November 1, 2025 • 33 mins
In the very first episode of the Sweaty Girl Society Podcast, it's only fitting that we sit down with Maria Mickiewicz!
Nicknamed 'The OG of Hyperhidrosis Advocacy', Maria launched her blog, My Life as a Puddle, to share personal and professional stories about hyperhidrosis. Since 2011, she's created hyperhidrosis hope and awareness one drop at a time and helped others feel better about the skin they’re in. Maria also is a wife and mother, ulcerative colitis warrior, and thyroid cancer survivor.
Maria's advocacy work has been featured in O, The Oprah Magazine, Healthline Media, Pharmacy Times CME, SELF Magazine, and many podcasts. She's dripped on-stage while speaking to members of the FDA and Pharma at the inaugural Patient-Focused Drug Development Meeting on Hyperhidrosis and interviewed key thought leaders on her blog.
Tune in to this episode to hear us talk about:
- Maria's journey over the past 15 years as a hyperhidrosis advocate
- What prompted Maria to start her well-loved blog, My Life as a Puddle
- Pregnancy and parenthood with hyperhidrosis
- Learning to love yourself through your sweating
- Maria's experiences as an Oprah Magazine Insider
- Tips for attending a medical appointment
- Maria's journey with cancer
- The importance of flipping the script and loving yourself just as you are
✨Enjoyed the episode? Keep the conversation going by joining Sweat Girl Society's free membership community! Visit: https://sweatygirlsociety.com/community
🔔 Plus, don't forget to subscribe to you get notified of the next episode.
***
Maria Mickiewicz:
🔗 Website: https://mylifeasapuddle.com/
🔗 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mylifeasapuddle/
🔗 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/HyperhidrosisMy-Life-as-a-Puddle/
🔗 X: https://twitter.com/MyLifeAsAPuddle
Sweaty Girl Society:
🔗 Website: https://sweatygirlsociey.com
🔗 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sweatygirlsociety
🔗 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SweatyGirlSociety
***
Disclaimer: The information in this podcast is provided as an information resource only. It is not to be used or relied on for any medical, diagnostic or treatment purpose, and it should not be used as a substitute for professional diagnosis and treatment. Please consult your health care provider before making any health care decisions or for guidance about a specific medical condition.
Join Sweaty Girl Society's free membership community at sweatygirlsociety.com/community.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (00:00):
You think you're isolated and alone,
(00:02):
but really you're not.
Those automatic negativethoughts that run rampant in our
head, I call it my sweaty innermonologue There's a quote by CS
Lewis and it's friendship isborn when one person says to
another, what?
You two?
I thought I was the only oneI've had to work really hard to
love myself through my sweating.
There's nothing wrong with you,like, yes, you're a sweaty
person, but don't let yourcircumstances reduce you.
(00:26):
You're more than your conditionand you can refuse to be reduced
by your circumstances.
Speaker (00:33):
You are listening to the Sweaty Girl Society Podcast,
a show for women withhyperhidrosis, where we share
tips for living better withexcessive sweating.
I'm your host, Karina.
Now let's get into the show.
Karina Sweaty Girl Soci (00:47):
Welcome to the very first episode of the
Sweaty Girl Society Podcast.
In this episode, I think it'sonly fitting that we sit down
with Maria, OG hyperhidrosisadvocate and founder of My Life
as a Puddle.
Just a heads up that I did havesome technical difficulties
recording this, so you'll noticethat my audio is off if you are
watching on YouTube.
Thanks for joining for the firstepisode.
I think you're gonna love thisconversation.
(01:08):
Hi Maria.
Welcome to the show.
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (01:10):
Hi.
Thanks for having me.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (01:12):
So Maria, you are approaching 15
years of hyperhidrosis advocacyin 2026.
How does this feel?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (01:22):
Some days it feels like it's been a
really long road.
Other days it's still surrealthat people know who I am and
know what I talk about and,follow me.
That's just, I never thoughtthat I would be an advocate, let
alone an advocate who talksabout excessive sweating.
But it's been really fun.
It's been, it's been a funjourney and I've learned a lot
along the way.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (01:42):
So I would love to do a retrospective
and go back to your earliestmemory of hyperhidrosis and sort
of talk about your journey withhyperhidrosis.
When did it all start for you asfar as you can remember?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (01:56):
My earliest memory of having a
sweating problem is around ageseven.
I went to a private Catholicschool for a few years and we
wore uniforms and so Iconstantly remember wiping my
sweaty hands on my skirt ruiningpages of cursive handwriting and
just general schoolwork.
Not wanting to play games likeHeads Up Seven Up or Red Rover
(02:19):
because we had to hold hands orpeople had to touch your hands
but I never recognized it as aproblem that only I was having.
I just figured, oh, this is,this is just normal for me.
So I never really brought it upto my parents.
And then when I was about.
12 or 13.
I finally asked my mom like,what is wrong with me?
Why are my hands and my feet sosweaty?
(02:40):
Cause my feet were another issuetoo.
I couldn't wear the plasticjelly shoes that all the girls
wore in elementary school, andif I did, I had to wear socks.
And then I felt like a dorkbecause I had socks on.
So she finally took me to ourpediatrician, and they never
mentioned the wordhyperhidrosis.
They just said, here's aprescription apply it to your
hands and feet at night.
(03:02):
Wrap your hands and feet inplastic wrap to help absorb the
medication.
That is not practical foranyone, let alone a 12-year-old.
So I tried that for a littlewhile.
It made me itch and it wasn'treally that effective and so I
just kind of dealt with it.
And then when I was in communitycollege, I took a public
speaking class and we had togive an informative speech, and
(03:24):
so I started researchinghyperhidrosis, and that was when
I came across the InternationalHyperhidrosis Society.
So finally there was a word forwhat I was suffering from and an
organization dedicated tohelping people and practitioners
treat it and manage it.
So that was what initiallystarted my deep dive into
hyperhidrosis, and then when Iwas 30, I was a patient
(03:48):
volunteer at a dermatologysymposium.
And while I was there, Ireceived Botox injections in my
hands.
And that was the first time inmy life that I didn't have to
apologize for how my body wasbehaving.
And so I walked out of the roomthat day feeling like, oh gosh,
maybe, maybe I should tell mystory.
Maybe other people would wannaknow about it.
And that was the beginning of myblog, My Life as a Puddle.
Karina Sweaty Girl (04:10):
Interesting.
So how did you get connected?
Did you reach out to theInternational Hyperhidrosis
Society?
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (04:15):
Yeah.
So I went to their website, readbasically every page that I
could because I was finallyvalidated.
Like, oh, this is what theproblem is and here's some ideas
for how to help myself live abetter life.
And so I immediately signed upfor their email list and then
they sent out an email that theywere looking for patient
volunteers in the Denver Metroarea.
And so that was how I gotconnected in person with them.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (04:36):
I can really relate to so many of
the stories that you told aboutyour childhood playing Red Rover
I had a very similar experiencewhere I didn't really understand
why I couldn't hold hands withpeople, why my hands would slip
so easily, but it was stressfulfrom a young age.
Just hoping that the opposingchild wouldn't run and try and
break the link because I knewthat my hand would break free.
(04:59):
I feel like that's the case whenI'm speaking with other people
that have hyperhidrosis.
We've all had a lot of reallysimilar experiences.
So you started your blog in whatyear?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (05:11):
So 2021 or no?
2011.
Sorry.
Karina Sweaty Girl Societ (05:16):
2011.
Yes.
I still remember coming acrossyour blog.
It must have been a year or twoafter you started.
Cause I had, I had my son aroundthat time and when I was home on
mat leave I remember comingacross your blog and feeling so
excited that somebody else outthere was having these
(05:37):
experiences.
I consumed all the content thatI could from your blog.
Maria, My Life as a Pu (05:41):
Awesome.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (05:41):
So thank you.
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (05:42):
Yeah, you're welcome.
And that's actually, one of thepieces on my site that's missing
right now is hyperhidrosis inpregnancy or hyperhidrosis in
parenthood.
I had a baby four years ago now,so I've been a little bit busy
as a stay at home mom now takingcare of my son, but I definitely
have lots of ideas in the queuefor blog posts, and I've heard
from people, you know, I'mafraid to have a baby because I
(06:03):
don't wanna pass this horriblecondition on them, or how did
you cope?
And you find different ways tomake yourself comfortable and do
what you need to do in order tolive a successful life.
And I would say to anyone who'sconsidering becoming a parent,
don't let your hyperhidrosis getin the way of that, because you
can still do hard things, itjust might look a little bit
different when you're doingthem.
