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About Me

Hi, my name is Janet. I'm in my late 20s and I've had excessive underarm sweating ever since puberty. I work as a corporate trainer for a medium sized company; mostly I do technical writing.

In the USA, at least, there seems to be a social stigma associated with female sweating. Some people won't even say that women sweat, instead they say perspiration, or even that a woman is "glowing". Well, I glow so much I gotta wear shades. Sweat is a more approrpiate word for me. The medical term is axillary hyperhidrosis, or HH for short.

For me HH is very much concentrated in my underarms. I do not sweat an unusual amount from my hands or feet like some people do. Some days I can sweat ring a blouse within minutes after slipping it on. Stress is the major culprit, though I'll sweat a little even when I'm not feeling stressed.

I've always "run hot". I'm the last one to put on a coat in the autumn, and the first to remove it in the spring. I prefer not to wear too many layers or heavy clothing because that helps me stay cool and lets the sweat dry.

Despite some ridicule and taunting from classmates when I was in school, I somehow managed to avoid becoming sensitive about my HH. I think this was because my parents never treated me differently because of it. They taught me that sweating is a natural human body process, and nothing else.

I might sweat more than other people, but that doesn't make me any less of a person.

Over the years I've grown more and more comfortable about my sweating such that now I rarely let it trouble me. My co-workers have grown to accept that I sweat at times but that doesn't mean I'm any less capable at my job. Most of the men I have dated have no problem with my sweating, and I've learned some even find it attractive or erotic.

Not long ago I had surgery to remove my thyroid due to cancer. After the operation, the doctors did not give me enough replacement thyroid hormone, and I became hypothyroid. This changed my sweating, virtually eliminating it for the first time in 15 years, but I was sluggish, cold and so headachey I could barely work. Within a month I had gained 15 pounds. When I got the proper dose of hormone, I felt more normal again and my weight began to return to normal, and my sweating resumed too.

There was a time I let my HH control my life, and let it force me to hide under jackets and sweaters. But I learned that this was not necessary. I no longer restrict my choice of fashions because of the HH. Now I wear bright colors, I wear silk, I wear tight shirts. So far I have not lost any friends because of it.

There remain only two things that bother me about my HH. First is sweating while in group situations. Public speaking is particularly troublesome as the stress from it causes me to sweat a huge amount, sometimes down to my waist. I feel out of control in such situations.

The other is the clean up. I get tired of laundering my tops over and over. It seems I emit a fair amount of salt with my sweat and can leave unsightly white rings on my shirts after just a single wearing. For me odor has never been a problem, so I am guilty of re-wearing previously stained shirts to save on laundry. Again, so far no one has complained, but this remains an on-going concern for me.

I hope that by sharing my experiences, others will also become more comfortable living with HH, and gain the confidence to enjoy wearing what they want to wear, go where they want to go, and live life to the fullest.

Thanks for visiting!