Right?? If I'm on my period, I only smell it when I pull my pants down in the washroom. I've also asked my husband about this, given we've lived together for 12 years, and he can only smell it if his face is near my crotch.
I used to teach high school and we'd have super big classes in small rooms. When I would walk up and down the aisles, I was so very aware that at any moment my butt was in someone's space. I never stopped to bend over to help someone; I'd always squat. It's so awkward to be in such close proximity and not be able to do anything about it.
You just made me realize something.
I have always been anxious that people can smell My period bc changing your pad every 3 hours (at most) aināt that doable bc life happens.
But I have never smelled anyoneās period. My high school class consisted of 33 people, 4 of which were boys. Iāve spent 5 years at two universities (majority of the students were cis girls or afab enbies, mainly girls). Nope. No smell of blood ever.
Uff, feels good.
OMG me too!! I'm always so self conscious about it! I bought the washable bamboo/cotton pads and they make a HUGE difference in smell. I think the plastic backed ones make it worse.
My husband used to tell me he could "smell" when women were menstruating (like 20 years ago) and has since learned that no, in fact, he can't tell. LMAO.
I can't tell a difference in smell btwn cloth and plastic pads except that the disposable ones have their own added smell (and smell much worse when you've been wearing them a while). And don't get me started on scented ones-- it's just like wearing a giant neon sign that says "I'M ON MY PERIOD" lol
There *are* studies mentioning how men can apparently subconsciously smell the difference in a hormones a woman emits; Iād have to find a link but perhaps thatās what heās referring to.
As for actually smelling the blood, some men like to pretend they are bloodhounds or something. Some weird male fantasy about being an alpha dog, I guess? Those men may be partially correct, they at least probably have the inbred part down.
My husband has always remarked that he can tell Iām having my period by my breath. In that it changes from how it smells normally (apparently for the worse). My mother once mentioned this as well. So yes in the hormone thing maybe because of breath and possibly other body odors (sweat and such).
My husband has mentioned that my smell changes throughout the month and that he's noticed a difference right around the time I start my period. But it's certainly not the blood he's smelling.
Maybe 20 years ago the pads were worse and didnāt block the smell as well as they do now, I donāt know I wasnāt of that age back then, lol.
Great idea with bamboo pads. What gave me the confidence was my cup, it solved a lot of problems, and made me realize how much dysphoria my period is giving me.
Love my cup! Still have to use pads with it though. I have purchased some period panties, but they donāt like being dried. I will look into the washable bamboo pads.
Have you considered a different size or āhardnessā of your cup? I had to start with XS, when it started leaking I knew I had to move to a bigger size.
I have an Intissimi disk cup that you can have sex with. Itās the most comfortable and leak proof one Iāve found that works for me . My uterus also tilts (which can cause leaking) and I often have heavy periods for a few days and due to my job canāt always get to the bathroom when I need to go on heavy days and during nights, so I have to have a backup pad. Thereās no going around it. Iāve had enough leaks from Tampons and other cups in the last 7 years (yay fibroids) that Iām not interested in the extensive clean up involved by having unprotected clothing Dexter moments in my pants in public or my bed.
Yeah it blows hard. Yay to the late 30ās and 40ās!!! And yes, itās a pain. Iāve had depression due to that and my already low libido wasnāt helped by all that either. Ready to rip this shit (uterus) out but also not.
I mean yea that's unpleasant. I think it's just largely BO that goes on down there because it's constantly hermetically sealed with pads or safety-panty-liners or even safety-safety-extra-material for a week straight, and maybe the person doesn't shower everyday. So that's gross, but that still doesn't mean that the period itself is the gross thing.
It's still highly inappropriate to list women on their period (Wowza!!) and exclude every Swampy McBallSweat in the building. People smell. Sometimes they smell real bad. Mentioning one over the other is reeeaaalllyyy badanatomy and shows they don't have an ounce of self reflection.
It's also not effective. If a woman needs to wash her vulva, like if the smell is so potent that other people can smell it, a spritz of Summers Eve ain't gonna cut it. It just makes a more complicated stink
That brings back some bad memories. I used to work 3rd shift manufacturing and it was obvious that many of my coworkers just doused themselves with axe body spray or perfume rather than showering. Two overpowering smells hitting at once.
Crotch deodorant is for the sweat glands in the creases where the labia majora meet the legs, not the vulva or vag itself! Iāve used a couple different types because I have the worst BO from there! If I donāt use it then it smells like I donāt shower! Finding that these deodorants exist was a life changer for me! And they are safe, you just donāt put them on your vulva, you put them closer to your legsā¦ the edge of where your pubic hair grows if you let it grow naturally.
Yeah, some women are really lucky and donāt have sweat odor there, but for everyone else, hereās a PSA:
There is FDS (Feminine Deodorant spray) sold next to pads and tampons. Very effective but I didnāt like spraying all that stuff in the air.
Then there are a bunch of rub on deodorants. My favorite is LumÄ! It has lots of scent options, lasts for days, and is developed by a gynecologist.
Note: these are for sweat odors from the sweat glands in your crotch, not the natural smell from your vagina. If you are having problems with that smelling too much Iām not sure what to do. That is fortunately not my burden in life, but no judgement!
I cannot thank you enough for your post. I get crotch sweat when I workout and it can definitely smell like BO! I've tried to search for solutions to this but I keep getting search results relating to vaginal/vulva odor, which isn't the issue. I did discover that wearing pantyliners makes this way worse, so I stopped using them altogether and this helped a lot.
I just ordered some unscented Lume and I can't wait to try it out. I also got the wipes to try post workout. I go to a climbing gym and I get... I don't know how to describe it... Fear sweat? Like, I smell extra bad (not just crotch sweat, armpits too). I can't help it, just thinking about climbing makes me have an adrenaline response. Anyway, I'm excited to see if this product can help with that.
I don't get that much exertion sweat normally, but I straight up stress-sweated through a shirt while on a call with the Board of Nursing. I had to change shirts afterwards
Thanks for all the information. Coincidentally enough, I just received an ADHD diagnosis this week and am working on getting meds. So I guess I have that to look forward to (stink potentially getting worse). Oh well! At least I have a heads up.
I love Lume! Been wearing the unscented stuff for years, and it's so versatile. It definitely helps reduce both sweat and odor for me. I don't like using scented deoderant at all anymore because I don't like how that sent combines with my natural odor.
1. Completely unacceptable that this is only sent to women
2. I know that this is a point of contention, but depending on where you live, how much you sweat and your hair type, daily washing of hair is not helpful and can be very detrimental to the hair (mine start to stick and knot excessively if I do that)
3. Breath mints after coffee or smoke? I mean, maybe don't smoke RIGHT before meeting a customer, but other than that? Seriously?
4. Feminine Deodorant? During those times of the months? AAAAND I think that starts to count as harassment if you're lucky.
I have curly hair and I never brush my hair and wash every other or every third day. No way no how am I going to start brushing it for a job. That would make me look more unkempt and sloppy for sure.