(06:24):
And that's okay.
When I had my son in thehospital, breastfeeding him, I
remember putting a wash clothunderneath his head so that the
wash cloth would get wet for myhands and not his head.
So like little things like thatthat you figure out how to do
along the way can really make abig difference.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (06:39):
Did you find that your sweating
changed when you were pregnant
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (06:42):
Yes.
So the first six or seven monthsI was pregnant, I hardly sweat
at all.
I actually felt cold most of thetime when I was pregnant,
beginning in the fall, and thenI gave birth in July of the
following year.
So most of the time it was cold.
But then when I was seven and ahalf months pregnant, I went to
my sister's wedding and whereshe lived at the time, it's very
hot and humid and humidity is aterrible trigger for my
(07:05):
sweating.
So we got there, we were therefor four or five days and I just
was like, oh, okay, now mybody's like, oh, I remember what
we need to do, and so I sweatall over my pretty dress that I
wore for her wedding.
Karina Sweaty Girl Socie (07:16):
That's really interesting.
I had the same experience whereI had significantly reduced
sweating during my pregnancy.
I know that not everybody hasthat experience,'cause there are
some people in our communitythat are struggling with
sweating during their pregnancy,but I had the same experience
where I had a reduction insweating, but I struggled so
much to breastfeed my son and tobe able to hold him.
(07:40):
Mm-hmm.
Um, I was the same like towels,sweat streaming down from all
places of my body.
I had to work with a lactationconsultant when he was about
five weeks old and that wasstressful because she was trying
to show me how to do things andI was stressed as a new mom, and
I'm sweating and I'm beingflooded with emotion and can't
(08:01):
focus on what she's saying.
So pregnancy and having a baby,I think is one of those times in
our lives where hyperhidrosiscan really affect things.
Maria, My Life as a (08:10):
Absolutely.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (08:11):
So talk me through how you decided
to start a blog and how you gotthat up and running.
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (08:18):
Well, I have a degree in English, so
I've always been a book nerd anda writer, and I love to write
letters.
So the next natural thing for mewas to do it online.
So I came out of thathyperhidrosis symposium that day
feeling really empowered andvalidated and like I didn't have
to apologize anymore.
And so, I started thinking aboutit and coincidentally or not,
(08:39):
because, you know, is it fate?
Maybe it is.
I had a friend who was takingsome tech classes for how to
build a website, how to build ablog, and so she offered to
build mine for free.
So I was like, okay, well whynot?
Like there's the door opening.
So she built my website we gotthat up and running and I
started writing and sharing.
Initially when I started myblog, I didn't use my first or
(09:00):
my last name.
I was more of an anonymoussweater.
The longer I did it, the morecomfortable I became.
And so then I started postingphotos of myself or of my sweaty
feet or my sweaty hands, orproducts that helped me, things
like that.
And then it just grew fromthere.
I launched my social media pagesat the same time so people could
find me more than one way.
Um.
(09:20):
Then I did a newsletter, andthen I started pitching
companies that had products thatwould help with excessive
sweating.
I did a couple of freelancearticles, things like that.
So I've just been growing eversince then.
I don't have a ton of followersif you look on my pages, but I
also think I have a lot ofsilent followers, people who are
so ashamed of their sweatybodies that they can't follow my
(09:43):
page, like a post, comment on apost because they live in fear
of their sweaty secret beingfound out.
So, hello, if you are a silentfollower.
You don't have to be ashamed ofyour body.
It does take a lot of deep innerwork to get to that point, but I
feel like everyone can do that.
Karina Sweaty Girl Societ (10:01):
Yeah.
I think just the tip of theiceberg is what we see in terms
of follower numbers.
I feel the same way too, thatthere's probably a lot of people
out there who are going to yourInstagram page or going back to
your blog even though they'remaybe not following.
They don't want their friendsand family to see that they're
following a page.
There's still so much shame andstigma and embarrassment wrapped
(10:22):
up in it.
And even myself, I am onlyslowly getting comfortable with
putting my face out there too.
So I totally understand thatjourney.
It takes a while to overcomethat.
Maria, My Life as a (10:35):
Absolutely.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (10:36):
So do you remember what your first
blog post was about that youpublished?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (10:40):
Oh gosh, it was probably something
silly like, you know, thanks forwelcoming me to the internet.
Like be patient with me.
I'm learning as I go and I'mstill a little bit on the shy
side, so I'm going to beanonymous for a while.
But then I started writing dailystories, like what it's like to
go to job interviews.
I remember early on in my blog Igot laid off from a job, and so
(11:02):
then I had to go through goingin for job interviews.
And so that ended up being aseries of posts about my getting
ready routine, the clothes Iwear, the things I do before I
walk into the interview room,that kind of thing.
So just daily life stories, andso chances are if you've
experienced something, Iprobably have a blog post about
the same thing.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (11:21):
Do you have any favorites that
stand out in your mind, or onesthat got more traction?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (11:26):
I have one that's about treatment
options in general.
It's a comprehensive blog post.
So a lot of people start there.
I have a series of posts from agirl named Jess who lives in
Liverpool, England.
Her mom, Haley found my blog andso Jess, she was five years old
at the time.
Um, so she's helped me recordsome videos about what it's like
to live with hyperhidrosis as ayoung child.
(11:48):
So those have been really fun.
And then some of my personalfavorites are things that I've
done that I didn't think I coulddo because I have hyperhidrosis.
So as an example, I was an OprahMagazine Insider for one year.
I was part of the inauguralgroup of people who were
selected.
They put out a call and theyreceived over a thousand
applications and I was one ofjust 50 people selected.
(12:11):
And so as part of thatexperience, I went on a cruise
to Alaska, which I paid for onmy own, but I did get to be a
model in a Chico's fashion showon stage.
And so right then I was like,there's no way I can model
clothes on stage in front ofhundreds of people.
Like, are you kidding?
But then I stopped and was like,wait a minute.
(12:32):
I can do this.
It just might look different.
And because it was an Alaskancruise, it was cooler weather,
so I do much better in cooler,drier weather.
And I ended up not sweating.
At least on my feet because Ihad on a pair of really high
heels Oh, wow.
From the fashion closet in NewYork City from Oprah Magazine.
So that was really fun.
(12:53):
Oh, so fun.
Um, but I was able to be in mybody and not hate it while I was
doing that because I try to lookat it this way now if I'm
nervous about talking abouthyperhidrosis or nervous about
showing up in my body, then thattakes the focus.
That puts the focus on me, andI'm here to serve other people
(13:13):
and help other people feelbetter about the sweaty skin
that they're in.
So I try and flip the scriptbecause we all have those
automatic negative thoughts thatrun rampant in our head.
I call it my sweaty innermonologue, and it is a lot of
the time, not very nice.
And so I've had to work reallyhard to love myself through my
sweating.
(13:33):
Um, but still acknowledgingthose feelings.
Like, yeah, I still have supercrappy days and I hate my body
and I feel like it's betrayingme.
But it's just a matter ofchanging your perspective and
taking a step back and saying,okay, wait a minute.
Let's put this in perspectiveand see what we can still do
despite the things that we'restruggling with.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (13:53):
I like that'cause I think
hyperhidrosis can really take usout of our body whether it's
trying to hide embarrassment butalso discomfort.
Yeah.
I find hyperhidrosis is a steadysource of discomfort for my
body.
I get swelling.
I do too.
Um, you do as well.
Yeah.
And, and I find that theswelling is almost as difficult
(14:14):
to deal with as the sweating onsome days.
Being able to walk on my feetand move my hands.
Mm-hmm.
It takes you out of your body.
In terms of your advocacy work,I'm interested in knowing how
that has changed yourrelationship with hyperhidrosis
or allowed you to connect withother people that have taught
you things about hyperhidrosis.
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (14:38):
Yeah, I think the biggest thing for me
is the loss of shame andembarrassment.
Like I said, when I was at thatsymposium, that was the first
time I didn't have to apologizefor how I was, people understood
me, and so it validated me andgave me a sense of purpose.
Like I said, maybe I have thisfor a reason and I'm supposed to
help other people, you know?
(14:59):
So every time I talk about it,it gets a little bit easier.
If I'm able to give thedisclaimer in situations that
are appropriate, then I do so.
Like, job interviews sometimes.
Now that I'm so far along myadvocacy journey, it's part of
my resume.
People will ask me, what ishyperhidrosis?
What are you advocating about orfor?
And then I can explain it, andthen I don't have to worry about
(15:21):
it anymore because they knowthat I have it and I can't
really control it.
Karina Sweaty Girl Soci (15:24):
Mm-hmm.
