How to Make the Switch to a Natural Deodorant

A few years ago I saw an ad for a natural deodorant, and I thought I should make the switch to a more natural deodorant. They had a great deal on a trial pack of different scents. I really loved the product and was excited to use it. That is until my armpits started breaking out in a bad way. That had never happened before with my normal drug store deodorant.

I had so much going on at the time, I didn’t take the time to figure out what was going on or how to solve it.

Maybe you have had an experience like this. Or maybe you tired natural deodorant and found out you stunk – bad. You found it just wasn’t worth it.

Or maybe you haven’t even wanted to try switching because of these types of stories you have heard from other people.

So Why use a natural deodorant with all these horror stories?

There are actually quite a few reasons that you might want to think about when looking to switch to a natural deodorant from a traditional one.

The reasons in the graphic are the general ideas that brought me to the conclusion to give natural deodorant another try and read on below for more personal reasons and how I came to find out this information.

ingredients to avoid in deodorant

Read on more over here for more information about the ingredients to avoid when choosing a deodorant.

So why have I now switched to a natural deodorant, and how has it been different this time around?

Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This just means if you click on a link to make a purchase, Our Future Homestead may make a small commission at no extra cost to you.  You can read our full disclosure policy here.

This time I was looking for answers for some other things going on that brought me to information about using natural deodorant.

Since having my third child, something just seemed off. I was having issues that I had experienced before, but at a more intense rate. I was moody, exhausted, had a super low libido, and my acne was out of control. I knew my hormones had to be the culprit, but I didn’t know what to do about it.

I started taking a couple of supplements that actually really helped me. I’ll be writing more about that later. Yet, I could tell that things were still going on hormonally that I needed to get control of.

That’s when I came across an article from Primally Pure about how to balance hormones naturally. You can read the full article here.

One of the topics in the article was about getting the toxins out of your life. This included switching out my deodorant to a non-toxic brand.

At this point I was feeling pretty desperate to get back to the normal me. I wanted to make sure I was doing everything I could to balance my hormones.

Switching to a natural deodorant was going to happen.

This time I did a few things different.

I read all that I could about the why so that I was clear why I was doing this. So that way if things were rough, I would have something to hold onto.

I also read up on how to make the switch easier. Read on up below of how to do just that.

What to Expect and How to Make the Switch easier

Sweat

First of all, most of us are taught that sweat is gross and something to avoid at all costs. Yet, that’s actually the opposite of what is true.

We are meant to sweat to rid our body of excess toxins, yet when we use antiperspirant, our bodies are not able to do that.

The aluminum in a traditional antiperspirant/deodorant has most likely been blocking your sweat pores for years and it may take awhile for your body to adjust to this new freedom.

You may sweat a ton, or not much more than normal. I know that I did not sweat tons more than normal, but there was a period for the first few weeks that it was a bit more. It will not last that way after your body adjusts, though.

A few ways you can help yourself out is to make the switch when its not so hot out or when you know you don’t have a big important event coming up.

You can also take your deodorant along with you to reapply midday those first few weeks.

Stink

You will notice that you do smell a bit more than usual as you make the switch to a more natural deodorant. There are a few reasons for that.

Your body is now in detox mode and all that has been held in with the antiperspirant is now working its way out.

As with the sweat I talked about above, the stink may last a few weeks or less, depending on your body. Just know that it will eventually lesson.

Make sure to clean your pits well every day either in the shower or with a warm wash cloth before applying your deodorant.

Reapply your deodorant in the day if needed, but know that you won’t always have to do this step.

Be patient. This problem will get better.

Sometimes it might help to have a few different natural deodorants on hand to switch back and forth after the initial detox. I have my favorite, but sometimes use the others now and then.

Armpit Bumps

The reason why I abandoned my first natural deodorant had to do with the big red bumps that developed in my pits. It didn’t happen right away.

I remember being so happy with how things were going and then, bam, out of nowhere, my pits were a mess.

