Yes, body odor. We all have it (come on, you know you do), we’ve all smelt it on others, and yet, no one seems to know how to have the conversation. As the founder of a deodorant company and having spent 24 months researching body odors, scents and ingredients I’m confident I have the tools to start the conversation. And to me, that would be success. Let’s start talking about body odor (and sweat!) and how to have respectful yet honest conversations. And, let’s make sure we are suggesting and using safe, natural and effective products to help us feel fresh and clean all day.
So where do we start? I’m going to give you 3 key tips to have the conversation in a respectful and caring manner. Your first tip, is to be used with kids.
1️⃣ Wherever and whenever possible, start the conversation prior to your kids actually having BO.
Please trust me on this one! With 3 kids, I learned too late the difference in having the conversation prior to vs after the fact. With my first two daughters, and without knowing better, I missed my opportunity. I introduced deodorants to both kids after we realized they needed something to help with odors. Hence, no matter how much I tried to make the experience fun and enjoyable, the message was (because there was no option, they needed to wear it) “make sure you have deodorant on before you leave home!”. The message sounded remedial and almost “you better or”, which was not my intent. Fast forward to my third daughter, and I learned quickly. I introduced deodorants in Junior Kindergarten and as part of her self care routine (along with learning how to shower by herself). In addition to using body wash and body lotion after a shower, using deodorant became a natural part of our shared routine and instead of feeling remedial, felt fun and “normal”. Win for me!
2️⃣ Decouple the smell from the person.
Whether you are having a conversation with your child, or perhaps if you need to have the conversation with someone at work (a team member who is not aware of their odor), it’s best to decouple the smell from the person. What do I mean by this? How do we do this? It’s actually simple. Start with a caring and emphatic sentence like “I’m not sure if you are aware or not, but there is an odor that is attached to you. I am wondering if we can work together to help make sure the smell stays at home, and you bring your wonderful self to wherever it is you need to be!”
3️⃣ Recommend natural, aluminum free products, and encourage sweating!
Quite often I am asked if my products will stop kids (and parents!) from sweating,
and I always respond with an emphatic “no!”. It’s important to remember that we need to sweat, and we definitely do not want to use products that will clog our pores under our arms. I know sweating can be uncomfortable, it can show through clothes and it always seems to appear when we really don’t need that type of attention! The fact is, women sweat just as men do (sometimes more!) and we need to start normalizing this! Sweating is ok, its just the odors that are not! Using all natural deodorants will help to eliminate unscently odors and will ensure you are feeling fresh all day long (even while you sweat!)
Let us know if any of these tips work!