Maria, My Life as a Pud (15:26):
Medical appointments are another place
where I think it's reallyimportant to speak up because I
think a lot of people withhyperhidrosis avoid getting
medical care because they're soembarrassed.
They're so ashamed.
But your body is your temple andyou have to take care of it.
So jot down some notes that youwanna tell them, or if you're
going to just a regular annualexam or a checkup or whatever,
(15:47):
just tell them, hey, I have thismedical condition, it's called
hyperhidrosis.
These are the areas where Imight sweat.
You can ask for what you need itto get through that appointment.
If I'm going to like agynecological exam, I'll ask for
what they call a chit.
It's an extra thick absorbentpad basically that they use
during surgeries or otherprocedures where fluids may
(16:09):
leak.
Oh.
So sit on one of those on top ofthat paper that's on the exam
table, and that will help absorbthings.
You can bring a towel with youor grab some paper towels in the
exam room.
So that's been a big lesson forme is just don't be afraid to
ask for what you need.
Karina Sweaty Girl Socie (16:25):
That's such a good tip.
That's such a good tip.
I find doctor's appointments sotriggering as well.
Yes.
That the paper that they put onthe, on the examination bed.
Oh, it's horrible.
It's like I'm gonna soak throughthat in 30 seconds.
Yes.
And it's gonna be stuck to me.
And this blue gown that you gaveme that's gonna have sweat
stains all over it.
I know.
So I know.
It's terrible.
(16:46):
Yeah, that's, that's such a goodpoint.
It feels so hard sometimes toask for what we need because
we're so accustomed to justtrying to hide it and remain
silent.
How do you find people reactwhen you tell them that you have
hyperhidrosis, or when you askfor things?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (17:01):
Most people say, oh, I, I would not
have noticed that had you notsaid anything because we're so
good at hiding it, right?
Mm-hmm.
Um, or I'll explain what it is,and they're like, oh, I have
that too.
Or, oh, I know someone who hasthat.
You think you're isolated andalone, but really you're not.
Mm-hmm.
You know, there's 365 millionpeople in the world who have
(17:23):
hyperhidrosis.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (17:25):
So one thing that you've spoken
about openly is being a cancersurvivor.
Yeah.
Can you talk about howhyperhidrosis impacted that
journey for you?
Because I can't imagine that waseasy on its own and then having
hyperhidrosis layered on top ofthat.
Maria, My Life as a Pudd (17:43):
Right.
So when my son was 10 monthsold, no, maybe a little bit
earlier than that, I had found anew primary care doctor and he
ran every lab that he could runand a couple of numbers came
back that he didn't like.
Thyroid numbers.
So he sent me to a surgeon andthey did a fine needle biopsy
and lo and behold, I'm diagnosedwith thyroid cancer, which I
(18:05):
never saw coming.
I had zero symptoms other thanthe fact that I knew that I had
Hashimoto's, which is anautoimmune thyroid disease.
Typically, when you have oneautoimmune condition, you tend
to be diagnosed with more, andso I'd already been diagnosed
with ulcerative colitis, whichis an inflammatory bowel
disease, so I had been alreadydealing with that then got the
(18:27):
thyroid cancer diagnosis.
So in order to completetreatment, I had two separate
partial thyroidectomies followedup by radioactive iodine.
And during the first surgery,they put you in a gown, which
thankfully was not a paper gown.
It was a cloth gown, so I was,mm-hmm, a little bit happier
about the sweating part of that,but then they also said, you
(18:48):
need to be naked under the gown.
And I'm thinking, well, why do Ihave to take my underwear off if
you're cutting into my neck?
Like, that doesn't make sense.
Mm-hmm.
So I was triggered to sweat inthat case.
And then post-surgery, um.
The thyroid is the master glandof your body and it controls
your metabolism and a bunch ofother things.
(19:08):
And so now I don't have mybody's internal thermostat, so
now it's very hard for me todecide, am I sweating because I
have hyperhidrosis?
Am I sweating because I don'thave a thyroid?
I don't know.
It's, it's kind of hit or miss.
Um, I've become very aware ofwhat I put into and on my body
(19:29):
so people might think I've goneon the crunchy side, which is
fine.
Mm-hmm.
Um, I think Eastern and Westernmedicine are both equally valid.
There is a time and a place forboth, but I've definitely become
more on the natural or holisticor integrated side of things.
So some of the treatment optionsfor hyperhidrosis I don't feel
(19:51):
like are the best fit for meanymore.
Mm-hmm.
But just because they aren'tright for me doesn't mean I'm
not gonna speak about all of thetreatments on my blog because I
want people to have the bestinformation and the most options
for their excessive sweating.
Karina Sweaty Girl Societ (20:04):
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense.
I think that a lot of the timewe do need to do an assessment
for ourselves.
Are we willing to take some ofthe risks that might be
associated with treatments?
Maria, My Life as a Pudd (20:15):
Right.
And I would say definitely doyour own research and what pops
up on the first page of aninternet search may be a paid ad
for a product or a service.
So just make sure you're, youhave informed consent about all
of the side effects with amedication or a procedure before
you go down that route.
Karina Sweaty Girl Societ (20:34):
Yeah, so going back to your advocacy
work, what are some of the bestmoments you've experienced?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (20:44):
Back in 2017, I was a featured
panelist speaker at theinaugural patient focused drug
development meeting onhyperhidrosis, they call it a
PFDD.
So I got to share my sweatystory with members of the FDA
and big pharma and there wereother patients there and so
ahead of the meeting all of thepatients got together and did
(21:04):
some activities.
So meeting more people who havehyperhidrosis, someone there
recognized me.
She followed my blog.
And so now we exchange Christmascards every year.
So having that tangible, Yeah.
Lasting relationship with a lot.
Yeah.
Has been so neat.
Karina Sweaty Girl Societ (21:20):
Isn't it so nice to meet other people
with hyperhidrosis?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (21:23):
It is.
There's a quote by CS Lewis andit's something to the effect of,
friendship is born at thatmoment when one person says to
another, what?
You two?
I thought I was the only one.
Oh, I love that.
And that's what's happening is,you know, my little.
My one drop of sweat is kind ofcreating like a ripple effect
and it's something that I'mreally honored to be a part of
and I don't take it lightly atall, and I hope to always stay
(21:45):
humble about it.
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
So being a panelist speaker atthe PFDD was really cool.
I have guest posts on my blogfrom around the world, Kenya,
the UK, the Philippines, France.
A lot of people in the US havesubmitted their stories, and I'm
still accepting guest blogposts.
If anyone wants to reach out.
I'd love to feature you too.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (22:06):
Oh, yeah.
Maria, My Life as a Pud (22:07):
Because I love what you're doing, I
think.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (22:08):
Oh, that'd be awesome.
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (22:09):
Yeah.
So being able to create anetwork of people who have the
same thing and we can bounceideas off of each other.
We can vent to each other.
And have a sense of friendshipand community I think is really
important so that we don't feelalone.
Mm-hmm.
And then my most recentadvocacy, um, every year at
Johnson and Johnson puts on apatient advocacy conference
(22:30):
called Healthy Voices, and I'veapplied to attend, every year
for probably the last 10 years,and this year I got in.
So in November I'll be going tothe Healthy Voices Conference,
and it's more internal focusedto help advocates become better
at what they're doing.
So I won't necessarily betalking specifically about
hyperhidrosis while I'm there,but I will be coming home with
(22:51):
more tools in my toolbox so thatI can get my message out and
help more people.
Karina Sweaty Girl Socie (22:56):
That's amazing.
Congratulations on getting,thank you, getting into that.
Yeah.
I know it's been a goal of yoursfor a while and yeah, that's
really exciting.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Now on the flip side, I'mcurious if you've had any not so
great moments or challenges withdoing advocacy work around
hyperhidrosis.
And I'm specifically thinkingaround, I feel like sometimes
(23:19):
there's some pushback becausefor folks who don't experience
hyperhidrosis, there's that ideathat like, why are you
complaining, it's just sweat,this is not going to kill you.
It's not a disease, you know, Imean, you could argue that
because the rates of suicide arehigher, and depression anxiety,
for people with hyperhidrosis,but mm-hmm.
(23:40):
Um, you know, it's not gonnadirectly threaten your life.
Anything that you've encounteredlike that?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (23:46):
Um, I haven't really gotten a lot of
negative feedback, but to peoplewho say, oh, it's just sweat,
like, why are you evencomplaining, I would say to them
all pain is the same.
And so whether or not ourhyperhidrosis brings us physical
pain, because we might haveswelling like you mentioned, or
we might get skin rashes orthings that could be painful,
(24:07):
the emotional and psychologicalpain, can be bad.
