Will Green is a swim coach, athlete, and active member of the Jonesboro community. For as long as he can remember, Will has struggled with excessive underarm sweat. “I go through more shirts than anyone I know,” explained Will. “Even if I’m wearing clinical-strength antiperspirant, deodorant, an undershirt, whatever - I’ll still sweat through my shirt within an hour or so.”
Most people sweat in their underarms when they exercise - Will doesn’t even have to get moving to get sweaty. “I can be sitting down in a t-shirt, just working on the computer, and I’ll still sweat through it.” This is why Will was more than willing to volunteer to get a free miraDry® treatment!
As the only FDA-approved, non-surgical, permanent solution for underarm sweat, hair, and odor, miraDry® can be life-changing for patients like Will. Will has been dealing with excessive sweat for most of his life. Every day, he goes through extensive measures to keep sweat at bay - taking multiple showers, reapplying deodorant an average of 6 times per day, and keeping multiple shirts in his car at all times. His hope is that miraDry will enable him to stress less about sweat so that he can enjoy everyday activities more freely.
We asked Will a few questions as he was getting his miraDry treatment done this week. Read on to learn how excessive sweat has impacted Will day to day, and stay tuned for a later post to learn how miraDry® has impacted Will’s life!
What do you have to do every day to prevent excessive sweat from getting in the way of daily life?
“When I shower, as soon as I get out, I have to dry my armpits and have to put on antiperspirant right then - otherwise it won’t be effective. I have to plan out what I’m wearing throughout the day - If I have to be in a specific shirt by mid-morning, I don’t put that shirt on in the morning. I’ll wait until right before to change into it. I keep 5-6 shirts in my car at all times.
It takes a lot of planning… and a lot of time.”
When did you first start experiencing issues with underarm sweat?
“I think I first noticed it in junior high. Back then, I compensated by wearing much bigger clothes. It really started to affect me in high school, because that’s when I started wearing clothes that actually fit. The style back then was to wear undershirts under your polo that matched your polo - so I had 3-4 undershirts in my backpack that I’d change into throughout the day.”
How often do you have to reapply antiperspirant?
“Oh, all the time. I keep deodorant in my car, in my backpack, in my work bag, one at home… I’ll shower 2 or more times a day, and then I still have to I clean my armpits between showers to keep them fresh. I’ll reapply after every shower, any time I change shirts… I’m putting antiperspirant/deodorant on at least 6 times a day.”
How has sweat affected what you wear?
“For work, I have to wear dryfit. Dress clothes, I have to be really picky. I’ll often take a water bottle with me, so that when I’m trying on clothes, I can test how the fabric will react to being wet.
I can’t just buy clothes online, because I have no idea that it’s going to be something I can actually wear until I feel the fabric. I can wear a shirt for like 20 minutes before I sweat through it, so I need to be able to know that the fabric will be okay.
If I have to wear a specific shirt for an event (like if I’m volunteering or wearing a team shirt) - I have to ask them to buy another shirt because I know I’m going to need it.”
Do you think you spend more money on clothes because of sweat?
“Definitely. Because of the sweat stains, and the deodorant stains too. If I never wore deodorant, my shirts would probably last longer. The aluminum in deodorants like Certain Dri kills your clothes - it changes their color and leaves stains that won’t wash out.”
When do you sweat the most?
“I mean, all the time. Obviously when I work out, I’ll sweat from everywhere. But sitting and doing nothing is sometimes the worst - if I’m just hanging out at home, but I want to wear the shirt I’m wearing later, I’ll change into a different shirt just to sit there and then I’ll change back into my original shirt.”
What are some of the most extreme measures you’ve taken to reduce or hide your sweat?
“In the summer - I’ll start my car 20 minutes early and run the AC on high, and then drive with my arms up so that they don’t start sweating. If I have to speak or give out awards, I’ll wear rags in my shirt sleeves until I have to get in front of people.”
What about other big events?
“At my brother Spencer’s wedding, I rented two extra shirts to go under the suit, and then I had like 10 undershirts for that day. During breaks, I would hold my shirt up to the vent to try and dry it out. I’ve thought a lot about how this would affect my own wedding and other big events in my life.
Recently, my friends and I were at a St. Patrick’s Day event. I carry a backpack with me all the time so that I can have deodorant and extra shirts with me, but at this event they didn’t allow backpacks. Once you start sweating, you can put something over it, but you can’t really do anything else. Because I couldn’t change, I had sweat through all my clothes and there was nothing I could really do about it. We ended up leaving early. I didn’t tell my friends, but that’s why I was ready to leave the event.”
How has sweat affected your confidence or self-esteem?
“I’m pretty stable as far as my self-image goes, but I work with kids every day for hours. If I wear a cotton shirt, they’ll call me out for my ‘pit stains’ which can be distracting and sometimes get under my skin. I think it also changes how people perceive you. A lot of people don’t have this problem, and if they see large sweat stains, they might think, “Ewww,” or assume I’ll smell bad.”
What have you tried to deal with this problem?
“In high school: Spray deodorants, gel, etc. This was before clinical strength was big on the market. Just when I thought I had found something that worked, it’d leave residues that would bother me or it’d stop working.
There’s a section in Walmart that has the ‘extra strength’ stuff, and I’m pretty sure I have bought all of those. They didn’t really work any better than the regular deodorant/antiperspirants so I stopped using them.
Have you ever seen a doctor about it?
“I’ve mentioned it to doctors before (mostly in high school), and they basically just said, “Some people are sweatier than others.” I knew that some people did Botox for it, but I wasn’t interested in trying Botox for this because I knew that it would only last a few months and I assumed it was expensive.”
