Aibu to ask how people manage to smell nice?

[Lostatseason5]

I'm a bit overweight and a bit sweaty :( I have been suffering from depression and although I was managing to drag my ass to work every day I wasn't always showering. :( My new year's resolution was to shower every day. I've been doing this but I still feel unfresh by afternoon, I have colleagues that smell AMAZING! I am too embarrassed to ask them how! Aibu to ask for those of you who are always smelling great your "secret" I now shower each morning wear deodorant but I don't wear perfume as I feel I put too much on, but I'd happily wear one of anyone can recommend a fresh one not overpowering - this will probably sound horrendous that grown adult is asking for help with this but depression can be really debilitating and .trying very hard so of you could be kind I would be grateful thank you (i'm.nearly crying writing this!)

Try showering the night before then put deodorant on. I've read that this is how it's supposed to be done? Works for me. If I shower in the morning (usually rushed) I end up being a sweaty mess!
Clean clothes including bra, hand cream and perfume

I used to take a toothbrush to work and clean my teeth again at lunch and have a spray.

Maybe try a Charlie or impulse spray? Or places like the body shop do body mists like strawberry etc.

Remember too that you won't stink. You also won't be able to smell your own nice smells as much as others will. Sometimes I get told my hair smells nice. It's my argan oil conditioner. I can't Smell it.

Polos
Spray
Toothbrush
Hand cream
Xx

Well done for sticking to your resolution. My hygiene always takes a dip when my mood does so I appreciate the concern you have.

Some great tips already mentioned.

I find having enough bras to change every day really helps me. One can air for a day and then be reworn if you don't have enough. I also use a medicated talc under the breast area to keep things dry.

Mitchum stuck deodorant is the best I've tried. I like the powder fresh one that smells like baby powder.

A while ago I read that soap makes you smell cleaner than shower gel and I think this is true.

A clean smelling perfume like CK one (so nineties, but I had a sniff in the airport recently and I loved it all over again) or DKNY woman (if I recall correctly). I do a spritz on the wrist and two on the neck.

I love Imperial Leather soap,I feel squeaky clean after using it and the smell lingers too.

Dove maximum protection stick stops me sweating, I don’t like perfume and only started wearing it in middle age to cover my old lady smell, Jo Malone already mentioned is my favourite. Essential oils are good too - A few drops on wrists and neck, lavender or myrrh are nice and not overpowering.

I like a sprinkling of nice scented talcum powder after my shower. The scent seems to stay longer. I don’t put it down below, just in the cleavage area which tends to sweat more.

Basic hygiene is the most important for staying fresh. Shower daily, roll on deodorant, natural fabric clothes and if you're prone to discharge a panty liner.
Fresh clothes every day.

Also agree on bedding. If your selection is old get yourself two new sets of lovely, beautiful, cosy bedding. In full cotton with as high a thread count as you can afford (Home Sense is good for good quality bargains, as are Dunelm or Sainsbury’s when sales are on), and wash them weekly. It feels great to change your bedding on a Sunday ready for the new week (or maybe change it on Friday night so you get to have nice, fresh bedding for the weekend). Get new pillows and make sure you have a mattress protector and pillow protectors as well so that your mattress stays clean and your pillows don’t get manky.

(Sorry if some or all of this is stuff you already know or do or have done.)

Roll on deodorant > spray on for preventing smelly sweat. Body mist > perfume for a 'clean' smell, i'd recommend a fruity one for the fresh feeling. Washing your hands often and perhaps a scented hand moisturiser. Tic tacs. I'm slim but have a physically demanding day to day life so I'm always a sweaty, I don't always have time to shower daily either. I've found perfume ends up smelling musky after a while and spray on kinds of just masks the smell of sweat instead of preventing it. No big deal, everybody sweats ! Also, you'll smell yourself more because you're paranoid about it. You likely don't smell very bad.

Lots of good advice here (showering but also especially not re-wearing clothes if you tend to be sweaty. You can't smell them but they smell of dirty laundry to others)

You asked for perfume recommendations and I've recently re-discovered some that I'd like to share. I usually use expensive Dior/ Chanel/ Gucci/ YSL brands but on a whim picked up an Elizabeth Arden floralish one (Green Tea and something.. maybe Orchid) from TK Maxx for £10. I decided to give it a go because I wanted something I could use after showing at the gym but didn't want to pack my more expensive bottles just for that purpose.

Anyway, all I can say is, it's a lovely subtle scent and doesn't break the bank if cost is an issue for you. I get compliments on it when I wear it.

Good luck OP, it's a good question. I often have these "how do other people adult so well" type questions pop up in my mind.

To me people who smell nice are the ones free from all artificial scents but just clean. Wash daily, clean clothes, non-scented soaps, washing powders, anti-perspirants etc. Just human and clean.

If you shower every day, and wear clean clothes every day, it’s unlikely you smell. I use mens’ Right Guard deodorant, I find it better than a women’s one, and it smells really fresh. I also wear perfume, but I probably smell more of fabric conditioner than anything else.

I do not use deodorant, but that rock stuff.