Well there are a few things you can do to help yourself avoid this situation or fix it when/if it comes up.

First of all, you can avoid deodorants with ingredients that are hard on sensitive skin. Even some natural deodorants have ingredients you want to watch for.

Sometimes baking soda irritates people, while fragrances can really bug others. Really look at the ingredients when picking out something natural. Non-toxic and natural do not mean the same thing with all brands.

The next thing you can do if you get bumps is do an armpit detox. I thought this was the weirdest thing when I heard about it. But now it makes so much sense. After all the years of blocking our pores with aluminum, it takes time to unclog. A detox will help speed this process along. It will also help eliminate odor and the amount of sweat you are experiencing.

DYI Armpit Detox

You can easily make a detox mask for your armpits with 3 simple ingredients.

Mix:
1 tablespoon of this clay
1 teaspoon Apple CV
1-2 teaspoon purified water

Apply a thin layer to each pit starting with about 5 minutes. Each time you use it, you can up the time to about 20 minutes if your pits react well. Apply daily for up to 2 weeks – or until your pits are detoxed, smooth and odor free.

A great way to do this is put it on before getting in the shower and then rinse it off when you hop in.

A Great Natural Deodorant to start with

I actually have tried about a half dozen brands of natural deodorants. Many of them had great natural scents, textures, and I liked them well enough. I had to reapply several of them more than once a day.

Then I found Primally Pure and their charcoal deodorant. I loved the idea that it contains a small amount of baking soda to combat odor and is fortified with kaolin clay (powerful detoxifier) and non-nano zinc oxide (soothes irritation). At first I wanted to start with the blue tansy scent from Primally Pure, but when I read that the activated coconut charcoal contains added detoxifying benefits while also deodorizing and disinfecting, I went with that kind. I am so happy I did.

I knew that if I was going to combat the red bumps, then the charcoal would give me a leg up.

And I have been right. This deodorant, out of all that I have tried, has been the best. It goes on smooth and keeps me dry. The detox period hasn’t been much to worry about either. Which may be since I have already tried several other natural deodorants. But even if it was the first one I tried, I think I would have stopped searching right then.

Have you made the switch yet? I have heard from so many people that have been trying, yet just haven’t found the right fit yet. If not, Primally Pure might be it for you too.

They gave me a discount code to share with my readers. Take advantage of it and try it out today.

Primally pure deodorant

Have you made the switch yet? What did you find helpful? I’d love to hear from you.

10 Comments

  1. I’ve been curious about charcoal in deodorants. I’ll have to give that a try next time! I had made the switch last year, but then went back because I had an oversupply of my unnatural deodorant that I didn’t want to throw out. I’ve only tried a couple of brands so far and I’ve been happy with them, but haven’t married myself to one particular brand. Have you ever tried making your own?

  2. I so need to do this. Being a Stay-at-Home mom and farmher I dont usually even put on deodorant unless going to town. But when I do need it I just cringe with the natural ones I’ve tried and especially the store bought brands. Need to check this out or get to making my own asap! Thanks for the push!

  3. I wanted to wait a bit before I wrote a review of the deodorant so that I had time to really check out the product. I ordered two : Blue Tansy and the Charcoal. I like both of them for a lot of reasons but the top three are:
    The scents are not overwhelming but even in the heat I don’t stink and need to carry one in my purse for a second round during the day. HUGE!

    The product goes on without grit and smoothly. I use far less of it than other brands.

    Last, not all the reasons, is that I have worked hard to get the other deodorants out of my clothes and had to wash in far warmer water than I normally ever would. With Primarily Pure, I don’t have that issue at all. Wash and go now.

    1. Thanks for leaving a comment. I would totally agree on all those things. With other brands I needed to reapply during the day a lot of the time, and I do not with Primally Pure. And I also noticed that when my husband tried another new brand of a natural deodorant, we could not get it to wash out of his shirts. It was really frustrating.

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