Sweat

The act of sweating is like a dirty little secret, we all do it but we don't want anyone to see us do it. It's only socially acceptable during vigorous physical activity.

Unfortunately, I have been blessed with hyperactive sweat glands in the underarm area. (Question to self: Am I sharing too much? Answer to self: The truth shall set you free!)

IF THIS IS AN UNPLEASANT TOPIC FOR YOU, DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER.

Maybe some of you share this exact same problem. If you do and have working solutions, please let me know by leaving a comment!!!

Yesterday, in the DC Metropolitan area, the temperature reached over 85 degrees. Now don't get me wrong, I love summer weather, the hotter and more humid the better. My hyperactive sweat glands love summer also. They show their appreciation by becoming even more active.

Some things I have tried are:
Score: 1-Shouldn't have bothered, 10-Problem Solved!

Antiperspirant Only: Score 5
This prevents immediate sweating, but any little thing that upsets the balance (rushing down the hall, slight temp change, slight nervousness) and everything is thrown off balance and the antiperspirant fails (Note: Antiperspirant reduces wetness/sweating, deodorant just provides a scent to disguise odors)

Antiperspirant + short-sleeved cotton undershirt: Score 8
This works pretty well as long as the apparel allows for wearing a cotton undershirt. Since, I'm a female who enjoys clothing, I have many tops that do not allow for this option.

Clinical Strength Antiperspirant: Score 7

I have recently tried Secret Clinical Strength. You apply it before bedtime, then wear your regular antiperspirant during the day. For more info on how it works visit http://www.secret.com/ClinicalStrength.do I do notice an improvement but for me, it still does not work for the full 24 hours. It usually fails in the early afternoon.

I am considering trying:
Underarm Dress Shields: These are thin disposable pads with adhesives, worn between you and your clothing. They also provide undergarments with dress shields as an option.

Last and definitely least favorite and most daunting:
Botox: Here is a video from CBS on perspiration reduction with Botox http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/i_video/main500251.shtml?id=630819n

And here is an article from the NY Post:

July 24, 2007 -- NEXT time you overhear someone talking about getting Botox, better take a second look before you derisively roll your eyes - the speaker could very well turn out not to be an annoying middle-age empty nester wearing head-to-toe Donna Karan and big gold bracelets.

It could a mother talking about her child with cerebral palsy, a grandpa with an enlarged prostate or even a grandma with bladder-control problems. All three are among the many ailments now being treated by Botulinum toxin type A, a k a Botox.

First approved in 1989 to treat spasms of the eye muscle, the drug went on to fame and fortune as a wrinkle smoother. Botox stills involuntary eye movements and flattens wrinkles because it essentially paralyzes the muscle into which it's injected - and doctors are now applying the muscle relaxer to other conditions.

Current National Institutes of Health Botox studies look at its effect on arthritis, alopecia, Parkinson's disease, headaches, lower back pain, tennis elbow, club foot and restless leg syndrome.

Botox, it seems, is a modern-day cure-all, an elixir - and of all its uses, approved and off-label, the one we like best this summer is for hyperhidrosis. Think back to the last 90-degree day, when you went down into the subway - you were more than likely experiencing hyperhidrosis, or extreme underarm sweating.

"Excessive sweating, also known as hyperhidrosis, is a relatively common problem affecting millions of American men and women," says Manhattan dermatologist Doris Day.

"With Botox treatments of the underarms or hands, sweating stops or is greatly reduced within a few days, and the effects last for six months to a year," Day says. The side effects are few to none, and can include mild temporary weakness of the hand, which might make it more difficult to open a tight jar, but would not affect typing or other fine motor skills.

"Patients have told me that I have changed their life with this treatment," she adds.

While normal sweating is due to heat, excessive sweating is caused by brain activity that tells your underarms or hands to sweat. And blocking the sweat glands under your arms is not harmful. "This is a small body-surface area, and as long as people are able to sweat on other parts of their body, there is no danger," Day explains. Nor is the sweat redirected after Botox.

Treatments can run $300 to $600 and last for three to six months.