And that's not to say, oh, just,you know, be a victim and you
know.
I, I would say don't victimizeyourself.
Feel your feelings and get themup and out, but don't focus on
them because otherwise it'sgonna keep you stuck.
And then as far as like otherpushback, I've tried to work
(24:28):
with a few different companies,and they've tried to pigeonhole
me into, well, you're either aninfluencer or you're a patient.
And I really don't like the wordinfluencer.
I'm an advocate.
I'm not an influencer.
Do I have influence?
Maybe, but I'm advocating, I'mnot trying to get the most views
on Instagram and you know, yeah.
(24:49):
Facebook, like, I don't careabout views and likes.
Sure.
It helps me spread my message,but that's not why I do it.
Yeah.
Um, but yeah, so I'm both apatient and I'm also an
advocate.
So for them trying to pigeonholeme into one way or the other,
that was frustrating.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (25:04):
In terms of your advocacy work over
the 15 years, what has changed?
How has the conversation changedif it has at all, since when you
started?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (25:16):
I think that's a hard question.
The conversation has grown, butI don't know if it's quite
changed yet.
There's definitely more peoplewho are speaking publicly about
their condition.
Organizations like what you'recreating with Sweaty Girl
Society and things like that.
So I think that is awesome.
Um, treatment wise, I feel likewe're still kind of stuck in the
(25:39):
axillary treatment realm.
Mm-hmm.
So those people who suffer fromsweaty underarms, that's what
most of the medications aretargeted toward or the
procedures.
So I would really love to seemore treatments for palmar and
plantar and craniofacialparticularly.
Yeah.
Craniofacial hyperhidrosis, Ithink is probably the worst in
(25:59):
terms of being able to hide itbecause how are you supposed to
hide a sweaty head and a sweatyface?
It's, mm-hmm.
That's difficult, you know, and,and people might think, are you
okay?
Are you sick?
Is something wrong?
Why are you drenched in sweatwhen really that's your normal
and that's what's happening inyour body.
It doesn't mean you're sick.
It doesn't mean you'reoverweight or, you know, things
like that.
Oh, you must be sweating becauseyou're fat.
(26:20):
Like that's, no, that's not thecase.
So I think keeping theconversation open and creating
that larger sense of communitywill really help in the long
run.
Karina Sweaty Girl Societ (26:31):
Yeah.
Yeah.
In terms of research, where doyou think research is needed
next?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (26:38):
I would like to know what the root
cause of hyper hydrosis Yeah.
Is.
Um, there's some research thatsays it could be caused by an
overactive sympathetic nervoussystem.
So your body's fight or flightresponse.
Hmm.
Um, I'm not a medicalprofessional by any means, but I
would really like to see moreresearch into the root cause of
that and looking into how can wetap into the parasympathetic
(27:00):
nervous system, your body's restand digest, and are there things
that we can be doing with thevagus nerve to help our bodies
calm down and things like thatto reduce sweating.
Karina Sweaty Girl (27:10):
Interesting.
Yeah.
Yeah.
It is frustrating that we stilldon't understand what causes
this.
Even when you were talkingearlier about being a parent and
worrying about passing it on toyour child.
That is so unknown as well,because sometimes you will pass
it on, sometimes you won't.
Sometimes you'll, right, yourchild can develop sweating in a
(27:31):
different area or to a differentdegree.
There's just a lot that'sunknown about that as well.
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (27:38):
Yeah.
So I think there's definitely agenetic component to it.
I have members on both sides ofmy family who have
hyperhidrosis, um, oh wow.
My maternal grandmother'sbrothers had it.
They were in the army and theywould come home with trench foot
because their feet were sosweaty inside their combat
boots.
Oh, interesting.
Um, and then my dad also hashyperhidrosis and he can get
(27:59):
full body sweating.
Yeah.
So yeah, it's definitely on bothsides of my family.
I also developed compensatorysweating or what they call CS,
as a side effect of gettingBotox injections.
So it stopped the sweating in myhands, um, for about three
weeks, best three weeks of mylife.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
But I developed compensatorysweating in my lower back, and I
(28:20):
still have that to this day.
Wow.
And Botox can be effective butI've heard that you've got have
to get more than one treatmentto lengthen out the effects.
And it can be very painfuldepending on the area of your
body where you're doing it.
So looking back, I can't believeI did it.
I had 155 injections in my, inthe palms of my hands, and that
was at that simple, whoa.
(28:41):
But I feel like I was fiftyfive, a hundred and fifty five.
They took a sharpie and put dotsall over my hands.
Um, yeah.
So that was wild, but desperatetimes, call for desperate
measures and I totally, I feltlike I was at my wit's end and I
said I've gotta at least trythis.
And that was what catapulted meinto my blog.
So I don't regret it by anymeans.
Karina Sweaty Girl Societ (29:02):
Yeah.
Wow.
That's a lot.
I had Botox done a few times.
My underarms that was tolerableand worked quite well for me.
But I also had it done on myhands once, and it was for me as
well, extremely painful.
Now, I think I only had 30injections on each hand, which I
felt was like a, a a lot, butthat's wild.
Um, you know, after I had itdone, my hands were bruised and
(29:23):
bleeding, and it was notpleasant.
Now, I do know people who don'thave that same experience.
Again, everybody is different,but I personally could not
tolerate that, and didn't wannakeep up with the underarm
injections every six months typething.
So, yeah.
Yeah, yeah.
Wow.
So your compensatory sweatingdidn't end when the Botox ended,
unfortunately.
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (29:44):
No.
Unfortunately, I just, yeah,kind of deal with it.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (29:47):
What a mystery.
What a mystery this it is.
This medical condition is, yeah.
Yeah.
Some answers would be great.
Yes.
Yeah.
And get on that people.
Yeah.
And the thing is, is that it'snot like it's an extremely rare
condition, right?
There's millions of peopleworldwide with this.
Do you think that it's justbecause it's not talked about
(30:08):
that the attention hasn't beenput there?
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (30:11):
That, also, there probably isn't as
much money in finding treatmentsfor it or finding a cure.
You know, we can always hope fora cure, but I don't think we
should place our happiness orour success in life on whether
there's a cure.
You know?
Yes, you have going forward and,and just live your life to the
best that you can and ask forwhat you need along the way.
Karina Sweaty Girl Societ (30:32):
Yeah.
Yeah.
When I think about treatmentsand products, I like to think of
it as a toolkit we carry withus.
Yeah.
And, sometimes an antiperspirantis gonna be what we like,
sometimes it's gonna beiontophoresis, sometimes it
might be Botox, and sometimes itmight be medication.
And at different times of yourlife, different things might
make sense.
Right.
And then there's also a place, Ithink, just for nothing.
(30:54):
Mm-hmm.
Um, for just sort of living lifeas a sweaty person.
Is that sort of where you're atright now?
Do you find freedom in that?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (31:03):
I do find freedom in that and that's
basically where I'm at now.
For myself, I will never get ETSsurgery.
I feel like the side effectsoutweigh the benefits.
Yeah.
I've met people in person whohave had that surgery and they
have severe compensatorysweating from their neck to
their hips.
Full body, you know?
Yeah.
Full trunk area sweating.
(31:23):
They're sweating throughmultiple layers of shirts and
their quality of life is evenworse than before they had the
surgery.
And, everyone's body isdifferent.
Some people have had thatsurgery and they're great,
they're fine.
But for me, I will never havethat surgery.
Like I said too, I'm careful nowabout what I put in and on my
body.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (31:42):
I wish there were more, uh, better
Yes.
Solutions and betterunderstanding of root cause.
Yeah.
Uh, root cause issues, right?
Yeah.
So what is next for youpersonally?
You mentioned that you're goingto the conference where you'll
be developing your advocacyskills.
What do you hope to do in thecoming years.
(32:04):
I know that you're a stay athome mom and you're very busy
with that, but yeah, what doesyour advocacy work look like?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (32:08):
Well I'd like to get back to blogging
on a more regular schedule.
My son will be in preschool thisyear, so I'll have more time to
devote to blogging.
I have so many notes on my phoneabout different topics that I've
thought of or that people haveasked me about that I would, I
really want to write about.
Um, hyperhidrosis in pregnancyand being a parent being
probably the top two right now.
(32:29):
Yeah.
Um, and I also have some morecreative hyperhidrosis work that
has been on my bucket list foryears.
I don't wanna say too much aboutit'cause I wanna just keep it
close to my heart right now.
Okay.
While I'm working on it.
Um, yeah.
