Tips for combating body odor from a guy with a hygiene hyperfixationAdvice given
16 points
6 comments submitted 3 days ago by
Green_30EA00 to
r/ftm
Hello! I know that a lot of transmasc people who go on T struggle with body odor, and i want to help! Im no expert or anything, but i like researching hygine in my free time and i like to think im decently knowledgeable. I genuinely believe that most people (besides those with medical conditions, i know it makes this a struggle) have the ability to reduce or even get rid of their body odor if theyre using the right products correctly. I apologize for any typos or formatting issues, im typing this at 6am on mobile bc i couldn’t get myself to sleep before typing all this out lol.
Showering: - This may be controversial but showering daily is not necessary for everyone. Frequency of showering is up to life style and personal needs. I shower about 3-4 times a week because i have eczema and showering exacerbates it, plus my routine is longer because of my skin condition.
If i go to the gym or something, I’ll usually rinse off with just water. I would recommend at the least to be showering 3 times a week. If you work and office job and are sitting most of the day, daily showers arnt as necessary as it is for someone who works a labor job for example. - You dont need harsh soaps, and you dont need to scrub every part of your body. I use a dove sensitive skin bar and only focus it on my groin and places where my skin folds or i sweat like pits, elbows, knees, belly button and feet. Make sure to wash in between your toes as well. Water is most of the time more than enough to clean the rest of your skin, and using soap on your whole body can dry your skin out. If you want to wash your whole body with soap go ahead, but im just saying it isnt actually necessary. - Do not use a sented or medicated soap for your groin, and do not wash
inside your genitalia with soap. I use the same dove bar. Wash your pubes, around your bottom growth, and the outer lips with soap. You will most likely need to pull back the foreskin around your bottom growth to clean it. Dont forget to wash your ass as well. Rinse with water very well after! - Using a benzoyl peroxide wash can help with body odor. It kills the bacteria that causes your sweat to smell in the first place. 10% or 5% are equally effective, but you may need to leave the 5% on a bit longer. If 10% irritates your skin for whatever reason, try 5%, but ive had no problems with the 10%. Wash your pits with regular soap first, rinse, and then apply the benzoyl peroxide wash and leave it for 30 seconds-2 minutes. You can also apply it to your back and chest to help with acne as well! After that time is up you can rinse it off and youre good. - If your scalp smells, try a good clarifying shampoo (not sulfate free, that will do nothing). If you have dandruff, nizoral is a good product that works for most people. - Ps, if you have back acne, finish washing your hair before you clean your back so you can wash away any conditioning residue left on your back.
Post shower: - I would heavily recommend applying lotion after your shower! It is just good for the overall health of your skin, and can even decrease oil production thats caused by dry skin. - You can apply glycolic acid to your pits to help with smell as well! The PH will make it harder for the bacteria to grow. - If you have acne or ingrown hair concerns, consider a salicylic acid moisturizer for the affected areas. But i would still use a normal lotion for non acne/ingrown areas.
Antiperspirant - This is important, as it is what will actually reduce sweating. Im sorry to all of you who get gender euphoria from your old spice aluminum free, but that is doing jack shit for you. You need to get an antiperspirant with aluminum. Theres no reason not to use one unless you are allergic to it. I recommend certain dri or vanicream antiperspirant. Certain dri is VERY strong, so it can burn if used incorrectly. You want to start off by taking it slow, using it maybe every other day instead of dayly. It is so strong that you dont even need to use it daily, every 2-3 days is enough for most people. If you dont want to deal with that though, the vanicream is probably a better choice but will have to be used every day. You will want to put on your antiperspirant at night before you sleep! Putting it on throughout the day doesnt do anything, and just wastes the product. It needs to sit on your skin and sink into the sweat glands overnight in order to stop you from sweating.
Laundry: - If you have problems with your clothes smelling, youve got two options. The first is laundry booster. You can look up different recipes, but you probably want one that includes baking soda. Borax too if you have hard water. The second is laundry sanitizer, which you put in the laundry softener part of your machine. - Do not use fabric softener, it makes it easier for dirt and grime to stick to your clothes - You can get a spray antibacterial laundry refresher to spray on the pits of your shirts before tossing them in the hamper if they smell particularly bad. If you are in a situation where you need to wear a clothing item but dont have time to wash it, like a binder, you can spray it with this and let it dry and it can help.
General: - I mention antiperspirant, benzoyl peroxide and glycolic acid in this post. You do not need to use all of these!! I would start by only using antiperspirant. If that is not working well enough, add either benzoyl peroxide or glycolic, and if that isnt enough try the other. You can do all three if you want though. - if you struggle with bottom growth smell, investing in a bidet could help. - Having hairy pits doesnt make you smell worse unless you have an infection. If you want arm hair, then shaving it should only be a last ditch resort if you cant get rid of the smell. Hair can sometimes make it harder for your products to reach your skin, as well as giving more surface area for bacteria to grow. So shaving can definitely help with smell, but it is also VERY possible to smell fine with long pit hair as well. - You dont need to overload yourself with sents to try and mask the smell. Often times it just brings attention to the smell, and can make you smell funky because the BO is mixing with all the sents and making a nasty concoction of a smell.
I hope this helps! If anyone has questions im more than happy to answer. Im also considering making a post that is more in depth about acne and skincare, but it would be a long one so that is for another day lol. Good luck out there guys. I believe in you!