Joy & Austin 28: loss and mourning

[AliceInFundyland]

@Beermeet

What magic deodorant is this of which you speak?

I am one who sweats. No natural product ever pleased me. On the other end, the clinical strength ones make me really itchy - so that is a solid thumbs down for too many chemicals or additives or whatever.

Currently I am settled with a Dove variety. And it works fine. I agree with your philosophical standards. However, until I find the magical ethical solutions I stick to the things that are working.

Sweating and odor is one of those big ones - especially for us larger ladies.

[Beermeet]

21 minutes ago, AliceInFundyland said:

@Beermeet

What magic deodorant is this of which you speak?

I am one who sweats. No natural product ever pleased me. On the other end, the clinical strength ones make me really itchy - so that is a solid thumbs down for too many chemicals or additives or whatever.

Currently I am settled with a Dove variety. And it works fine. I agree with your philosophical standards. However, until I find the magical ethical solutions I stick to the things that are working.

Sweating and odor is one of those big ones - especially for us larger ladies.

I'm loving this one!  Better than anything.  I haven't tried the other scents. I figured the charcoal would help. I get sweaty and smelly.  Often having to reapply. Not with this one. Dry and smell good for over 24 hrs!  I've been using for 2 months, so, it's passing the time test.

 

[Bobology]

@Beermeet, just checked Amazon and they have that deodorant for $10/stick or $9/stick if you buy a pair. Is that price competitive? 

I have switched to fresh goat milk soap (with or without essential oils, no 'fragrance oils' allowed in my house due to my lungs) for hand wash, shower and shampoo. I have no complaints. I cut the bars in thirds and use only 1/3 at a time which saves a little bit of waste going down the drain as the bar is used.

If anyone knows why this may be bad for me please chime in.

[adidas]

Aussies, if you want a recommendation re deodorant, this stuff is amazing:

https://www.twigbotanicals.com.au/collections/deodorant-paste

My friend uses this one and says it is excellent:

https://www.nopong.com/

[Beermeet]

57 minutes ago, Bobology said:

@Beermeet, just checked Amazon and they have that deodorant for $10/stick or $9/stick if you buy a pair. Is that price competitive? 

I have switched to fresh goat milk soap (with or without essential oils, no 'fragrance oils' allowed in my house due to my lungs) for hand wash, shower and shampoo. I have no complaints. I cut the bars in thirds and use only 1/3 at a time which saves a little bit of waste going down the drain as the bar is used.

If anyone knows why this may be bad for me please chime in.

The deodorant was about $7 at Target.

I stopped lighting scented candles in my home.  The paraffin and artificial scent is definitely not good to breathe in. I read about it and was like, duh!  Now, I use a few eo's I like.  I like mint or lemon or eucalyptus, maybe a combo, and the lights on the diffuser keep me happy like candles do. Certified organic woth no pesticides only.  Otherwise, you're breathing those in too. Again, another duh moment for me!   

Your soap sounds lovely and great idea cutting it up! 

Edited July 27, 2019 by Beermeet

[SilverBeach]

12 hours ago, VelociRapture said:

I’m never as tempted to share personal photos on here as I am when the subject of dogs come up. I can’t bring myself to do it though just because privacy is my thing since welcoming my human child. 

My DD doesn't like me posting pictures of her cat,my grandkitty whom I dearly love. I thought she was silly for feeling like this, but it is her cat and I must respect her wishes. She doesn't have human children but she is very private.

[Ticklish]

I will happily accept healthier/safer beauty and hygiene product recommendations for myself or children. I've been trying to avoid parabens and sulfates, etc, but I have a hard time finding product recommendations that fit my Target-like budget and are easy to find. I also need to get a good skin care routine going. Mine has been lax lately and it's starting to show (depression can be such a bitch to deal with. I always feel like after dealing with it the majority of my life I should cope better. But I never do). 

[Quiver Full of Kittens]

9 minutes ago, Ticklish said:

I will happily accept healthier/safer beauty and hygiene product recommendations for myself or children. I've been trying to avoid parabens and sulfates, etc, but I have a hard time finding product recommendations that fit my Target-like budget and are easy to find. I also need to get a good skin care routine going. Mine has been lax lately and it's starting to show (depression can be such a bitch to deal with. I always feel like after dealing with it the majority of my life I should cope better. But I never do). 

I’m a pretty low maintenance sort of gal. I love Burt’s Bees peach and willow bark pore scrub. I follow it up with witch hazel on a cotton ball. It works well for my slightly oily skin that’s prone to massive pores. I use plain old sunblock after that, but I spend a lot of time outside in the Southern US. If anyone has good suggestions for face sunblock I’m all ears!  

 

[Jinder Roles]

4 hours ago, Bobology said:

@Beermeet, just checked Amazon and they have that deodorant for $10/stick or $9/stick if you buy a pair. Is that price competitive? 
 

You can find them discounted in TJ Max, Marshall’s and the like. 

I just bought 4 bars of local (Jamaican) natural bar soap. The main ingredients are aloe Vera, coconut oil, honey. They have sulfur, plantain, moringa, hemp and charcoal flavours. It feels soooo clean on my skin. 

