Ok, let’s get right to it shall we? I have been getting botox ever since I was 18… but it’s not what you think. Ever since I was young, I have had problems with my underarms. (Yep, this post is about my pits! Embarrassing!) I would always get these small, red, itchy rashes on my underarms. I was a big athlete, often playing 2 or 3 sports at a time, so I just chalked it up to sweat, razor burn or ingrown hairs. I tried EVERYTHING to ease my discomfort: creams, powders, gels, pills etc. I once had a drawer FULL of 10-12 different brands of deodorant that just didn’t work. I was miserable y’all.
After finally having enough, I went to the doctor and low and behold, I was (am) allergic to aluminum chloride in deodorant. Essentially antiperspirant. Why did it take me that long to go to the doctor? I don’t know! Stubbornness I guess. I was happy to finally figure out the issue for my rashes, but then another problem popped up: SWEAT! Now that I no longer used antiperspirant, I couldn’t get my sweat under control. It didn’t matter if I was in a tank top in the snow, I was still sweating under my arms. This was SO embarrassing. Especially as a hormonal teenager. I never wore gray or any color to show my sweat stains. My white t-shirts often got stained from sweat as well. So back to the dermatologist I went.
After a quick test, they figured it out. I have a condition called Hyperhydrosis… sounds confusing and weird right? Well essentially it is just one of those long medical terms for “hey, you sweat… like A LOT and it’s out of your control.” Lovely. For some, it’s their palms, their head, or feet. For me, it’s my pits. So what next? Botox. Well at least for me it was.
My granddad is a doctor and told me about this procedure where doctors can inject botox into your pits every 4-6 months (depending on severity) which freezes your most active sweat glands. I was super nervous to try this, but I was desperate! So, when I was roughly 18 years old, I got my first set of injections and I haven’t turned back since. This is something that REALLY works well for me and I am so much happier. I tried to go back and went a year without the botox after moving to Germany, but I couldn’t do it.
Now to wrap things up because I’m sure you’re tired of reading about my pits. If you have made it this far, kudos to you! I decided to tell you my story in hopes that someone out there who is going through something like this can get the help or information they need. I also want to let them know that they aren’t alone and there are solutions!
Oh and if you haven’t figured it out by now, I finally found my favorite deodorant and it’s called Native. I have my mom to thank for introducing me to this brand. They are they all-natural and aluminum and paraben free. They have lots of delicious smelling scents (some change seasonally) and they also offer a subscription service that will send you deodorant in the mail. I get mine every three months. This isn’t an advertisement or sponsored post, I just love this brand so much and want to share with everyone who’s interested!