I never, and I mean NEVER, thought I would go the way of natural deodorant. I'm a sweaty person. I've had to avoid wearing certain colors that I know will make sweat stains more prominent (I'm looking at you heather grey). I get shiny in a manner of minutes. When I used to dance, while other dancers left class looking like they had been caught outside in a light misting rain I looked like I had been hosed down by the fire department. So I figured I was destined to use commercial anti-perspirant forever.
But I started reading lots of posts and articles about the aluminum in anti-perspirants, and how they shrink or clog your sweat glands and how none of that is very good for your body. Hmmm, makes sense. Shouldn't I allow my body to do its thing they way it's meant to? And since I still get sweaty while wearing an anti-perspirant I figured it couldn't hurt to try out something a little more natural. So I started looking into these natural deodorants which are mainly just perfume for your pits. After much reading of reviews and lists of ingredients I decided to try Myro natural deodorant. It was one of the only ones that does not contain baking soda or arrowroot (sometimes known to cause irritation) and does contain barley powder to absorb moisture. As a bonus, it comes with a reusable case that you fill with pods that come in minimal recyclable material which keeps up with my New Year's resolution to reduce my carbon footprint. The final draw that sealed the deal was that they were offering your first order (case and single pod) for $10 and I had a promo code that gave me 50% off.
$5 to try a new deodorant? Sold!
The first thing you should know about switching from commercial anti-perspirant to a natural deodorant is that your pits will most likely go through a detox period. Most people report having excessive sweat or extra stinky body odor. I happily did not experience any of that. My armpit odor was barely more than it was with my anti-perspirant (although I had to reapply the Myro deodorant a couple of times of day sometimes) and I didn't have beads of sweat rolling down my sides the way I thought I would. I took the advice of blogs and wiped my pits with apple cider vinegar to clear away excess bacteria. And when I found a free moment I used a bentonite clay mask on my pits to clean out my pores. I should mention that I'm still using both the ACV and the clay mask because detox can take several months and because I think it helps a lot. The one thing I didn't realize about armpit detox was that there is the potential for skin irritation. What a painful surprise that was!
My first mistake was to shave my pits and immediately apply my natural deodorant, as is typical when using a commercial product. A day later I had angry red bumps all over my underarm area. I only learned the error of my ways when I did a Google search for "razor bumps natural deodorant" and found a plethora of comments about how applying too quickly after shaving can cause irritation, how detoxing can make the skin more sensitive to irritation, and how the best practice is to shave at night and apply deodorant the next morning. Luckily, after a strict regimen of ACV, bentonite clay masks (there's nothing like standing in the bathroom naked from the waist up trying to keep your arms raised while a clay mask in your pits dries), and some benzoyl peroxide, my irritated skin is healing and I have not had anymore flare ups with my natural deodorant.
I'm still not entirely sold on the Myro deodorant. The first scent I chose seems very light and I don't really smell it once I apply it but I chose three new ones to try out in my subscription order (you get three pods mailed to you every three months and can skip or cancel anytime). I'm looking forward to seeing if another scent has a little more staying power. If not I will move on to one of the other natural deodorants that are now popping up in my Instagram feed and Facebook ads. But overall, I'm totally sold on the idea of natural deodorant and letting my body self-regulate, and hopefully seeing a decrease in sweat as I use it more. At least until summer, then all bets are off.
No comments:
Post a Comment