I also recommend mixing Shea butter and coconut oil to moisturize. It’s a little heavy so I’d recommend it before bed

When it gets cooler I’m going to attempt the natural deodorant shift again ?

Edited July 28, 2019 by Jinder Roles

[dawbs]

25 minutes ago, Ticklish said:

I will happily accept healthier/safer beauty and hygiene product recommendations for myself or children. I've been trying to avoid parabens and sulfates, etc, but I have a hard time finding product recommendations that fit my Target-like budget and are easy to find. I also need to get a good skin care routine going. Mine has been lax lately and it's starting to show (depression can be such a bitch to deal with. I always feel like after dealing with it the majority of my life I should cope better. But I never do). 

I've been using this:
https://smile.amazon.com/Garnier-Fructis-Damage-Repairing-Minute/dp/B079QD4XD4/ref=sr_1_7?keywords=garnier+hair+mask&qid=1564279963&s=gateway&sr=8-7
(I do NOT pay that much.  Also, it comes in tiny sizes for cheap, so you can buy oneand see if you like it before you buy the big one.)
Paraben free and 'natural' (depending on your definitions.)
As a 2x a week conditioner (leave on for like 3 minutes)--it's a bit to heavy for my stick-straight-baby-fine-and-thin hair to use every day.
I need to try one of the other flavors, because I don't love the smell.  But the smell doesn't 'stick'

[Beermeet]

12 minutes ago, Jinder Roles said:

You can find them discounted in TJ Max, Marshall’s and the like. 

I just bought 4 bars of local (Jamaican) natural bar soap. The main ingredients are aloe Vera, coconut oil, honey. They have sulfur, plantain, moringa, hemp and charcoal flavours. It feels soooo clean on my skin. 

I also recommend mixing Shea butter and coconut oil to moisturize. It’s a little heavy so I’d recommend it before bed

When it gets cooler I’m going to attempt the natural deodorant shift again ?

Oooo, TY for the tip (s).

I'm a big fan of cocoa butter. TBH, Palmer's is my decades long go to favorite.  Their belly balm saved me from stretch marks. I used faithfully during and after pregnancy.  I developed some but they went away.  I've been using Palmer's since high school.  I haven't read the ingredients in a long time and quite frankly, don't want to just in case! Lol. It works so well on my olive skin.  I can be oily but also dry out fast. Stuff works!  

I can't seem to find Queen Helene mint julip mask. Man, that is my facial product I miss.  I'll have to check the internet.  My skin loves that stuff.  Their shea and cocoa butter cream are terrible though! Palmer's baby!

[pippi]

@Beermeet if you like the Schmidt's charcoal, I think you'd also like Alaffia's coconut reishi activated charcoal deodorant. I like Schmidt's, but it's a little thick/pasty for me and I like that the Alaffia is a little thinner/smoother in texture. It comes in different scents; I adore the bergamot. Usually around $6 at Target or Whole Foods. 

I feel like I should add a disclaimer that I don't tend to get very sweaty/smelly (unless my S.O. is REALLY lying to me) so I can't totally speak to strength, but I'd imagine anything with charcoal is pretty good. Most natural deos have worked for me, except for Tom's, which I swear was the only time I've ever noticed my own body odor. My friend and I both swear that Tom's actually makes people more likely to smell...

[JanasTattooParlor]

3 hours ago, Quiver Full of Kittens said:

I’m a pretty low maintenance sort of gal. I love Burt’s Bees peach and willow bark pore scrub. I follow it up with witch hazel on a cotton ball. It works well for my slightly oily skin that’s prone to massive pores. I use plain old sunblock after that, but I spend a lot of time outside in the Southern US. If anyone has good suggestions for face sunblock I’m all ears!  

 

I also live in the South and have oily skin and I use Cetaphil’s Oil Absorbing Moisturizer. It has 30 SPF in it in addition to bring a great moisturizer for oily skin. It goes on really light and when I put a little powder on over it when I put my makeup on, my skin doesn’t get so shiny.

[LacyMay]

I haven't jumped on the healthier/safer products train fully yet. But I've been making a huge effort to go for cruelty free products and I've often found a fair bit of overlap. 

I'm also a huge burts bees fan and Toms of Maine for Toothpaste. 

I'm using the schmidt's deoderant but I sometimes find it irritates my skin when I put it on after showering/shaving.... has anyone else ever had that problem? 

Other brands I love 

Alba Botanica (shampoo/conditioner), nude by nature (makeup), Pur (Makeup), Pacifica (skin) but I have a super hard time finding pacifica products in Canada and it hurts my spirit. 

 

[Beermeet]

9 hours ago, LacyMay said:

I haven't jumped on the healthier/safer products train fully yet. But I've been making a huge effort to go for cruelty free products and I've often found a fair bit of overlap. 

I'm also a huge burts bees fan and Toms of Maine for Toothpaste. 

I'm using the schmidt's deoderant but I sometimes find it irritates my skin when I put it on after showering/shaving.... has anyone else ever had that problem? 

