Asklemmy

This thread’s kind of depressing to read. Come on people-- this is basic hygiene/consideration, it’s not rocket science. Brush your teeth (and tongue) when you wake up and before you go to sleep. Shower every 1-2 days (use soap everywhere below your face), and wear deodorant if you’re going to be around people especially indoors.

i'm hope i don't come off as aggressive or anything, not my intention. just remember that those things aren't easy for everyone (but i agree, definitely more considerate).

i don't brush often due to many health problems, one major one being OCD. i can only brush during certain time slots, which rarely occur. i know my breath is atrocious. fortunately, i imagine a mask helps. i'm also not around people often.

i shower every 3-4 days, sometimes less often (though i don't like showering less often). i also don't use much soap unless i'm taking my eczema medication or waxing. and of course i use soap in the private areas, because i've had c. diff.

might sound gross, but i've asked honest people and they swear i don't smell. and they're the kind of people who have told me when i do smell. they know about my bathing habits. i just don't smell (breath i'm sure stinks though, i haven't asked because i know). if i did smell i would definitely do something about it. like our stomach, we have probiotics on our skin, and if our skin biome is healthy we generally won't stink. now being that i have eczema i probably don't have the best skin biome, but there's certainly something good there. when my physical health issues were EXTREMELY severe and i hadn't bathed in two months, my partner at the time told me i didn't stink. and it wasn't to be kind, she was genuinely surprised because, you know, two months without bathing, a person should probably stink.

there's a guy in my building who always stinks. from conversations it seems he showers several times a day. i suspect he has a medical condition that i desperately wish he would get checked out, because i've nearly vomited around him several times. i know him well enough to know he's on medicaid, so this is something that would be covered.

so everyone's different. some of us can get away with showering less frequently, others can't. i believe there's a gene that makes your sweat not smell. just know your body and do your best not to be stinky imo

I've actually read that using soap everywhere actually might be harming our skin barrier if showering every day. It seems soap on the armpits, genitals, and any stinky parts are the only place you should wash daily.

The article in question: https://web.archive.org/web/20220121065824/https://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/25/magazine/my-no-soap-no-shampoo-bacteria-rich-hygiene-experiment.html

Also, haven't read it yet, but "The Joy of Sweat" by Sarah Everts seems like a good look at sweat.

But also, yeah use deodorant around other people. I'd suggest something unscented because really fragrant smells can be just as aggressively stinky (in the opposite way) as natural sweat.

It’s one of those things where I think it just boils down to being considerate of others, and realizing that using deodorant is a pretty small measure to take in order to prevent creating an unpleasant experience for other people.

Yeah. I forgot to add "(unless if the smell causes problems)" to my post.