So straight after a shower (scrub those pits) rub the rock over the wet skin,

then apply a spritz of perfume.

It works so well for me that get no BO even if I miss a shower.

"When wet and applied to clean skin, the mineral salts in crystal deodorant prevent the growth of odor-causing bacteria, Agarwal explains. However, crystal deodorant doesn’t actually stop you from sweating, which for a lot of sweaty dudes out there, might be a problem."

Other tip: I always wash my feet and apply roll on before I put on sports socks or whatever, for fragrant shoes and trainers.

I actually agree on ‘clean’ smell versus highly perfumed - I don’t routinely wear actual perfumes either. I just buy cheapish ‘fragrance sprays’ or ‘freshening mists’ instead. I prefer a very light freshness.

OP, well done on keeping going. You sound like a lovely person.

I noticed my body smell changed going through the menopause. So I think it’s quite possible that depression or stress can change how you smell, but also very possible that only you notice it!

I shower twice a day (hair wash once a day....I swim every day so I wash it after a swim). I don’t use perfume but I do use a lightly scented body lotion and also a scented hand cream quite a bit through the day, and it’s nice when you get a whiff of that.

Mitchum roll on deodorant under the arms seems to work for me. I keep un scented baby wipes on me too for under boob storage area sweating.

Bamboo knickers are brilliant. Much better than cotton for me.

I wonder if diet can also affect your body odour? My mum sometimes smells “odd” - kind of musty - even though I know she showers daily and always wears clean clothes. She is diabetic (not well controlled sadly) and I’ve sometimes wondered if her poor diet is a factor. Just a thought ...do you look after yourself in terms of food quality, plenty of fresh vegetables etc?

I really wish you the best OP. You can do this

How overweight are you? Until I lost two stone and sorted out my diet, i was also not so fresh by midday. I used wipes and reapplied my anti perspirant. I also freshed up my feet.

Go for a day out around Debanhams and spray perfume onto you.

I like fragranced body creams. I tested different ones. The body shop's Indian Midnight Jasmine suits me. The better condition your skin is in, the better you smell. That includes feet, it can be dry/dead skin that causes foot odour.

It might seem like a lot of self care, but it will do you the world of good.

OP, if you are showering every day you might be imagining the "unfreshness". I mean, it's quite normal to by mid-afternoon not feel freshly showered anymore. When you are overweight though (I know from experience) you can get the feeling that sticky sweat is trapped between skin folds etc, or if your clothes aren't fitting well it can feel as though they're rubbing and chafing on sweaty areas - but it doesn't necessarily mean you smell. I do agree with others that apart from showering changing into fresh underwear, freshly washed or possibly properly aired clothes and having clean hair matters to how people smell.

However, sickness, stress and changing biology (age, puberty) can make your sweat smell more IME and this more pungent smell can get trapped in your clothes. A top can be freshly washed but after a few hours wear the stale smell comes off it. It might need hot washes to get it out so sometimes people need to change laundry habits.

A person close to me had lazy showering habits, mostly doing a pits and bits scrub (I surmised) while being very physically active, thus beginning to smell stale all over. When they complained about towels smelling after being used once I had an opening to insinuate that perhaps that was due to the fact that the still-dirty, but wet, old skin cells were being scrubbed off with said towel so no wonder it smelt.

Roll on deodorant.Mitchum is good for excessive sweating.Scented body lotion and expensive perfume.

"I've sometimes wondered if her poor diet is a factor."

It is. There's been studies done on this.

For sweaty feet (or when Im not wearing sock or tights) I put antibacterial hand gel on my feet before putting my shoes on. You won’t sweat that much and definitely won’t smell.

I improvised on the tip given to my DDs’ by their coach to put antibacterial hand gel on before they put their boxing gloves on to prevent smelly gloves 😀

Another thing is that your clothes probably need washing on 40 degrees otherwise bacteria can remain.

Agree with everyone else that your best bet is to just try on loads of perfumes and sprays until you find one that is light and fresh enough for you.

Self care is so important, well done for sticking to your resolution and for having the courage to ask for help.

I use bar soap (Dove Grapefruit at the moment) with a body/shower puff.

Moisturiser after shower or bath

On my cleavage, neck, shoulders and arms I use my favourite perfume body lotion (you know those that come with perfume in a gift set) I find this lady much longer than the perfume itself. I do also use a small amount of perfume which I squirt on my hair, just one spritz above my head and let the fragrance fall.

A nice smelling hand cream to be used after hand washing.

I have a strong sense of smell, the thing I smell most on people is fabric conditioner 🤣 so I think clean clothes every day, washed using a good fabric conditioner can make a person smell nice.

I go to the gym every day and often wonder how people manage to stay smelling nice whilst working out, this is where I struggle as I find myself getting pretty smelly after an hour on the treadmill.

I think you need to top up the deodorant/body spray at lunch time, find a perfume you like and use a nice fabric conditioner on your clothes..... oh and shower at least once a day.

Don't wear a bra for more than a day. They're full of artificial fibres and pick up boob and armpit sweat.
Don't wear the same shoes for 2 consecutive days. Leave one pair at home to air and put some nice smelling spray inside them.