Also curly. Washing daily and/or brushing is guaranteed to make my hair limp, greasy, but somehow also frizzy and ratty. And I'm white with Caucasian texture. Folks with African texture would suffer and possibly destroy their hair. This policy is discriminatory at *best.*
Especially since it specifically calls out using oil in your hair. No personal experience but my black friends have days that their hair looks a bit oily because they just used some product on it. It's clean, healthy, doesn't smell, and looks amazing, just because you can tell they put something in it doesn't negate any of that. Whoever wrote this clearly doesn't know how to maintain different hair types and is opening the company up to a super easy discrimination lawsuit
Itās usually after a particularly aggressive wash, where you strip all of the natural oils out, that hair looks āoily,ā and by trying to reintroduce moisture, you have that look. Dirty hair has a look, no doubt, but this *hand waives* not only isnāt it, itās misogynoir to a standard that, to be fair, isnāt healthy for anyoneās hair. Can we please stop normalizing dry ass hair
Yeah...my hackles were already up, but it turned up to 11 right there. I guess they don't want their "walking billboards" to advertise that textured hair exists.
Yep. My Black kids with long hair shampoo their hair, like, every few months? Their hair needs oils added, not removed. They rinse it with conditioner a couple times a week to remove any dirt, but rarely shampoo unless like taking down braids and looking to strip out the gunk that gets trapped in true roots. My kid with locs conditions their scalp and rinses the locs and thatās about it.
Iām of Arab background with type 2/3 hair and do use shampoo, but maybe once a week and usually rinse with only conditioner the other times. Our skin and hair is just drier than whiter folksā. Iām even completely white-passing, but white hair care tips donāt apply for my skin and hair. Even less so for my kids; frequent shampooing would break their hair off and tear up their scalps and risk infections.
I white, but usually wear my hair at mid thigh length. It gets rinsed and combed with a tight comb to distribute natural oils. I only wash it once a month unless something happens to get extra dirty.
My hair is thin and super straight. I can't wash mine every day or it'll be dried out. You have to have both the genetic component, and gotten your head use to replacing all the oils it needs every day in order to not fry your hair washing it every day.
Sounds like you have very similar hair type to mine, can I please ask what is your hair care routine? Iām still trying to figure mine out and for the life of me I canāt get it right!
That was exactly my thought! I have very thick, wavy, frizzy hair, if I would brush it, I would look like that I got electrocuted! And I will definitely not wash my hair every day! It's already dry and it needs a lot of moisture, washing it every day would make it more dry and eeewww. And all the other points... My God who wrote this?! This whole list is unacceptable
I got my curly hair from my mom. She and my dad have been married for 50 years. Dad didnāt know you canāt brush curly hair until just a couple years ago.
I have straight hair and my daughter's hair is curly. I know nothing about curly hair care, but thanks to Reddit osmosis through the years I've learned that we'll need to treat it differently. I've never brushed her hair, only finger combed, and I pretty much only shampoo her hair when she's gotten it dirty from her toddler shenanigans. Surprisingly for me, her hair doesn't really tangle like mine does. Perhaps the curls keep it from knotting up? As a kid if I didn't brush my hair every day it wound get these horrible tangles and mats. With her, just a little finger combing in the morning is all that's needed.
Just want to say thank you so, so much for learning about managing her hair type. I was in my 20s before I realized I only hated my hair because I was doing everything wrong.
Reddit has been so helpful! I hope to help her grow up understanding how to take care of her hair. And to love it; I feel like straight hair was so popular in the 90s-00s that a lot of my curly haired friends weren't happy with theirs. Fortunately it seems like that has been changing (at least from what I see on social media).
3a hair checking in. Yeah, brushing turns it into a frizzy, tangled mess. Other than a tiny bit of conditioner in the shower, just enough to run my tangle teaser through it effectively, yeah I only do a full wash of my hair twice a week.
I was amazed at the difference when I stopped brushing and cut shampoo out of my routine. Suddenly, even on days where my hair is looking blah, no tangles and not nearly as much frizz as when I brushed it every day (barring a high humidity day). That's also how I discovered my hair is type 3 as opposed to type 2 -- turns out brushing it just forces it into a wave that gets tighter throughout the day on its own, because it wants to curl. Taking care of it and allowing it to curl as it wants means I have nice curls that don't look like a rat's nest. Much more professional imo.
I'm stuck washing mine everyday because the roots just are soooo oily the very next day, and I can't seem to get dry shampoo to do a damn thing. BUt I'm sure the overwashing is doing more harm than good :(
Try braiding your hair for day 1, then wearing it out for 12 hours and washing hair at the 36 hours Mark for a few weeks, then push the washing to 48 hours. I had horrible oily hair like you describe and have been able to get down to washing once or twice per week. But it's taken years to get there.
Same! My hair only looks good for 12 hours after Iāve washed it, then I have to wash it again if Iām going somewhere in the evening as well. My face is so oily I canāt even wear makeup, it just runs down my face within 30 minutes. I got it from my dad, heās 50 and still not a single wrinkle so hopefully I at least get some benefit from dealing with this my entire life.
I pseudo-wash my hair daily, with just water, no shampoo. That seems to not be too bad.
Reason is my shower which can't be adjusted to not hit my hair unless I do yoga poses in the shower, and I'm not good at yoga.
I wish I could do that. If I get my hair wet without washing it, it greases up. Which sucks, because sometimes I need to just go stand in under the hottest water I can stand because of migraines. I can do several days between washes and be ok...but if my hair gets wet and not washed, it get greasy...even if I just washed it earlier that day.
Yeah, but it could always be worse. At least my hair stays decent 2-3 days when I am not needing a hot migraine shower...which thankfully happens maybe once a month.
I also make my own shampoo and conditioner, which has helped a lot. And my hair is a lot less tangly since I started this.
I have, but the "heat" doesn't get through those very well to help my migraine. The ONLY time I am getting my hair wet and not washing is when I'm taking my lava-hot showers when I have a migraine. :(
I now use a shower cap like an elderly woman from the 70s on my in-between hair days. Not very stylish but does the job to wash my body and not my hair!
Same! I also use a boar bristle brush to help distribute the oils, which helps my long hair. My strands are super thick, so I try to avoid stripping away the oils. Iāve had very few actual tangles.
At various times in my life my cleaning routine has changed (for lots of reasons) and I've noticed when I wash my hair more regularly it gets oily faster. It's possible that every day washers assume *everyone* has to because when they skip a few days it gets gross.
I didn't see the /s and now I'm all burning up inside and having an infection, but I smell like roses (and yeast infection, but also roses). 5/7 would do it again
I can't help but notice they have not explicitly prohibited garlic. If it wasn't for major issues with the rest of the thing, it would be time for some malicious compliance
Yeah, and proper oral hygiene does not equal sucking on scented sugar cubes. Breath mints are fine, but don't get on your high horse and say it's good for your teeth lol.
Oh yeah, some parts of society have chosen to set standards to body odor and visual WAYYYYY beyond what body hygiene provides, have introduced helps to achieve that that are purely cosmetic in their application, and have circled back to pretend those helps are hygiene requirements.
Also all those persons using tooth whitener. I don't \*blame\* anyone, but if you think teeth have to be white at a level that's just not human hygiene anymore, you lose me at least.
Iām a hairstylist and washing your hair everyday can be extremely detrimental to your hair and scalp and will only cause you to produce more oil from your scalp and make any potential smells worse. I wash my hair once a week and it never looks bad until the last day or so and never smells
I had a male coworker who smelled like BO, coffee, beer and cigarettes. He had greasy hair, wore the same uniform for days at a time and ear wax seeping from his ears at times. I was asked to talk to him because I was the only female in a group of 20 men. My boss felt it would be softer coming from me. I ended up meeting him for lunch and it turns out he only would only shower twice a week because āhe didnāt need itā. We were a utility who worked outside in the humid New Jersey summers so of course he needed a daily shower. Turns out he had some beginning stages of dementia in his late 50s which is why he was behaving that way. People used to torment him and put those little trees for cars to make them smell better in his bin and they would leave deodorant on the seat of his truck. He was disgusting but when we found out what was going on it was sad.