But hopefully there'll be somenews about that and, you know,
the next year or so, who knows.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (32:47):
Oh, exciting.
Exciting.
Well, Maria, thank you so muchfor your time today and your
conversation.
Yeah.
Um, it's always nice to chatwith somebody who has, who has
hyperhidrosis and then, and thenyou who has been very
influential in my life for somany years.
I was one of your silentfollowers for many years, so
(33:10):
thank you so much.
So I wanted to end by asking youwhere can people find you
online?
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (33:16):
Yeah.
So my blog is My Life as aPuddle.com.
You can find me on Facebook, andX at my life as a puddle.
And I just want everyone who'sout there sweating in silence
there's nothing wrong with you,like, yes, you're a sweaty
person, but don't let yourcircumstances reduce you.
You're more than your conditionand you can refuse to be reduced
(33:38):
by your circumstances.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (33:39):
I love that.
Thank you.
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (33:41):
Yeah, thank you.
Karina Sweaty Girl Socie (33:49):
Thanks for listening to the Sweaty
Girls Society podcast.
If you like today's episode,join our free membership
community@sweatygirlssociety.comslash community.
You think you're isolated and alone,
(00:02):
but really you're not.
Those automatic negativethoughts that run rampant in our
head, I call it my sweaty innermonologue There's a quote by CS
Lewis and it's friendship isborn when one person says to
another, what?
You two?
I thought I was the only oneI've had to work really hard to
love myself through my sweating.
There's nothing wrong with you,like, yes, you're a sweaty
person, but don't let yourcircumstances reduce you.
(00:26):
You're more than your conditionand you can refuse to be reduced
by your circumstances.
Speaker (00:33):
You are listening to the Sweaty Girl Society Podcast,
a show for women withhyperhidrosis, where we share
tips for living better withexcessive sweating.
I'm your host, Karina.
Now let's get into the show.
Karina Sweaty Girl Soci (00:47):
Welcome to the very first episode of the
Sweaty Girl Society Podcast.
In this episode, I think it'sonly fitting that we sit down
with Maria, OG hyperhidrosisadvocate and founder of My Life
as a Puddle.
Just a heads up that I did havesome technical difficulties
recording this, so you'll noticethat my audio is off if you are
watching on YouTube.
Thanks for joining for the firstepisode.
I think you're gonna love thisconversation.
(01:08):
Hi Maria.
Welcome to the show.
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (01:10):
Hi.
Thanks for having me.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (01:12):
So Maria, you are approaching 15
years of hyperhidrosis advocacyin 2026.
How does this feel?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (01:22):
Some days it feels like it's been a
really long road.
Other days it's still surrealthat people know who I am and
know what I talk about and,follow me.
That's just, I never thoughtthat I would be an advocate, let
alone an advocate who talksabout excessive sweating.
But it's been really fun.
It's been, it's been a funjourney and I've learned a lot
along the way.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (01:42):
So I would love to do a retrospective
and go back to your earliestmemory of hyperhidrosis and sort
of talk about your journey withhyperhidrosis.
When did it all start for you asfar as you can remember?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (01:56):
My earliest memory of having a
sweating problem is around ageseven.
I went to a private Catholicschool for a few years and we
wore uniforms and so Iconstantly remember wiping my
sweaty hands on my skirt ruiningpages of cursive handwriting and
just general schoolwork.
Not wanting to play games likeHeads Up Seven Up or Red Rover
(02:19):
because we had to hold hands orpeople had to touch your hands
but I never recognized it as aproblem that only I was having.
I just figured, oh, this is,this is just normal for me.
So I never really brought it upto my parents.
And then when I was about.
12 or 13.
I finally asked my mom like,what is wrong with me?
Why are my hands and my feet sosweaty?
(02:40):
Cause my feet were another issuetoo.
I couldn't wear the plasticjelly shoes that all the girls
wore in elementary school, andif I did, I had to wear socks.
And then I felt like a dorkbecause I had socks on.
So she finally took me to ourpediatrician, and they never
mentioned the wordhyperhidrosis.
They just said, here's aprescription apply it to your
hands and feet at night.
(03:02):
Wrap your hands and feet inplastic wrap to help absorb the
medication.
That is not practical foranyone, let alone a 12-year-old.
So I tried that for a littlewhile.
It made me itch and it wasn'treally that effective and so I
just kind of dealt with it.
And then when I was in communitycollege, I took a public
speaking class and we had togive an informative speech, and
(03:24):
so I started researchinghyperhidrosis, and that was when
I came across the InternationalHyperhidrosis Society.
So finally there was a word forwhat I was suffering from and an
organization dedicated tohelping people and practitioners
treat it and manage it.
So that was what initiallystarted my deep dive into
hyperhidrosis, and then when Iwas 30, I was a patient
(03:48):
volunteer at a dermatologysymposium.
And while I was there, Ireceived Botox injections in my
hands.
And that was the first time inmy life that I didn't have to
apologize for how my body wasbehaving.
And so I walked out of the roomthat day feeling like, oh gosh,
maybe, maybe I should tell mystory.
Maybe other people would wannaknow about it.
And that was the beginning of myblog, My Life as a Puddle.
Karina Sweaty Girl (04:10):
Interesting.
So how did you get connected?
Did you reach out to theInternational Hyperhidrosis
Society?
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (04:15):
Yeah.
So I went to their website, readbasically every page that I
could because I was finallyvalidated.
Like, oh, this is what theproblem is and here's some ideas
for how to help myself live abetter life.
And so I immediately signed upfor their email list and then
they sent out an email that theywere looking for patient
volunteers in the Denver Metroarea.
And so that was how I gotconnected in person with them.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (04:36):
I can really relate to so many of
the stories that you told aboutyour childhood playing Red Rover
I had a very similar experiencewhere I didn't really understand
why I couldn't hold hands withpeople, why my hands would slip
so easily, but it was stressfulfrom a young age.
Just hoping that the opposingchild wouldn't run and try and
break the link because I knewthat my hand would break free.
(04:59):
I feel like that's the case whenI'm speaking with other people
that have hyperhidrosis.
We've all had a lot of reallysimilar experiences.
So you started your blog in whatyear?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (05:11):
So 2021 or no?
2011.
Sorry.
Karina Sweaty Girl Societ (05:16):
2011.
Yes.
I still remember coming acrossyour blog.
It must have been a year or twoafter you started.
Cause I had, I had my son aroundthat time and when I was home on
mat leave I remember comingacross your blog and feeling so
excited that somebody else outthere was having these
(05:37):
experiences.
I consumed all the content thatI could from your blog.
Maria, My Life as a Pu (05:41):
Awesome.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (05:41):
So thank you.
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (05:42):
Yeah, you're welcome.
And that's actually, one of thepieces on my site that's missing
right now is hyperhidrosis inpregnancy or hyperhidrosis in
parenthood.
I had a baby four years ago now,so I've been a little bit busy
as a stay at home mom now takingcare of my son, but I definitely
have lots of ideas in the queuefor blog posts, and I've heard
from people, you know, I'mafraid to have a baby because I
(06:03):
don't wanna pass this horriblecondition on them, or how did
you cope?
And you find different ways tomake yourself comfortable and do
what you need to do in order tolive a successful life.
And I would say to anyone who'sconsidering becoming a parent,
don't let your hyperhidrosis getin the way of that, because you
can still do hard things, itjust might look a little bit
different when you're doingthem.
(06:24):
And that's okay.
When I had my son in thehospital, breastfeeding him, I
remember putting a wash clothunderneath his head so that the
wash cloth would get wet for myhands and not his head.
So like little things like thatthat you figure out how to do
along the way can really make abig difference.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (06:39):
Did you find that your sweating
changed when you were pregnant
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (06:42):
Yes.
So the first six or seven monthsI was pregnant, I hardly sweat
at all.
I actually felt cold most of thetime when I was pregnant,
beginning in the fall, and thenI gave birth in July of the
following year.
So most of the time it was cold.
But then when I was seven and ahalf months pregnant, I went to
my sister's wedding and whereshe lived at the time, it's very
hot and humid and humidity is aterrible trigger for my
(07:05):
sweating.
So we got there, we were therefor four or five days and I just
was like, oh, okay, now mybody's like, oh, I remember what
we need to do, and so I sweatall over my pretty dress that I
wore for her wedding.
Karina Sweaty Girl Socie (07:16):
That's really interesting.
I had the same experience whereI had significantly reduced
sweating during my pregnancy.
I know that not everybody hasthat experience,'cause there are
some people in our communitythat are struggling with
sweating during their pregnancy,but I had the same experience
where I had a reduction insweating, but I struggled so
much to breastfeed my son and tobe able to hold him.