Other brands I love 

Alba Botanica (shampoo/conditioner), nude by nature (makeup), Pur (Makeup), Pacifica (skin) but I have a super hard time finding pacifica products in Canada and it hurts my spirit. 

 

I got irritated twice.  I have no idea why. Those two days were like any other.  My guess is maybe I used a duller razor. 

[front hugs > duggs]

I've been using Love Beauty and Planet for shampoo/conditioner/dry shampoo.  I tried Primal Pit Paste for deodorant, but felt it didn't keep me dry enough. I like my charcoal deodorant from Primally Pure, and they also sent me three natural chapsticks which I really like. I also started getting my make up from Tarte. All their make up is vegan and they don't test on animals. I'm not super into make up, so I don't feel justified spending a ton of money on it, but Tarte has these deals every so often where you can choose like 6 different products and they send it in a make up bag for you for about $45 I think. 

It's been hard for me to start spending more money to get some of these products because I never prioritized this stuff before. Part of the depression I was experiencing was not really caring about myself, and not prioritizing self-care. I am working on this, and now feel that I am actually worthy to spend some extra money to treat my body well.

[closetcagebaby]

I know we’ve moved past the nail thing but I really want to show my new set off...

 

Spoiler

 

 

[llg1234]

I don't quite understand why aluminium in deodorant is supposedly bad for you, but activated charcoal wouldn't be? They're both 'natural'.

[Zebedee]

I have fine, slightly wavy hair (though in my case, wavy is a euphemism for "disobedient"). My hair won't grow much past my shoulders, frizzes "wavily" when the humidity goes about 30%, if I get rained on, it curls up into a weird dry-looking greasy mess, and however long even my hairdresser spends styling it, as soon as I step into the underground, the wind from the trains make it stick up on end - the styling products suddenly start to work, and I have to walk around with my hair perpendicular to my face. The only thing that kept it holding its style long enough for, e.g. a wedding and associated pictures, was straightening it. And not wearing a hat, otherwise I'd be stuck with hat hair all evening.

I had nearly all of it cut off, and wow, is my life improved!

Weird question: I'm not particularly sweaty, nor peri-menopausal, but in the last few years, I seem to have developed a very sweaty scalp, even when I'm not hot. And once hot, the only way to cool down is to stick mt head in cold water. I'm sure it started when I was on quetiapine a few years ago, though I've had none for 2 years. The steroids I was on last year made it worse, but again, off them for a year now. Just taking venlafaxine, which was fine for years, so it's probably not that. Does anyone else have a sweaty head???

[xlurker]

17 hours ago, Beermeet said:

Queen Helene mint julip mask

Sallys beauty supply carries it   

[Beermeet]

3 hours ago, xlurker said:

Sallys beauty supply carries it   

I love you. ?❤

6 hours ago, llg1234 said:

I don't quite understand why aluminium in deodorant is supposedly bad for you, but activated charcoal wouldn't be? They're both 'natural'.

Just because something is "natural" doesn't make it safe to put on or in our bodies.  It's how our bodies react to any substance that determines safe vs. not safe. 

[Kelsey]

Walmart stocks both Schmidt's and Native deodorant which are awesome. The only natural options that have worked for me (overweight, Southern dweller). I have to use the sensitive skin variety.

For shampoo and body wash, we use a brand called Renpure. It's sold at both Target and Walmart and is super affordable.

[llg1234]

1 hour ago, Beermeet said:

Just because something is "natural" doesn't make it safe to put on or in our bodies.  It's how our bodies react to any substance that determines safe vs. not safe. 

And aluminium has been proven safe time and time again for people who are not allergic, so my question still stands. 

[Beermeet]

1 hour ago, llg1234 said:

And aluminium has been proven safe time and time again for people who are not allergic, so my question still stands. 

Well, for me personally,  I'm trying not to use products that normally wouldn't contact my body and get into my system.  Charcoal has been used in the body forever.  Idk, you can read up and decide what's best for you or get a ton of testing to know in advance.  Or both. Concrete evidence is usually not there, even if it is, the US allows certain chemicals ( "natural" or not)  to be in our products that many other countries do not.  I used to not know that and I once I did, I started reading and decided to change some things. I don't necessarily trust big pharma or corporations putting my health over profit. Not to be a nut or anything but it is true. Ultimately, it's a personal choice, I guess. 

Edited July 29, 2019 by Beermeet
Used more descriptive words instead of "it". :)

[allthegoodnamesrgone]

My biggest issue with the natural deodorants is how hard they are to put on, I have some of the Schmidt's, Native & Tom's they about rip the skin off on my underarms, I've tried "warming" them up with my body heat, or a hair dryer nothing seems to help, that stuff is just HARD. I bought this product called Lume It works OK, but it is very sticky, it comes in a cream form, the problem is it smells like rotten ass, I HATE HATE HATE lavender so I got the unscented and I just can't get past the stink, and how sticky and difficult it is to use. It works, once you get past the initial application and drying, but you have to get through that.