here from the Modern Hippie momma hop and sending BB2U.

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    1. Babushka,
      girl, yes, 3 deodorants! It is the craziest thing. I would love some advice from Grandma, let me know what she says.

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