(07:40):
Mm-hmm.
Um, I was the same like towels,sweat streaming down from all
places of my body.
I had to work with a lactationconsultant when he was about
five weeks old and that wasstressful because she was trying
to show me how to do things andI was stressed as a new mom, and
I'm sweating and I'm beingflooded with emotion and can't
(08:01):
focus on what she's saying.
So pregnancy and having a baby,I think is one of those times in
our lives where hyperhidrosiscan really affect things.
Maria, My Life as a (08:10):
Absolutely.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (08:11):
So talk me through how you decided
to start a blog and how you gotthat up and running.
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (08:18):
Well, I have a degree in English, so
I've always been a book nerd anda writer, and I love to write
letters.
So the next natural thing for mewas to do it online.
So I came out of thathyperhidrosis symposium that day
feeling really empowered andvalidated and like I didn't have
to apologize anymore.
And so, I started thinking aboutit and coincidentally or not,
(08:39):
because, you know, is it fate?
Maybe it is.
I had a friend who was takingsome tech classes for how to
build a website, how to build ablog, and so she offered to
build mine for free.
So I was like, okay, well whynot?
Like there's the door opening.
So she built my website we gotthat up and running and I
started writing and sharing.
Initially when I started myblog, I didn't use my first or
(09:00):
my last name.
I was more of an anonymoussweater.
The longer I did it, the morecomfortable I became.
And so then I started postingphotos of myself or of my sweaty
feet or my sweaty hands, orproducts that helped me, things
like that.
And then it just grew fromthere.
I launched my social media pagesat the same time so people could
find me more than one way.
Um.
(09:20):
Then I did a newsletter, andthen I started pitching
companies that had products thatwould help with excessive
sweating.
I did a couple of freelancearticles, things like that.
So I've just been growing eversince then.
I don't have a ton of followersif you look on my pages, but I
also think I have a lot ofsilent followers, people who are
so ashamed of their sweatybodies that they can't follow my
(09:43):
page, like a post, comment on apost because they live in fear
of their sweaty secret beingfound out.
So, hello, if you are a silentfollower.
You don't have to be ashamed ofyour body.
It does take a lot of deep innerwork to get to that point, but I
feel like everyone can do that.
Karina Sweaty Girl Societ (10:01):
Yeah.
I think just the tip of theiceberg is what we see in terms
of follower numbers.
I feel the same way too, thatthere's probably a lot of people
out there who are going to yourInstagram page or going back to
your blog even though they'remaybe not following.
They don't want their friendsand family to see that they're
following a page.
There's still so much shame andstigma and embarrassment wrapped
(10:22):
up in it.
And even myself, I am onlyslowly getting comfortable with
putting my face out there too.
So I totally understand thatjourney.
It takes a while to overcomethat.
Maria, My Life as a (10:35):
Absolutely.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (10:36):
So do you remember what your first
blog post was about that youpublished?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (10:40):
Oh gosh, it was probably something
silly like, you know, thanks forwelcoming me to the internet.
Like be patient with me.
I'm learning as I go and I'mstill a little bit on the shy
side, so I'm going to beanonymous for a while.
But then I started writing dailystories, like what it's like to
go to job interviews.
I remember early on in my blog Igot laid off from a job, and so
(11:02):
then I had to go through goingin for job interviews.
And so that ended up being aseries of posts about my getting
ready routine, the clothes Iwear, the things I do before I
walk into the interview room,that kind of thing.
So just daily life stories, andso chances are if you've
experienced something, Iprobably have a blog post about
the same thing.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (11:21):
Do you have any favorites that
stand out in your mind, or onesthat got more traction?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (11:26):
I have one that's about treatment
options in general.
It's a comprehensive blog post.
So a lot of people start there.
I have a series of posts from agirl named Jess who lives in
Liverpool, England.
Her mom, Haley found my blog andso Jess, she was five years old
at the time.
Um, so she's helped me recordsome videos about what it's like
to live with hyperhidrosis as ayoung child.
(11:48):
So those have been really fun.
And then some of my personalfavorites are things that I've
done that I didn't think I coulddo because I have hyperhidrosis.
So as an example, I was an OprahMagazine Insider for one year.
I was part of the inauguralgroup of people who were
selected.
They put out a call and theyreceived over a thousand
applications and I was one ofjust 50 people selected.
(12:11):
And so as part of thatexperience, I went on a cruise
to Alaska, which I paid for onmy own, but I did get to be a
model in a Chico's fashion showon stage.
And so right then I was like,there's no way I can model
clothes on stage in front ofhundreds of people.
Like, are you kidding?
But then I stopped and was like,wait a minute.
(12:32):
I can do this.
It just might look different.
And because it was an Alaskancruise, it was cooler weather,
so I do much better in cooler,drier weather.
And I ended up not sweating.
At least on my feet because Ihad on a pair of really high
heels Oh, wow.
From the fashion closet in NewYork City from Oprah Magazine.
So that was really fun.
(12:53):
Oh, so fun.
Um, but I was able to be in mybody and not hate it while I was
doing that because I try to lookat it this way now if I'm
nervous about talking abouthyperhidrosis or nervous about
showing up in my body, then thattakes the focus.
That puts the focus on me, andI'm here to serve other people
(13:13):
and help other people feelbetter about the sweaty skin
that they're in.
So I try and flip the scriptbecause we all have those
automatic negative thoughts thatrun rampant in our head.
I call it my sweaty innermonologue, and it is a lot of
the time, not very nice.
And so I've had to work reallyhard to love myself through my
sweating.
(13:33):
Um, but still acknowledgingthose feelings.
Like, yeah, I still have supercrappy days and I hate my body
and I feel like it's betrayingme.
But it's just a matter ofchanging your perspective and
taking a step back and saying,okay, wait a minute.
Let's put this in perspectiveand see what we can still do
despite the things that we'restruggling with.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (13:53):
I like that'cause I think
hyperhidrosis can really take usout of our body whether it's
trying to hide embarrassment butalso discomfort.
Yeah.
I find hyperhidrosis is a steadysource of discomfort for my
body.
I get swelling.
I do too.
Um, you do as well.
Yeah.
And, and I find that theswelling is almost as difficult
(14:14):
to deal with as the sweating onsome days.
Being able to walk on my feetand move my hands.
Mm-hmm.
It takes you out of your body.
In terms of your advocacy work,I'm interested in knowing how
that has changed yourrelationship with hyperhidrosis
or allowed you to connect withother people that have taught
you things about hyperhidrosis.
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (14:38):
Yeah, I think the biggest thing for me
is the loss of shame andembarrassment.
Like I said, when I was at thatsymposium, that was the first
time I didn't have to apologizefor how I was, people understood
me, and so it validated me andgave me a sense of purpose.
Like I said, maybe I have thisfor a reason and I'm supposed to
help other people, you know?
(14:59):
So every time I talk about it,it gets a little bit easier.
If I'm able to give thedisclaimer in situations that
are appropriate, then I do so.
Like, job interviews sometimes.
Now that I'm so far along myadvocacy journey, it's part of
my resume.
People will ask me, what ishyperhidrosis?
What are you advocating about orfor?
And then I can explain it, andthen I don't have to worry about
(15:21):
it anymore because they knowthat I have it and I can't
really control it.
Karina Sweaty Girl Soci (15:24):
Mm-hmm.
Maria, My Life as a Pud (15:26):
Medical appointments are another place
where I think it's reallyimportant to speak up because I
think a lot of people withhyperhidrosis avoid getting
medical care because they're soembarrassed.
They're so ashamed.
But your body is your temple andyou have to take care of it.
So jot down some notes that youwanna tell them, or if you're
going to just a regular annualexam or a checkup or whatever,
(15:47):
just tell them, hey, I have thismedical condition, it's called
hyperhidrosis.
These are the areas where Imight sweat.
You can ask for what you need itto get through that appointment.
If I'm going to like agynecological exam, I'll ask for
what they call a chit.
It's an extra thick absorbentpad basically that they use
during surgeries or otherprocedures where fluids may
(16:09):
leak.
Oh.
So sit on one of those on top ofthat paper that's on the exam
table, and that will help absorbthings.
You can bring a towel with youor grab some paper towels in the
exam room.
So that's been a big lesson forme is just don't be afraid to
ask for what you need.
Karina Sweaty Girl Socie (16:25):
That's such a good tip.
That's such a good tip.
I find doctor's appointments sotriggering as well.
Yes.
That the paper that they put onthe, on the examination bed.
Oh, it's horrible.