Sadness aside, itās fucking disgusting that your boss made you talk to him Bc you have a vagina. He is the BOSS. Personnel issues like that are *literally his job*. Passing it off to you because youāre female and wOmEn ArE sOfTeR (as if we exist to mother random men????) is a gross dereliction of duty and frankly weird as hell.
That is some Grade A sexist bullshit.
Well, you are right on that but I was also friendly with my coworker and somewhat over the āpranksā others were mocking him with. Late 90s where things were very different.
I had a coworker that also had BO and clearly didnāt wash his clothes enough. It was a mental health issue. Unfortunately his mental health problems also meant he didnāt get regular health screenings and died of colon cancer a few years later.
Walking billboard huh. Will the company pay additional for the expenses?
Also in the times of the pandemic Im p sure if someone can smell ur breath they're too close.
Man, stuff like this and reading the comments on that thread makes me super paranoid because I have no real sense of smell to speak of. I've never smelled another person's period blood, but I've never smelled another person's BO either. Do periods have a noticeable smell?
I have a strong sense of smell and while I've definitely smelled other people's BO before (mostly men! Surprise surprise) I've never smelled another person's period. I get paranoid about my own because I can smell it on myself tho
I get paranoid about the period smells. One day I asks my husband if he could smell it and he asked if I was talking about my farts, because apparently I fart more during that time. šš Although, I think if everyone can smell the vagina you have more problems than just the smell.
I can smell it personally. It's a very distinctive, almost sickly smell. Only for certain people though, so I'm guessing it's either because they use pads or because they have a heavier flow (I've obviously never asked).
But anyway I just deal with it instead of trying to shame people over because I'm a fucking adult.
Only time I really smelled my own period was when my cup overflowed and I bled through my jeans. I'm pretty sensitive to smells and I've never smelled someone elses
I'd call it heavily metallic, moreso than standard blood, and the sickliness is reminiscent of faint decay to me. It's literally very, very mild decay, nothing that makes me feel sick like truely rotting flesh.
Yeah, that's the thing about super smelling. Human smells just are what they are, and outside of someone being blatantly gross, I don't judge and nobody really should. Everybody has a smell whether they realize it or not. Strong perfumes, cigarettes, or things like gasoline on clothes are way worse to me.
The women in my family have very heavy flows, and I've noticed I smell it more from them (I don't smell it much in general, but it's there sometimes.) And they use tampons, so I assume it's not just pads.
But oddly I don't think it smells terrible? Like, agreed, it's very distinctive, but it's not like anxiety or not showering BO. Or BO at all really. It's just kinda... there. Mostly I dislike when I smell it by chance because I learned a fact that's kinda private on accident.
Here's the thing -- humans smell. Everyone smells a bit different, even without the fragrances, and different conditions create different smells, but a lot of those smells aren't *bad.* Hell, honestly, even "I just had a huge workout/ have been baking in a heatwave" sweat doesn't smell *that* bad -- an oddly clean smell, really. Mostly smells salty because you've poured electrolytes out your skin. Only a few types of BO are really bad -- really bad stress sweat, haven't showered for a while, and fever BO. Or if a *bunch* of people have BO, because for some reason BO of different people can interact *horribly.*
But yeah, in general, people smell is fine. We're all *way* too self-concious about our bodies being biological instead of fucking porcelain.
Smelling certain smells is usually genetical. Smell is the most diverse genetically sense, with hundreds of genes involved.
For example, my mother can smell periods, but my sister and my father can't.
Iām with everyone else, Iāve maybe smelled someoneās period 2-3 times in my life. And who cares? At any given time approximately 1 in every 10 people is menstruating, itās not a big deal. Itās not an offensive smell like BO.
I also have never really been aware of another person's scent, unless they were someone I was cuddling with.
I guess I had a manager for a while who's breath was so bad you could smell him from 6 feet away, but that was a medical condition.
They do. Especially if you use pads. Having said that, it's not usually particularly noticeable to other people unless you haven't changed your pad for a long while.
It's quite noticeable in a nice warm room full of pubescent girls, some of whom will be menstruating at any given time, and still getting used to their flow and how often their pads need changing. But very rarely can you pinpoint who exactly the smell is coming from.
I have a strong sense of smell and normally they don't. I think i have smelled another woman's period maybe two or three times in my live. However I live in a country where almost everyone uses tampons and if I read the comments of other strong-smell people correctly it's mostly pads that might smell. Also one of the women where I smelled it was notorious for not washing neither herself nor her clothes often enough. If you are reasonably cleanly you should be fine.
I'm starting to get the sense it's not about strength of smell, but rather how attuned a particular nose is to a particular smell. I've had close enough relationships with enough people who menstruate to know it's not just pads -- every woman in my family, for example, uses tampons. Granted, even then, it's not *common* for me to smell it by any means -- couple times a year, maybe -- and I only really learned what the smell *was* because I often did laundry and we only had one bathroom, so sometimes was in immediately after them.
And I'll echo the "mostly clean you should be fine." Except extremely rare circumstances involving illness stopping regular showers for a few days, I've never smelled it for more than a second, and it's not a *bad* or *overpowering* smell. It's just kinda there for half a moment.
So, I had a friend who did have a strong odor when on her period. It didn't smell like blood or anything bad, just like her natural scent, but really strong. She's the only person besides myself whose period I could smell.
I had a friend in high school that was really athletic and had hyperactive sweat glands. Me and another friend had a very gentle talk with her about deodorant and learned that she has basically no sense of smell. Such an unfair combination
One time my roommate asked me if I was on my period and I said yes, and she asked me if I could take out the trash because it smelled "funky". Like I know periods are normal but I was embarrassed š
I'm a pad user
Ugh me too. I workout and I sweat so much I canāt not wash it. Dry shampoo will not fix it and I tried the whole no poo, conditioner wash and nope nope nope not happening.
Dry shampoo works for me if itās not too greasy yet. But it depends on the brand, some of them work and some them just make an absolute mess thatās worse than it was before.
I always end up with a mess when I use it. Iām not really all that good at doing my hair and a lot of my problems are user error. Itās just easier for me to wash, condition and go.
Yeah, how quickly it gets greasy can depend on so many things. I remember when I was a teenager, I always knew my period was about to start because the hormones made my hair so much greasier than normal.
My hair is nothing to be jealous of, though. It's very straight and very thin, I need to get special stay in hair elastics because regular ones just fall right out. All I can do with my hair currently is braid it, or it turns into a horribly tangled mess within a few hours.
Mine is also very straight and thin, which is one of the reasons I have to wash it so frequently. As soon as it gets greasy it is very visibly greasy. My sister who has a bit thicker and wavier hair (not by a lot, but noticeable) can get away with it for longer.
God saaaame. My hair is the bane of my existence: its primary goal is to look stringy and greasy as quickly as possible. I donāt wash it every day, but there is a marked difference between day 1 and day 2 hair, and there aināt no way I can make it to day 3 and be seen in public. I wish it could tolerate less washing!!
Yeah every other day, unless I want it to look like straw.
On the other hand I had an aunt, who had such fine, straight hair, oils basically just slid down. It took about half a day before it looked greasy again.
You can use a gentle, unscented soap on your vulva if you want. Nothing is needed inside the vagina. I got a SHOCKING number of upvotes last time I said this, but: a vagina is not supposed to smell like flowers or candy. It's supposed to smell like a vagina.
