Woman Whose Body Odour Was So Bad Shares Her Sad Ordeal

A mother-of-one who tried to mask her excessive sweating by taking five showers a day has revealed how she's now resorted to surgery in a bid to halt the problem.

Aremilda dos Santos, 31, from Mogi das Santos, south east Brazil, suffered from Hyperhidrosis - excessive body odour - for more than a decade.

The anti-social condition left her armpits drenched with sweat and emitting an offensive odour - and she would only agree to make love to her husband if they were in the shower.

Now, the soul-destroying condition has been solved following surgery to cut away the nerves in her armpits, which in turn has deactivated the sweat glands.

Aremilda explained: 'I suffered with this problem for thirteen years and I did everything I could to mask it.'

She says that while deodorants would last most people 48 hours, the masking scent would fade away after just 48 minutes.

The married mother-of-one changed her clothes constantly but was still left with unsightly yellow stains on the fabric where she had sweated.

Every colour except black, navy and ruby red were off limits, with white garments often thrown away after being worn just once.

When she was in company, people would cover their noses with their hands, adding to her anxiety and increasing her perspiration, as they whispered 'loudly' about her 'obnoxious smell'.

'When I went to church and the pastor said "Raise your hands and give God the glory" everyone raised their arms but me,' recalls Aremilda, who works as a manicurist.

The turning point came when her son, who was just three at the time, said: 'Mummy is stinky,' as he cuddled her and screwed up his nose.

Aremilda recalled: 'That was the day I almost died from embarrassment. I was so shocked by his reaction.

'But the shame was good because I decided to go to the dermatologist the same day and I told Arthur, 'Ok, mummy is going to fix this problem.'

Aremilda first discovered her predicament at the age of 13 when her mother dragged her into the bathroom, accusing her of not washing properly.

She said: 'My mum picked up a loofah and scrubbed it under my arm while shouting at me 'that's how you clean your armpits'.

Aremilda developed a variety of techniques to mask her embarrassment.

Instead of raising her arms to greet friends with a customary hug, she would keep them pinned to her sides and hug around the waist.

The nail technician, who works from home, explained: 'When I couldn't get home to take one of my numerous showers, I would roll up toilet paper and tuck it under my armpits to soak up the moisture.'

When she started dating her husband, Donisete, at the age of 18, she hid her condition by showering before their dates.

'I managed to keep it hidden during our nine months courtship, as I avoided any intimacy. The problems started when we got married. At first, he was discreet when I raised my arms and he got a whiff of how awful the smell was.

'But after a while he would tease me saying "phew, you do smell don't you", which was always upsetting.

'I only felt comfortable making love in the shower, especially when I became pregnant as the smell got ten times worse.

After her young son complained about her bad odour, Aremilda went to a dermatologist who recommended using specially formulated anti-sweat creams.

For about a year, the products helped decrease the nerve activity causing sweating. But the lotions irritated her skin, triggering blistering and raw
Aremilda said: 'The dermatologist suggested going for either botox injections or surgery as a last resort.

'I chose surgery because botox was not covered by my health plan. It would hurt, it wasn't permanent, it would cost nearly £1,000 and I'd have to do it again in six months.'

Doctors carried out an endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy, making small incisions under Aremilda's armpits and cutting the nerves that normally activate the sweat glands.

The half hour procedure in 2012 was quick, painless and permanently solved the problem.

However, it's taken Aremilda until now to pluck up the courage to speak out about her treatment after realising her story can help other sufferers.

'After 15 days of recovery, I was dry for the first time in my life. It was an amazing feeling and the first time I could wrap my arms around my son and husband without them holding their breath,' she remembered.

'I threw my stinky clothes in the trash and finally brought different coloured items and my wardrobe smells of lavender.

'Now, when the pastor says to raise our arms, mine are the first to go up.'

The surgery does, however, come with side-effects. Doctors warned Aremilda by cutting the troublesome glands, compensatory sweating would occur in other parts of her body.

She revealed: 'I now get really wet around my tummy are 'But as it doesn't smell and soon dries off, it's a minor inconvenience compared to what I was used to.'