It's like I'm gonna soak throughthat in 30 seconds.
Yes.
And it's gonna be stuck to me.
And this blue gown that you gaveme that's gonna have sweat
stains all over it.
I know.
So I know.
It's terrible.
(16:46):
Yeah, that's, that's such a goodpoint.
It feels so hard sometimes toask for what we need because
we're so accustomed to justtrying to hide it and remain
silent.
How do you find people reactwhen you tell them that you have
hyperhidrosis, or when you askfor things?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (17:01):
Most people say, oh, I, I would not
have noticed that had you notsaid anything because we're so
good at hiding it, right?
Mm-hmm.
Um, or I'll explain what it is,and they're like, oh, I have
that too.
Or, oh, I know someone who hasthat.
You think you're isolated andalone, but really you're not.
Mm-hmm.
You know, there's 365 millionpeople in the world who have
(17:23):
hyperhidrosis.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (17:25):
So one thing that you've spoken
about openly is being a cancersurvivor.
Yeah.
Can you talk about howhyperhidrosis impacted that
journey for you?
Because I can't imagine that waseasy on its own and then having
hyperhidrosis layered on top ofthat.
Maria, My Life as a Pudd (17:43):
Right.
So when my son was 10 monthsold, no, maybe a little bit
earlier than that, I had found anew primary care doctor and he
ran every lab that he could runand a couple of numbers came
back that he didn't like.
Thyroid numbers.
So he sent me to a surgeon andthey did a fine needle biopsy
and lo and behold, I'm diagnosedwith thyroid cancer, which I
(18:05):
never saw coming.
I had zero symptoms other thanthe fact that I knew that I had
Hashimoto's, which is anautoimmune thyroid disease.
Typically, when you have oneautoimmune condition, you tend
to be diagnosed with more, andso I'd already been diagnosed
with ulcerative colitis, whichis an inflammatory bowel
disease, so I had been alreadydealing with that then got the
(18:27):
thyroid cancer diagnosis.
So in order to completetreatment, I had two separate
partial thyroidectomies followedup by radioactive iodine.
And during the first surgery,they put you in a gown, which
thankfully was not a paper gown.
It was a cloth gown, so I was,mm-hmm, a little bit happier
about the sweating part of that,but then they also said, you
(18:48):
need to be naked under the gown.
And I'm thinking, well, why do Ihave to take my underwear off if
you're cutting into my neck?
Like, that doesn't make sense.
Mm-hmm.
So I was triggered to sweat inthat case.
And then post-surgery, um.
The thyroid is the master glandof your body and it controls
your metabolism and a bunch ofother things.
(19:08):
And so now I don't have mybody's internal thermostat, so
now it's very hard for me todecide, am I sweating because I
have hyperhidrosis?
Am I sweating because I don'thave a thyroid?
I don't know.
It's, it's kind of hit or miss.
Um, I've become very aware ofwhat I put into and on my body
(19:29):
so people might think I've goneon the crunchy side, which is
fine.
Mm-hmm.
Um, I think Eastern and Westernmedicine are both equally valid.
There is a time and a place forboth, but I've definitely become
more on the natural or holisticor integrated side of things.
So some of the treatment optionsfor hyperhidrosis I don't feel
(19:51):
like are the best fit for meanymore.
Mm-hmm.
But just because they aren'tright for me doesn't mean I'm
not gonna speak about all of thetreatments on my blog because I
want people to have the bestinformation and the most options
for their excessive sweating.
Karina Sweaty Girl Societ (20:04):
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense.
I think that a lot of the timewe do need to do an assessment
for ourselves.
Are we willing to take some ofthe risks that might be
associated with treatments?
Maria, My Life as a Pudd (20:15):
Right.
And I would say definitely doyour own research and what pops
up on the first page of aninternet search may be a paid ad
for a product or a service.
So just make sure you're, youhave informed consent about all
of the side effects with amedication or a procedure before
you go down that route.
Karina Sweaty Girl Societ (20:34):
Yeah, so going back to your advocacy
work, what are some of the bestmoments you've experienced?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (20:44):
Back in 2017, I was a featured
panelist speaker at theinaugural patient focused drug
development meeting onhyperhidrosis, they call it a
PFDD.
So I got to share my sweatystory with members of the FDA
and big pharma and there wereother patients there and so
ahead of the meeting all of thepatients got together and did
(21:04):
some activities.
So meeting more people who havehyperhidrosis, someone there
recognized me.
She followed my blog.
And so now we exchange Christmascards every year.
So having that tangible, Yeah.
Lasting relationship with a lot.
Yeah.
Has been so neat.
Karina Sweaty Girl Societ (21:20):
Isn't it so nice to meet other people
with hyperhidrosis?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (21:23):
It is.
There's a quote by CS Lewis andit's something to the effect of,
friendship is born at thatmoment when one person says to
another, what?
You two?
I thought I was the only one.
Oh, I love that.
And that's what's happening is,you know, my little.
My one drop of sweat is kind ofcreating like a ripple effect
and it's something that I'mreally honored to be a part of
and I don't take it lightly atall, and I hope to always stay
(21:45):
humble about it.
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
So being a panelist speaker atthe PFDD was really cool.
I have guest posts on my blogfrom around the world, Kenya,
the UK, the Philippines, France.
A lot of people in the US havesubmitted their stories, and I'm
still accepting guest blogposts.
If anyone wants to reach out.
I'd love to feature you too.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (22:06):
Oh, yeah.
Maria, My Life as a Pud (22:07):
Because I love what you're doing, I
think.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (22:08):
Oh, that'd be awesome.
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (22:09):
Yeah.
So being able to create anetwork of people who have the
same thing and we can bounceideas off of each other.
We can vent to each other.
And have a sense of friendshipand community I think is really
important so that we don't feelalone.
Mm-hmm.
And then my most recentadvocacy, um, every year at
Johnson and Johnson puts on apatient advocacy conference
(22:30):
called Healthy Voices, and I'veapplied to attend, every year
for probably the last 10 years,and this year I got in.
So in November I'll be going tothe Healthy Voices Conference,
and it's more internal focusedto help advocates become better
at what they're doing.
So I won't necessarily betalking specifically about
hyperhidrosis while I'm there,but I will be coming home with
(22:51):
more tools in my toolbox so thatI can get my message out and
help more people.
Karina Sweaty Girl Socie (22:56):
That's amazing.
Congratulations on getting,thank you, getting into that.
Yeah.
I know it's been a goal of yoursfor a while and yeah, that's
really exciting.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Now on the flip side, I'mcurious if you've had any not so
great moments or challenges withdoing advocacy work around
hyperhidrosis.
And I'm specifically thinkingaround, I feel like sometimes
(23:19):
there's some pushback becausefor folks who don't experience
hyperhidrosis, there's that ideathat like, why are you
complaining, it's just sweat,this is not going to kill you.
It's not a disease, you know, Imean, you could argue that
because the rates of suicide arehigher, and depression anxiety,
for people with hyperhidrosis,but mm-hmm.
(23:40):
Um, you know, it's not gonnadirectly threaten your life.
Anything that you've encounteredlike that?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (23:46):
Um, I haven't really gotten a lot of
negative feedback, but to peoplewho say, oh, it's just sweat,
like, why are you evencomplaining, I would say to them
all pain is the same.
And so whether or not ourhyperhidrosis brings us physical
pain, because we might haveswelling like you mentioned, or
we might get skin rashes orthings that could be painful,
(24:07):
the emotional and psychologicalpain, can be bad.
And that's not to say, oh, just,you know, be a victim and you
know.
I, I would say don't victimizeyourself.
Feel your feelings and get themup and out, but don't focus on
them because otherwise it'sgonna keep you stuck.
And then as far as like otherpushback, I've tried to work
(24:28):
with a few different companies,and they've tried to pigeonhole
me into, well, you're either aninfluencer or you're a patient.
And I really don't like the wordinfluencer.
I'm an advocate.
I'm not an influencer.
Do I have influence?
Maybe, but I'm advocating, I'mnot trying to get the most views
on Instagram and you know, yeah.
(24:49):
Facebook, like, I don't careabout views and likes.
Sure.
It helps me spread my message,but that's not why I do it.
Yeah.
Um, but yeah, so I'm both apatient and I'm also an
advocate.
So for them trying to pigeonholeme into one way or the other,
that was frustrating.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (25:04):
In terms of your advocacy work over
the 15 years, what has changed?
How has the conversation changedif it has at all, since when you
started?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (25:16):
I think that's a hard question.
The conversation has grown, butI don't know if it's quite
changed yet.