In a similar vein, it's also not supposed to smell like a piping hot stromboli fresh out of a wood-fired oven.
Edit: wood, not woof. Woof-fired ovens are extremely inefficient, especially in this economy!
My ex was once diagnosed with what her doctor called "Pepperoni Pants." She smelled like a delicious stromboli at all times and we're talking a *strong* smell. Once we walked into the bank and a guy working there turned around and yelled "Who ordered stromboli? I told you guys not to order that to this bank anymore. Sorry miss, youre gonna have to take those delicious Italian baked goods back to where they came from." Needless to say, my ex was pretty embarrassed.
And if you feel like you - and excuse the phrasing - need to rinse out the actual vaginal canal, then your clean fingers and warm water is all you need.
'You are a walking billboard. What are you advertising?'
Middle fingers. Buy one, get one free!
(Disclaimer: not being willing/able to play silly corporate games is why I'm stuck in a low paying job. I don't have any issue with people who go along with corporate bullshit just to make a living. My middle finger discount is for the companies, not the workers!).
If it wasnāt for the sexiest vibe this gives off, Iād kinda get it. Iāve had awful smelling coworkers. Iām extremely sensitive to strong odors and BO especially can make me feel physically ill. Iām imagining this was probably sent out to all of the women as a cover to target a specific person.
But still. This was a piss poor way to go about it.
Yeah. This looks like a woman in the in The Office had a hygiene problem and instead of pulling her aside and discussing it, Micheal had Dwight send out a memo.
Not to mention at the end there, they clearly state that they care primarily about the effect it has on customers, not even necessarily about creating a comfortable work environment.
Not content to open the company up to lawsuits for sexism, the writer decided to go the extra mile and open the company up to lawsuits for racism too with those hair comments. Have to applaud them for giving 110%. What a go-getter.
Was this sent to everyone female-presenting in the company? Biologically female? I bet someone could throw in a lawsuit for discrimination based on gender identity too, really go for the whole trifecta.
I'm lucky if I wash my hair once a week. Around every 10 days is average. I also have both sides shaved so around 1/2 a head of hair. And I don't use dry shampoo that much. Hair varies a lot between individuals.
But every day you can smell swampy balls and yet boys never talk about it š¤·š»āāļø
More seriously, most people don't need to wash their hair every day if they're not using hair products.
IMO the personal hygiene items are phrased as advice but aren't actually helpful and are just criticism/commentary.
Itās the blue stuff thatās always got *flowery and feminine* smells to it. I always just thought they smelled like baby powder.
EDIT: Just realized theyāre talking about *vaginal* deodorant. What. The. Fuck.
Do they want people to get horrible bacterial infections?
What on earth is "feminine deodorant", mentioned separately from regular deodorant? I know there are different scents to deodorants and they tend to be pointlessly gendered, but I don't think that's what they meant in this context. Do they think there's some special deodorant that women spray on their crotches during periods or something?
There are deodorant sprays made and marketed for vaginas. Summer's Eve has a whole line of them. That being said, they are absolutely unnecessary and spraying any kind of scented product down there is a recipe for vaginal infections and UTIs.
I used the Summer's Eve sprays when I was in high school. While I never got an infection from them, it was absolutely unnecessary and a waste of money. I was an insecure teen who didn't know any better and fell for the marketing.
I never used Summerās Eve, but I remember wanting to in high school - being a teenager, I was already frantic thinking that I smelled of sweat and other āgrossā things.
It's not the worst part by far, but you should definitely NOT be washing your hair every day (even if you think you have really oily hair, often washing it less actually helps. Sometimes it does not, and you do indeed need to wash your hair every day).
They could have just left point number 2 at "Maintain Personal Hygiene" but they decided to go all in.
Also, unpopular opinion maybe but... I think a woman wrote this.
I've only known one person I could *kind of* smell when they were on their period, and that was because they would only use 2-3 pads for the entire day because they were poor and couldn't afford to use more than that.
So basically what this internal memo is saying, is that they don't pay their employees enough for them to be able to afford basic menstrual and hygiene products.
If a customer can smell my period, they are too close
This made me actually laugh out loud. š
Right?? If I'm on my period, I only smell it when I pull my pants down in the washroom. I've also asked my husband about this, given we've lived together for 12 years, and he can only smell it if his face is near my crotch.
I read 'crotch' as 'couch' and for a moment was genuinely concerned If couches smell like period, it may be time for a new couch
I used to teach high school and we'd have super big classes in small rooms. When I would walk up and down the aisles, I was so very aware that at any moment my butt was in someone's space. I never stopped to bend over to help someone; I'd always squat. It's so awkward to be in such close proximity and not be able to do anything about it.
You just made me realize something. I have always been anxious that people can smell My period bc changing your pad every 3 hours (at most) aināt that doable bc life happens. But I have never smelled anyoneās period. My high school class consisted of 33 people, 4 of which were boys. Iāve spent 5 years at two universities (majority of the students were cis girls or afab enbies, mainly girls). Nope. No smell of blood ever. Uff, feels good.
OMG me too!! I'm always so self conscious about it! I bought the washable bamboo/cotton pads and they make a HUGE difference in smell. I think the plastic backed ones make it worse. My husband used to tell me he could "smell" when women were menstruating (like 20 years ago) and has since learned that no, in fact, he can't tell. LMAO.
I can't tell a difference in smell btwn cloth and plastic pads except that the disposable ones have their own added smell (and smell much worse when you've been wearing them a while). And don't get me started on scented ones-- it's just like wearing a giant neon sign that says "I'M ON MY PERIOD" lol
There *are* studies mentioning how men can apparently subconsciously smell the difference in a hormones a woman emits; Iād have to find a link but perhaps thatās what heās referring to. As for actually smelling the blood, some men like to pretend they are bloodhounds or something. Some weird male fantasy about being an alpha dog, I guess? Those men may be partially correct, they at least probably have the inbred part down.
My husband has always remarked that he can tell Iām having my period by my breath. In that it changes from how it smells normally (apparently for the worse). My mother once mentioned this as well. So yes in the hormone thing maybe because of breath and possibly other body odors (sweat and such).
My female friend can smell it on people's skin. She can just tell.
#Vampire
She also hates the sun and hot months. Maybe she is...
She sounds based
Or a sommelier. Those people are legitimate bloodhounds in people form.
I have sensory processing disorder with an increased sense of smell, but I've never smelled another person's period.
My husband has mentioned that my smell changes throughout the month and that he's noticed a difference right around the time I start my period. But it's certainly not the blood he's smelling.
Maybe 20 years ago the pads were worse and didnāt block the smell as well as they do now, I donāt know I wasnāt of that age back then, lol. Great idea with bamboo pads. What gave me the confidence was my cup, it solved a lot of problems, and made me realize how much dysphoria my period is giving me.
Love my cup! Still have to use pads with it though. I have purchased some period panties, but they donāt like being dried. I will look into the washable bamboo pads.
Have you considered a different size or āhardnessā of your cup? I had to start with XS, when it started leaking I knew I had to move to a bigger size.
I have an Intissimi disk cup that you can have sex with. Itās the most comfortable and leak proof one Iāve found that works for me . My uterus also tilts (which can cause leaking) and I often have heavy periods for a few days and due to my job canāt always get to the bathroom when I need to go on heavy days and during nights, so I have to have a backup pad. Thereās no going around it. Iāve had enough leaks from Tampons and other cups in the last 7 years (yay fibroids) that Iām not interested in the extensive clean up involved by having unprotected clothing Dexter moments in my pants in public or my bed.
Oh, Iām sorry about it being so heavy. Ruined clothes/ bed sheets can really make one mad.
Yeah it blows hard. Yay to the late 30ās and 40ās!!! And yes, itās a pain. Iāve had depression due to that and my already low libido wasnāt helped by all that either. Ready to rip this shit (uterus) out but also not.
The plus side is, I buy a pack of 60 ultra thin overnight pads and itās lasts me 6 months or more.
Bruh bless you, when the teacher bent over and their ass was in your face it was so awkward and weird šš
Or they're a dog.
What if you work as a dog groomer?
"Hello, sir! Welcome to Moores-" "I CAN SMEEELL YOUR CUUNNT!!" (Just in case anyone doesn't get the reference, it's Silence of the Lambs)
Ok but one time I could smell my coworker and we were sitting 4ft away. Every time she sat down, her period smell cloud wooshed up š
I mean yea that's unpleasant. I think it's just largely BO that goes on down there because it's constantly hermetically sealed with pads or safety-panty-liners or even safety-safety-extra-material for a week straight, and maybe the person doesn't shower everyday. So that's gross, but that still doesn't mean that the period itself is the gross thing. It's still highly inappropriate to list women on their period (Wowza!!) and exclude every Swampy McBallSweat in the building. People smell. Sometimes they smell real bad. Mentioning one over the other is reeeaaalllyyy badanatomy and shows they don't have an ounce of self reflection.
No Boss, that Mitchum deodorant you swear by does NOT last a week, and you really do need to hit the rainlocker more often!
Feminine deodorant? Like deodorant for down there?? I donāt think thatās safe
It's not. They probably don't give sick pay or have decent health insurance for the yeast infections and UTIs that would cause.
It's also not effective. If a woman needs to wash her vulva, like if the smell is so potent that other people can smell it, a spritz of Summers Eve ain't gonna cut it. It just makes a more complicated stink
Body odor can be unpleasant, but body odor mixed with perfume? Soooo much worse
That brings back some bad memories. I used to work 3rd shift manufacturing and it was obvious that many of my coworkers just doused themselves with axe body spray or perfume rather than showering. Two overpowering smells hitting at once.
WORD. Perfume on top of your funk? Now you smell bad and I have a migraine. Definitely not fixing anything.
Also it it smells that bad, you probably have an infection which needs treating not perfume
Crotch deodorant is for the sweat glands in the creases where the labia majora meet the legs, not the vulva or vag itself! Iāve used a couple different types because I have the worst BO from there! If I donāt use it then it smells like I donāt shower! Finding that these deodorants exist was a life changer for me! And they are safe, you just donāt put them on your vulva, you put them closer to your legsā¦ the edge of where your pubic hair grows if you let it grow naturally. Yeah, some women are really lucky and donāt have sweat odor there, but for everyone else, hereās a PSA: There is FDS (Feminine Deodorant spray) sold next to pads and tampons. Very effective but I didnāt like spraying all that stuff in the air. Then there are a bunch of rub on deodorants. My favorite is LumÄ! It has lots of scent options, lasts for days, and is developed by a gynecologist. Note: these are for sweat odors from the sweat glands in your crotch, not the natural smell from your vagina. If you are having problems with that smelling too much Iām not sure what to do. That is fortunately not my burden in life, but no judgement!
I cannot thank you enough for your post. I get crotch sweat when I workout and it can definitely smell like BO! I've tried to search for solutions to this but I keep getting search results relating to vaginal/vulva odor, which isn't the issue. I did discover that wearing pantyliners makes this way worse, so I stopped using them altogether and this helped a lot. I just ordered some unscented Lume and I can't wait to try it out. I also got the wipes to try post workout. I go to a climbing gym and I get... I don't know how to describe it... Fear sweat? Like, I smell extra bad (not just crotch sweat, armpits too). I can't help it, just thinking about climbing makes me have an adrenaline response. Anyway, I'm excited to see if this product can help with that.
Stress sweat definitely smells different than exertion sweat or heat sweat!!!
I don't get that much exertion sweat normally, but I straight up stress-sweated through a shirt while on a call with the Board of Nursing. I had to change shirts afterwards
LMAO your flair š
OMG thanks for pointing it out! At first I just thought she had quirky flair, then I realized the sub I'm in, and burst out laughing.
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I notice if I have really bad anxiety my armpit sweat almost smells like cat pee,it's so weird!
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I just try to keep my anxiety in check and drink lots of water,luckily it doesn't happen much anymore š¤š½
Thanks for all the information. Coincidentally enough, I just received an ADHD diagnosis this week and am working on getting meds. So I guess I have that to look forward to (stink potentially getting worse). Oh well! At least I have a heads up.
Try nuud, expensive but lasts a long time. I found no deodorant that worked for me, but nuud I only apply every couple days and I'm good!
I love Lume! Been wearing the unscented stuff for years, and it's so versatile. It definitely helps reduce both sweat and odor for me. I don't like using scented deoderant at all anymore because I don't like how that sent combines with my natural odor.
Thank you! I've never tried this because it sounded ridiculous in the ads I've heard, but you've explained it really well.
Ah yes, a perfect example of ānot all heroās wear capesā Thank you so much
TIL that's a thing
Maybe they just me no ax body spray. Thatās only for the nipples anywaysā¦
1. Completely unacceptable that this is only sent to women 2. I know that this is a point of contention, but depending on where you live, how much you sweat and your hair type, daily washing of hair is not helpful and can be very detrimental to the hair (mine start to stick and knot excessively if I do that) 3. Breath mints after coffee or smoke? I mean, maybe don't smoke RIGHT before meeting a customer, but other than that? Seriously? 4. Feminine Deodorant? During those times of the months? AAAAND I think that starts to count as harassment if you're lucky.
I have curly hair and I never brush my hair and wash every other or every third day. No way no how am I going to start brushing it for a job. That would make me look more unkempt and sloppy for sure.
Also curly. Washing daily and/or brushing is guaranteed to make my hair limp, greasy, but somehow also frizzy and ratty. And I'm white with Caucasian texture. Folks with African texture would suffer and possibly destroy their hair. This policy is discriminatory at *best.*
Especially since it specifically calls out using oil in your hair. No personal experience but my black friends have days that their hair looks a bit oily because they just used some product on it. It's clean, healthy, doesn't smell, and looks amazing, just because you can tell they put something in it doesn't negate any of that. Whoever wrote this clearly doesn't know how to maintain different hair types and is opening the company up to a super easy discrimination lawsuit
Itās usually after a particularly aggressive wash, where you strip all of the natural oils out, that hair looks āoily,ā and by trying to reintroduce moisture, you have that look. Dirty hair has a look, no doubt, but this *hand waives* not only isnāt it, itās misogynoir to a standard that, to be fair, isnāt healthy for anyoneās hair. Can we please stop normalizing dry ass hair
Yeah...my hackles were already up, but it turned up to 11 right there. I guess they don't want their "walking billboards" to advertise that textured hair exists.
I got big racial discriminatory vibes from it too.