There's definitely more peoplewho are speaking publicly about
their condition.
Organizations like what you'recreating with Sweaty Girl
Society and things like that.
So I think that is awesome.
Um, treatment wise, I feel likewe're still kind of stuck in the
(25:39):
axillary treatment realm.
Mm-hmm.
So those people who suffer fromsweaty underarms, that's what
most of the medications aretargeted toward or the
procedures.
So I would really love to seemore treatments for palmar and
plantar and craniofacialparticularly.
Yeah.
Craniofacial hyperhidrosis, Ithink is probably the worst in
(25:59):
terms of being able to hide itbecause how are you supposed to
hide a sweaty head and a sweatyface?
It's, mm-hmm.
That's difficult, you know, and,and people might think, are you
okay?
Are you sick?
Is something wrong?
Why are you drenched in sweatwhen really that's your normal
and that's what's happening inyour body.
It doesn't mean you're sick.
It doesn't mean you'reoverweight or, you know, things
like that.
Oh, you must be sweating becauseyou're fat.
(26:20):
Like that's, no, that's not thecase.
So I think keeping theconversation open and creating
that larger sense of communitywill really help in the long
run.
Karina Sweaty Girl Societ (26:31):
Yeah.
Yeah.
In terms of research, where doyou think research is needed
next?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (26:38):
I would like to know what the root
cause of hyper hydrosis Yeah.
Is.
Um, there's some research thatsays it could be caused by an
overactive sympathetic nervoussystem.
So your body's fight or flightresponse.
Hmm.
Um, I'm not a medicalprofessional by any means, but I
would really like to see moreresearch into the root cause of
that and looking into how can wetap into the parasympathetic
(27:00):
nervous system, your body's restand digest, and are there things
that we can be doing with thevagus nerve to help our bodies
calm down and things like thatto reduce sweating.
Karina Sweaty Girl (27:10):
Interesting.
Yeah.
Yeah.
It is frustrating that we stilldon't understand what causes
this.
Even when you were talkingearlier about being a parent and
worrying about passing it on toyour child.
That is so unknown as well,because sometimes you will pass
it on, sometimes you won't.
Sometimes you'll, right, yourchild can develop sweating in a
(27:31):
different area or to a differentdegree.
There's just a lot that'sunknown about that as well.
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (27:38):
Yeah.
So I think there's definitely agenetic component to it.
I have members on both sides ofmy family who have
hyperhidrosis, um, oh wow.
My maternal grandmother'sbrothers had it.
They were in the army and theywould come home with trench foot
because their feet were sosweaty inside their combat
boots.
Oh, interesting.
Um, and then my dad also hashyperhidrosis and he can get
(27:59):
full body sweating.
Yeah.
So yeah, it's definitely on bothsides of my family.
I also developed compensatorysweating or what they call CS,
as a side effect of gettingBotox injections.
So it stopped the sweating in myhands, um, for about three
weeks, best three weeks of mylife.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
But I developed compensatorysweating in my lower back, and I
(28:20):
still have that to this day.
Wow.
And Botox can be effective butI've heard that you've got have
to get more than one treatmentto lengthen out the effects.
And it can be very painfuldepending on the area of your
body where you're doing it.
So looking back, I can't believeI did it.
I had 155 injections in my, inthe palms of my hands, and that
was at that simple, whoa.
(28:41):
But I feel like I was fiftyfive, a hundred and fifty five.
They took a sharpie and put dotsall over my hands.
Um, yeah.
So that was wild, but desperatetimes, call for desperate
measures and I totally, I feltlike I was at my wit's end and I
said I've gotta at least trythis.
And that was what catapulted meinto my blog.
So I don't regret it by anymeans.
Karina Sweaty Girl Societ (29:02):
Yeah.
Wow.
That's a lot.
I had Botox done a few times.
My underarms that was tolerableand worked quite well for me.
But I also had it done on myhands once, and it was for me as
well, extremely painful.
Now, I think I only had 30injections on each hand, which I
felt was like a, a a lot, butthat's wild.
Um, you know, after I had itdone, my hands were bruised and
(29:23):
bleeding, and it was notpleasant.
Now, I do know people who don'thave that same experience.
Again, everybody is different,but I personally could not
tolerate that, and didn't wannakeep up with the underarm
injections every six months typething.
So, yeah.
Yeah, yeah.
Wow.
So your compensatory sweatingdidn't end when the Botox ended,
unfortunately.
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (29:44):
No.
Unfortunately, I just, yeah,kind of deal with it.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (29:47):
What a mystery.
What a mystery this it is.
This medical condition is, yeah.
Yeah.
Some answers would be great.
Yes.
Yeah.
And get on that people.
Yeah.
And the thing is, is that it'snot like it's an extremely rare
condition, right?
There's millions of peopleworldwide with this.
Do you think that it's justbecause it's not talked about
(30:08):
that the attention hasn't beenput there?
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (30:11):
That, also, there probably isn't as
much money in finding treatmentsfor it or finding a cure.
You know, we can always hope fora cure, but I don't think we
should place our happiness orour success in life on whether
there's a cure.
You know?
Yes, you have going forward and,and just live your life to the
best that you can and ask forwhat you need along the way.
Karina Sweaty Girl Societ (30:32):
Yeah.
Yeah.
When I think about treatmentsand products, I like to think of
it as a toolkit we carry withus.
Yeah.
And, sometimes an antiperspirantis gonna be what we like,
sometimes it's gonna beiontophoresis, sometimes it
might be Botox, and sometimes itmight be medication.
And at different times of yourlife, different things might
make sense.
Right.
And then there's also a place, Ithink, just for nothing.
(30:54):
Mm-hmm.
Um, for just sort of living lifeas a sweaty person.
Is that sort of where you're atright now?
Do you find freedom in that?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (31:03):
I do find freedom in that and that's
basically where I'm at now.
For myself, I will never get ETSsurgery.
I feel like the side effectsoutweigh the benefits.
Yeah.
I've met people in person whohave had that surgery and they
have severe compensatorysweating from their neck to
their hips.
Full body, you know?
Yeah.
Full trunk area sweating.
(31:23):
They're sweating throughmultiple layers of shirts and
their quality of life is evenworse than before they had the
surgery.
And, everyone's body isdifferent.
Some people have had thatsurgery and they're great,
they're fine.
But for me, I will never havethat surgery.
Like I said too, I'm careful nowabout what I put in and on my
body.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (31:42):
I wish there were more, uh, better
Yes.
Solutions and betterunderstanding of root cause.
Yeah.
Uh, root cause issues, right?
Yeah.
So what is next for youpersonally?
You mentioned that you're goingto the conference where you'll
be developing your advocacyskills.
What do you hope to do in thecoming years.
(32:04):
I know that you're a stay athome mom and you're very busy
with that, but yeah, what doesyour advocacy work look like?
Maria, My Life as a Puddle (32:08):
Well I'd like to get back to blogging
on a more regular schedule.
My son will be in preschool thisyear, so I'll have more time to
devote to blogging.
I have so many notes on my phoneabout different topics that I've
thought of or that people haveasked me about that I would, I
really want to write about.
Um, hyperhidrosis in pregnancyand being a parent being
probably the top two right now.
(32:29):
Yeah.
Um, and I also have some morecreative hyperhidrosis work that
has been on my bucket list foryears.
I don't wanna say too much aboutit'cause I wanna just keep it
close to my heart right now.
Okay.
While I'm working on it.
Um, yeah.
But hopefully there'll be somenews about that and, you know,
the next year or so, who knows.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (32:47):
Oh, exciting.
Exciting.
Well, Maria, thank you so muchfor your time today and your
conversation.
Yeah.
Um, it's always nice to chatwith somebody who has, who has
hyperhidrosis and then, and thenyou who has been very
influential in my life for somany years.
I was one of your silentfollowers for many years, so
(33:10):
thank you so much.
So I wanted to end by asking youwhere can people find you
online?
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (33:16):
Yeah.
So my blog is My Life as aPuddle.com.
You can find me on Facebook, andX at my life as a puddle.
And I just want everyone who'sout there sweating in silence
there's nothing wrong with you,like, yes, you're a sweaty
person, but don't let yourcircumstances reduce you.
You're more than your conditionand you can refuse to be reduced
(33:38):
by your circumstances.
Karina Sweaty Girl Society (33:39):
I love that.
Thank you.
Maria, My Life as a Puddl (33:41):
Yeah, thank you.
Karina Sweaty Girl Socie (33:49):
Thanks for listening to the Sweaty
Girls Society podcast.
If you like today's episode,join our free membership
community@sweatygirlssociety.comslash community.
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