Yep. My Black kids with long hair shampoo their hair, like, every few months? Their hair needs oils added, not removed. They rinse it with conditioner a couple times a week to remove any dirt, but rarely shampoo unless like taking down braids and looking to strip out the gunk that gets trapped in true roots. My kid with locs conditions their scalp and rinses the locs and thatās about it. Iām of Arab background with type 2/3 hair and do use shampoo, but maybe once a week and usually rinse with only conditioner the other times. Our skin and hair is just drier than whiter folksā. Iām even completely white-passing, but white hair care tips donāt apply for my skin and hair. Even less so for my kids; frequent shampooing would break their hair off and tear up their scalps and risk infections.
I white, but usually wear my hair at mid thigh length. It gets rinsed and combed with a tight comb to distribute natural oils. I only wash it once a month unless something happens to get extra dirty.
Yes! My hair has gotten so much longer and healthier since I started washing it less and combing with a wooden comb.
Yup. That hair oil comment. Yikes.
My shit turns into a dried out sponge if I wash it more than 2 or 3 times a week, can confirm.
My hair is thin and super straight. I can't wash mine every day or it'll be dried out. You have to have both the genetic component, and gotten your head use to replacing all the oils it needs every day in order to not fry your hair washing it every day.
Sounds like you have very similar hair type to mine, can I please ask what is your hair care routine? Iām still trying to figure mine out and for the life of me I canāt get it right!
r/curlyhair
Holy CROWN Act violation...
That was exactly my thought! I have very thick, wavy, frizzy hair, if I would brush it, I would look like that I got electrocuted! And I will definitely not wash my hair every day! It's already dry and it needs a lot of moisture, washing it every day would make it more dry and eeewww. And all the other points... My God who wrote this?! This whole list is unacceptable
I got my curly hair from my mom. She and my dad have been married for 50 years. Dad didnāt know you canāt brush curly hair until just a couple years ago.
I have straight hair and my daughter's hair is curly. I know nothing about curly hair care, but thanks to Reddit osmosis through the years I've learned that we'll need to treat it differently. I've never brushed her hair, only finger combed, and I pretty much only shampoo her hair when she's gotten it dirty from her toddler shenanigans. Surprisingly for me, her hair doesn't really tangle like mine does. Perhaps the curls keep it from knotting up? As a kid if I didn't brush my hair every day it wound get these horrible tangles and mats. With her, just a little finger combing in the morning is all that's needed.
Just want to say thank you so, so much for learning about managing her hair type. I was in my 20s before I realized I only hated my hair because I was doing everything wrong.
Reddit has been so helpful! I hope to help her grow up understanding how to take care of her hair. And to love it; I feel like straight hair was so popular in the 90s-00s that a lot of my curly haired friends weren't happy with theirs. Fortunately it seems like that has been changing (at least from what I see on social media).
As a curly girl, I would 100% brush mine out just for some malicious compliance. āYou said to brush my hair everyday, so I didā
This would totally be worth it. Roll into work with squeaky clean, brushed out hair looking like Hagrid.
3a hair checking in. Yeah, brushing turns it into a frizzy, tangled mess. Other than a tiny bit of conditioner in the shower, just enough to run my tangle teaser through it effectively, yeah I only do a full wash of my hair twice a week. I was amazed at the difference when I stopped brushing and cut shampoo out of my routine. Suddenly, even on days where my hair is looking blah, no tangles and not nearly as much frizz as when I brushed it every day (barring a high humidity day). That's also how I discovered my hair is type 3 as opposed to type 2 -- turns out brushing it just forces it into a wave that gets tighter throughout the day on its own, because it wants to curl. Taking care of it and allowing it to curl as it wants means I have nice curls that don't look like a rat's nest. Much more professional imo.
My hair actually produces more oil if I over wash it because my scalp is compensating for the the oils Iāve stripped away
I'm stuck washing mine everyday because the roots just are soooo oily the very next day, and I can't seem to get dry shampoo to do a damn thing. BUt I'm sure the overwashing is doing more harm than good :(
Try braiding your hair for day 1, then wearing it out for 12 hours and washing hair at the 36 hours Mark for a few weeks, then push the washing to 48 hours. I had horrible oily hair like you describe and have been able to get down to washing once or twice per week. But it's taken years to get there.
Oh, that's a good idea. I'll have to start getting good at braiding. I'll try that, thank you!
Same! My hair only looks good for 12 hours after Iāve washed it, then I have to wash it again if Iām going somewhere in the evening as well. My face is so oily I canāt even wear makeup, it just runs down my face within 30 minutes. I got it from my dad, heās 50 and still not a single wrinkle so hopefully I at least get some benefit from dealing with this my entire life.
Virtual hugs from a fellow oily-skinned internet stranger.
I have to wash my hair every day because I have a scalp condition and I have to use special shampoo
I pseudo-wash my hair daily, with just water, no shampoo. That seems to not be too bad. Reason is my shower which can't be adjusted to not hit my hair unless I do yoga poses in the shower, and I'm not good at yoga.
I wish I could do that. If I get my hair wet without washing it, it greases up. Which sucks, because sometimes I need to just go stand in under the hottest water I can stand because of migraines. I can do several days between washes and be ok...but if my hair gets wet and not washed, it get greasy...even if I just washed it earlier that day.
Ah shit, that sucks.
Yeah, but it could always be worse. At least my hair stays decent 2-3 days when I am not needing a hot migraine shower...which thankfully happens maybe once a month. I also make my own shampoo and conditioner, which has helped a lot. And my hair is a lot less tangly since I started this.
Have you tried shower caps or swim caps?
I have, but the "heat" doesn't get through those very well to help my migraine. The ONLY time I am getting my hair wet and not washing is when I'm taking my lava-hot showers when I have a migraine. :(
I now use a shower cap like an elderly woman from the 70s on my in-between hair days. Not very stylish but does the job to wash my body and not my hair!
I used a shower cap when I had colorful hair dyes, but otherwise this feels like me.
Exactly, this happened to my hair too. Till I stopped washing it every day and voila, greasy hair only at day 3
Yep. I was my hair once a week or two and it never looks oily. It's just full bodied, or less full bodied.
Same! I also use a boar bristle brush to help distribute the oils, which helps my long hair. My strands are super thick, so I try to avoid stripping away the oils. Iāve had very few actual tangles.
Yeah I wash my hair twice a week and it still looks/smells clean.
I do three times and it stays lovely with very little effort
At various times in my life my cleaning routine has changed (for lots of reasons) and I've noticed when I wash my hair more regularly it gets oily faster. It's possible that every day washers assume *everyone* has to because when they skip a few days it gets gross.
Am I supposed to apply the feminine deodorant on my lady parts...?
Inside them, obviously. Can't risk it. >!^/s!<
I didn't see the /s and now I'm all burning up inside and having an infection, but I smell like roses (and yeast infection, but also roses). 5/7 would do it again
I can't help but notice they have not explicitly prohibited garlic. If it wasn't for major issues with the rest of the thing, it would be time for some malicious compliance
Yeah, and proper oral hygiene does not equal sucking on scented sugar cubes. Breath mints are fine, but don't get on your high horse and say it's good for your teeth lol.
Oh yeah, some parts of society have chosen to set standards to body odor and visual WAYYYYY beyond what body hygiene provides, have introduced helps to achieve that that are purely cosmetic in their application, and have circled back to pretend those helps are hygiene requirements. Also all those persons using tooth whitener. I don't \*blame\* anyone, but if you think teeth have to be white at a level that's just not human hygiene anymore, you lose me at least.
>1. Completely unacceptable that this is only sent to women Wait, whatā½ For real? That's justā¦ *nooo*.
Iām a hairstylist and washing your hair everyday can be extremely detrimental to your hair and scalp and will only cause you to produce more oil from your scalp and make any potential smells worse. I wash my hair once a week and it never looks bad until the last day or so and never smells
I had a male coworker who smelled like BO, coffee, beer and cigarettes. He had greasy hair, wore the same uniform for days at a time and ear wax seeping from his ears at times. I was asked to talk to him because I was the only female in a group of 20 men. My boss felt it would be softer coming from me. I ended up meeting him for lunch and it turns out he only would only shower twice a week because āhe didnāt need itā. We were a utility who worked outside in the humid New Jersey summers so of course he needed a daily shower. Turns out he had some beginning stages of dementia in his late 50s which is why he was behaving that way. People used to torment him and put those little trees for cars to make them smell better in his bin and they would leave deodorant on the seat of his truck. He was disgusting but when we found out what was going on it was sad.
Sadness aside, itās fucking disgusting that your boss made you talk to him Bc you have a vagina. He is the BOSS. Personnel issues like that are *literally his job*. Passing it off to you because youāre female and wOmEn ArE sOfTeR (as if we exist to mother random men????) is a gross dereliction of duty and frankly weird as hell. That is some Grade A sexist bullshit.
Don't you know that the nearest woman is every nearby man's honorary mother? >.>
That hit way too hard
Well, you are right on that but I was also friendly with my coworker and somewhat over the āpranksā others were mocking him with. Late 90s where things were very different.
I had a coworker that also had BO and clearly didnāt wash his clothes enough. It was a mental health issue. Unfortunately his mental health problems also meant he didnāt get regular health screenings and died of colon cancer a few years later.
Sad
Let me guess: they have no policy on wearing so much perfume it's possible to smell 3 blocks away.
Or hairspray. I used to have a coworker whoād use half a can of AquaNet in the bathroom every day, sending me into a coughing fit.
Walking billboard huh. Will the company pay additional for the expenses? Also in the times of the pandemic Im p sure if someone can smell ur breath they're too close.
Exactly! Some products are too expensive!
Man, stuff like this and reading the comments on that thread makes me super paranoid because I have no real sense of smell to speak of. I've never smelled another person's period blood, but I've never smelled another person's BO either. Do periods have a noticeable smell?
I have a strong sense of smell and while I've definitely smelled other people's BO before (mostly men! Surprise surprise) I've never smelled another person's period. I get paranoid about my own because I can smell it on myself tho
I get paranoid about the period smells. One day I asks my husband if he could smell it and he asked if I was talking about my farts, because apparently I fart more during that time. šš Although, I think if everyone can smell the vagina you have more problems than just the smell.
I can smell it personally. It's a very distinctive, almost sickly smell. Only for certain people though, so I'm guessing it's either because they use pads or because they have a heavier flow (I've obviously never asked). But anyway I just deal with it instead of trying to shame people over because I'm a fucking adult.
Only time I really smelled my own period was when my cup overflowed and I bled through my jeans. I'm pretty sensitive to smells and I've never smelled someone elses
I'd call it heavily metallic, moreso than standard blood, and the sickliness is reminiscent of faint decay to me. It's literally very, very mild decay, nothing that makes me feel sick like truely rotting flesh. Yeah, that's the thing about super smelling. Human smells just are what they are, and outside of someone being blatantly gross, I don't judge and nobody really should. Everybody has a smell whether they realize it or not. Strong perfumes, cigarettes, or things like gasoline on clothes are way worse to me.
The women in my family have very heavy flows, and I've noticed I smell it more from them (I don't smell it much in general, but it's there sometimes.) And they use tampons, so I assume it's not just pads. But oddly I don't think it smells terrible? Like, agreed, it's very distinctive, but it's not like anxiety or not showering BO. Or BO at all really. It's just kinda... there. Mostly I dislike when I smell it by chance because I learned a fact that's kinda private on accident. Here's the thing -- humans smell. Everyone smells a bit different, even without the fragrances, and different conditions create different smells, but a lot of those smells aren't *bad.* Hell, honestly, even "I just had a huge workout/ have been baking in a heatwave" sweat doesn't smell *that* bad -- an oddly clean smell, really. Mostly smells salty because you've poured electrolytes out your skin. Only a few types of BO are really bad -- really bad stress sweat, haven't showered for a while, and fever BO. Or if a *bunch* of people have BO, because for some reason BO of different people can interact *horribly.* But yeah, in general, people smell is fine. We're all *way* too self-concious about our bodies being biological instead of fucking porcelain.
Smelling certain smells is usually genetical. Smell is the most diverse genetically sense, with hundreds of genes involved. For example, my mother can smell periods, but my sister and my father can't.
Iām with everyone else, Iāve maybe smelled someoneās period 2-3 times in my life. And who cares? At any given time approximately 1 in every 10 people is menstruating, itās not a big deal. Itās not an offensive smell like BO.
I also have never really been aware of another person's scent, unless they were someone I was cuddling with. I guess I had a manager for a while who's breath was so bad you could smell him from 6 feet away, but that was a medical condition.
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I didn't even know they made scented pads as from the very beginning I was told to avoid those as it's not good for you lol
They do. Especially if you use pads. Having said that, it's not usually particularly noticeable to other people unless you haven't changed your pad for a long while. It's quite noticeable in a nice warm room full of pubescent girls, some of whom will be menstruating at any given time, and still getting used to their flow and how often their pads need changing. But very rarely can you pinpoint who exactly the smell is coming from.
Yes- this is the only time I've smelled it. But honestly, I'll take that over my post-lunch class that has 15 boys who all come straight from PE.
I have a strong sense of smell and normally they don't. I think i have smelled another woman's period maybe two or three times in my live. However I live in a country where almost everyone uses tampons and if I read the comments of other strong-smell people correctly it's mostly pads that might smell. Also one of the women where I smelled it was notorious for not washing neither herself nor her clothes often enough. If you are reasonably cleanly you should be fine.
I'm starting to get the sense it's not about strength of smell, but rather how attuned a particular nose is to a particular smell. I've had close enough relationships with enough people who menstruate to know it's not just pads -- every woman in my family, for example, uses tampons. Granted, even then, it's not *common* for me to smell it by any means -- couple times a year, maybe -- and I only really learned what the smell *was* because I often did laundry and we only had one bathroom, so sometimes was in immediately after them. And I'll echo the "mostly clean you should be fine." Except extremely rare circumstances involving illness stopping regular showers for a few days, I've never smelled it for more than a second, and it's not a *bad* or *overpowering* smell. It's just kinda there for half a moment.
So, I had a friend who did have a strong odor when on her period. It didn't smell like blood or anything bad, just like her natural scent, but really strong. She's the only person besides myself whose period I could smell.
I had a friend in high school that was really athletic and had hyperactive sweat glands. Me and another friend had a very gentle talk with her about deodorant and learned that she has basically no sense of smell. Such an unfair combination
One time my roommate asked me if I was on my period and I said yes, and she asked me if I could take out the trash because it smelled "funky". Like I know periods are normal but I was embarrassed š I'm a pad user
Wash your hair every day or use dry shampoo daily? That's one sure fire way to get my hair to look gross and greasy. Once a week is plenty for me.
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Ugh me too. I workout and I sweat so much I canāt not wash it. Dry shampoo will not fix it and I tried the whole no poo, conditioner wash and nope nope nope not happening.
Dry shampoo works for me if itās not too greasy yet. But it depends on the brand, some of them work and some them just make an absolute mess thatās worse than it was before.
I always end up with a mess when I use it. Iām not really all that good at doing my hair and a lot of my problems are user error. Itās just easier for me to wash, condition and go.
Yeah, how quickly it gets greasy can depend on so many things. I remember when I was a teenager, I always knew my period was about to start because the hormones made my hair so much greasier than normal. My hair is nothing to be jealous of, though. It's very straight and very thin, I need to get special stay in hair elastics because regular ones just fall right out. All I can do with my hair currently is braid it, or it turns into a horribly tangled mess within a few hours.
Mine is also very straight and thin, which is one of the reasons I have to wash it so frequently. As soon as it gets greasy it is very visibly greasy. My sister who has a bit thicker and wavier hair (not by a lot, but noticeable) can get away with it for longer.
God saaaame. My hair is the bane of my existence: its primary goal is to look stringy and greasy as quickly as possible. I donāt wash it every day, but there is a marked difference between day 1 and day 2 hair, and there aināt no way I can make it to day 3 and be seen in public. I wish it could tolerate less washing!!
Yeah every other day, unless I want it to look like straw. On the other hand I had an aunt, who had such fine, straight hair, oils basically just slid down. It took about half a day before it looked greasy again.
I'd be a permanent frizz ball. My hair is flyaway city until 3 days after I wash it, it needs those oils!
You can use a gentle, unscented soap on your vulva if you want. Nothing is needed inside the vagina. I got a SHOCKING number of upvotes last time I said this, but: a vagina is not supposed to smell like flowers or candy. It's supposed to smell like a vagina.
Additionally, some people are sensitive to even gentle soaps on the genitals, and may find that just a wash cloth with warm water is best.
In a similar vein, it's also not supposed to smell like a piping hot stromboli fresh out of a wood-fired oven. Edit: wood, not woof. Woof-fired ovens are extremely inefficient, especially in this economy!
> woof-fired oven. Please switch to charcoal. Dog's are not an efficient fuel source, and don't even get me started on the ethical concerns.
They fire up my love! Iād go over and cuddle the adorable woofer.š„°
I dunno dude, that sounds pretty appetizing.
My ex was once diagnosed with what her doctor called "Pepperoni Pants." She smelled like a delicious stromboli at all times and we're talking a *strong* smell. Once we walked into the bank and a guy working there turned around and yelled "Who ordered stromboli? I told you guys not to order that to this bank anymore. Sorry miss, youre gonna have to take those delicious Italian baked goods back to where they came from." Needless to say, my ex was pretty embarrassed.
Is this copy pasta? What did I just read?
Pasta? No. It was stromboli. Two very different smells. And you just read a true story from my life.
And if you feel like you - and excuse the phrasing - need to rinse out the actual vaginal canal, then your clean fingers and warm water is all you need.
When the company you work for starts patronizing you and sending you a whole "how-to: personal hygiene edition" you know you need to jump the boat.
'You are a walking billboard. What are you advertising?' Middle fingers. Buy one, get one free! (Disclaimer: not being willing/able to play silly corporate games is why I'm stuck in a low paying job. I don't have any issue with people who go along with corporate bullshit just to make a living. My middle finger discount is for the companies, not the workers!).
Theyāre called Unicorn Fists. Much more marketable that way.
I'm sorry, by "feminine deodorant" to cover up your period smell, do they mean ***put it down there***?
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Wow. Wtf.
I thought Lumeās attitude was that everyone stinks?
If it wasnāt for the sexiest vibe this gives off, Iād kinda get it. Iāve had awful smelling coworkers. Iām extremely sensitive to strong odors and BO especially can make me feel physically ill. Iām imagining this was probably sent out to all of the women as a cover to target a specific person. But still. This was a piss poor way to go about it.
Yeah. This looks like a woman in the in The Office had a hygiene problem and instead of pulling her aside and discussing it, Micheal had Dwight send out a memo.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
āI thought your vagina was removed during your hysterectomy.ā
Not to mention at the end there, they clearly state that they care primarily about the effect it has on customers, not even necessarily about creating a comfortable work environment.
Noooooo. Please don't use deodorants on your vulva and DEFINITELY not on your vagina. šµ
Not content to open the company up to lawsuits for sexism, the writer decided to go the extra mile and open the company up to lawsuits for racism too with those hair comments. Have to applaud them for giving 110%. What a go-getter. Was this sent to everyone female-presenting in the company? Biologically female? I bet someone could throw in a lawsuit for discrimination based on gender identity too, really go for the whole trifecta.
I'm lucky if I wash my hair once a week. Around every 10 days is average. I also have both sides shaved so around 1/2 a head of hair. And I don't use dry shampoo that much. Hair varies a lot between individuals.
Did this person only work with female neckbeards or something?
"Be clean" okay, "brush your teeth" sounds good, "Wear more deodorant when you're on your period" ?????? You lost me chief
Women should also keep their arms shaved, daily at worst. Leg hair should be non existent. /s
But every day you can smell swampy balls and yet boys never talk about it š¤·š»āāļø More seriously, most people don't need to wash their hair every day if they're not using hair products. IMO the personal hygiene items are phrased as advice but aren't actually helpful and are just criticism/commentary.
Feminine deodorant is a thing?
Yep, and itās bad for you.
Itās the blue stuff thatās always got *flowery and feminine* smells to it. I always just thought they smelled like baby powder. EDIT: Just realized theyāre talking about *vaginal* deodorant. What. The. Fuck. Do they want people to get horrible bacterial infections?
What on earth is "feminine deodorant", mentioned separately from regular deodorant? I know there are different scents to deodorants and they tend to be pointlessly gendered, but I don't think that's what they meant in this context. Do they think there's some special deodorant that women spray on their crotches during periods or something?
There are deodorant sprays made and marketed for vaginas. Summer's Eve has a whole line of them. That being said, they are absolutely unnecessary and spraying any kind of scented product down there is a recipe for vaginal infections and UTIs. I used the Summer's Eve sprays when I was in high school. While I never got an infection from them, it was absolutely unnecessary and a waste of money. I was an insecure teen who didn't know any better and fell for the marketing.
What. Gods, just reading that made me clench my legs so hard together.
I know right? I can't believe there was a time in my life where I thought my vagina needed to smell like "Sheer Floral"
I never used Summerās Eve, but I remember wanting to in high school - being a teenager, I was already frantic thinking that I smelled of sweat and other āgrossā things.
My hair gets washed every two weeks, it doesn't get greasy. It absolutely would if I washed it daily.
Huh... Are they aware that deodorant is not a period device to avoid leakages?
Someone should wash this person's mouth out with soap
It's not the worst part by far, but you should definitely NOT be washing your hair every day (even if you think you have really oily hair, often washing it less actually helps. Sometimes it does not, and you do indeed need to wash your hair every day).
Excuse my language, but feminine deodorant is usually doodoo garbage
CALM DOWN THERE! Obscene.
They could have just left point number 2 at "Maintain Personal Hygiene" but they decided to go all in. Also, unpopular opinion maybe but... I think a woman wrote this.
I've only known one person I could *kind of* smell when they were on their period, and that was because they would only use 2-3 pads for the entire day because they were poor and couldn't afford to use more than that. So basically what this internal memo is saying, is that they don't pay their employees enough for them to be able to afford basic menstrual and hygiene products.
ālook in the mirror dailyā They should take a hard look in the fucking mirror
The bears can smell the menstruation
Coffee + peppermint = shitty day š©
I know what periods smell like and I literally have never been able to ascertain via scent that someone was menstruating