Intimate Grooming

Hello! Happy 2021! In the first post of this year I’m going to talk about some grooming issues that I think don’t appear very much on the Internet.

The first one are inverted nipples. What?? Yes, there are women (including myself) whose nipples are not erected, or not always. This is called having flat or inverted nipples. In my case, they are usually flat, but with cold or when touched the “tip” comes out. They’re shy, hahaha. For me it is not too much of a problem, quite the opposite, since I do not have that problem of the noticeable nipple when wearing a sports bra or not wearing a bra. Something that, by the way, should not be a problem either, since a nipple is normal, well, what if it is noticeable under the clothes? Men’s package is usually noticeable too. One day I heard a youtuber telling that she had inverted nipples, and that since she wanted to have a baby, she needed to have a surgery there before, in order to be able to breastfeed her baby. When I had rhinoplasty this summer, I mentioned this to the surgeon and he told me that it is just the opposite: if you have inverted nipples and you have surgery done there, you can no longer breastfeed. So, I have doubts about it, if someone has had this problem and has had surgery and then breastfed, please tell me. I read that having flat or inverted nipples may cause problems when breastfeeding, but in my case, since by just touching them they come out I do not think so. What the surgeon told me is that with the surgery to pull the nipple outwards, some “fibers” are cut (those “fibers” cause the nipple go inwards) and that is why afterwards it is no longer possible to breastfeed. Whatever.

Another issue I wanted to discuss is the pubis/labia majora. I think that in a post I already mentioned that I had full intimate hair removal for the first time two years ago, and now I have completely finished the process. There is no going back. I thought a lot about whether I should do it or not, because with electrolysis hair removal the result is definitive. As it was not my priority, I left it until the end, but now after three sessions I am already hairfree there. My doubts were whether I looked or felt strange, and because hair is supposed to have a function there, to protect from friction and against some sexually transmitted diseases.

Well, I did not take my decision for sexual reasons because I am not promiscuous nor did I seek to improve sensations or something like that. I did it, honestly (and I know I’m not the only one who thinks so) because I was sick of seeing pubic hairs (even tough they were mine!) On the bathroom floor, in the sanitary towels, in my pants, on the shower floor… Like the hair on the head, pubic hairs are renewed and fall out, and are long enough to be seen. I don’t go naked at home, so I could not understand how I could see pubic hair on the bathroom floor, just due to drying off after showering. The fact is that I was very disgusted. And those hairs were quite dark, curly and long, gross. Another reason for me was the odor/hygiene issue. Although hair is not synonymous with dirt, well, some remains keep there when you urinate or have your period. Finally, I had a stain on my groin that I thought was from when I had laser there many years ago. I thought it was a burn and that’s why I had that brown stain. But one day it started to itch, and then I started to wonder if it was a fungus. And yes, it turns out that I had a fungus in my groin for several years and had not found out. With a cream it was removed, but I did not stop thinking about how a fungus could have come out there. Because of my lifestyle it was not possible that it was due to something contagious. Then I realized: fungi come out because of the humidity. What could have caused humidity there? Well, when I shower, I usually dress immediately, and my public hair was still half damp when I put my panties on. That’s why the fungus started. I searched on the Internet and saw that other people had also suffered this problem, and they recommended drying public hair with cold air with the hairdryer, or intimate epilation. For the reasons stated above, I preferred the second option.

And that is how I decided to have a total intimate epilation. I forgot to mention that, with aging, many women get gray and bald spots there, so that would be one less inconvenience. With intimate hair removal I have included the pubis and the entire intergluteal/perianal area. It feels very clean in the shower when you notice that there is no hair there. It also feels less annoying with the period, and I don’t get any hairs stuck to the glue of the sanitary towel (it used to be a sudden pain when going to the bathroom hahaha) I was worried that I would notice more friction, for example, when riding a bike. But no problem. Since the epilation was with local anesthesia, it was not painful at all, nor did it give me any problems afterwards, the area swells a little and then it goes down.

One last topic that I have learned about is related to the labia majora. I really don’t know how the “intimate area” of other women look like. But it seems that, as with breasts, there are differences, there are women with larger or smaller, darker or lighter labia majora. In the intimate area the skin is darker than in the rest of the body, that is clear. And it seems that some people whiten that area. Some women have their labia majora too big, or one bigger than the other, and it seems to them little aesthetic or it bothers them with tight clothes. I have one labia majora larger than the other and somewhat dark, but it doesn’t give me any comfort problem or anything. In fact, bigger labia majora are supposedly beneficial on the sexual area. Anyway, for those who may be concerned about this, there is also an intervention that “cuts” labia majora (with laser) and makes them look more aesthetic.

Well, you see, I always talk about “never said” issues. In addition to being curious, they seem to me to be issues that must also be discussed, otherwise it happens as it happened to me with my hair problem: it happens to a young or  uninformed girl and she thinks that she is abnormal and that it only happens to her to her. All because some issues are not discussed.

Until next post!

I wrote a book!!

In the last post of this strange year 2020 I want to share that I have written a book!! It is not my first book, but it is the first that I did not write for work reasons and that I’m publishing as Mariahelpsyou. It is available in Spanish and English, both in ebook and paper format. For every taste!

The possibility of self-publishing for free with Amazon had caught my attention a long time ago. Knowing the difficulties of gaining a foothold in the publishing world, it seems like a great option for all those who want to publish something that may not sell, or who are not professional writers. Taking advantage of the low social life imposed this year, I took on the task of compiling some of the blog posts into a book, which has the same title as the blog. It is a short book, with eight chapters, with the posts I thought were the most important to include. In the five years that have passed since I started writing the blog I discovered new things and I had to update several posts. So, in the book I wanted to include all that information together. For example, how I progressed with electrolysis hair removal, belonephobia, skin care, in dyeing my gray hair, in oral care…

The book is aimed especially at teenage girls and girls in their twenties. Every time I wrote a blog post, I mentally relived my past dealing with different beauty / health issues, and each time I thought: “If someone had told me this at the time.” I remembered how I felt so lonely and hopeless with certain problems, which apparently only happened to me because nobody around was talking about them, and that despite my many attempts seemed to have no solution. Some of them (like acne or gingivitis) may seem more common and not as serious. Others, like hirsutism or belonephobia, have really embittered much of my life. That is why the book is aimed at young girls who may living a similar situation. Although it has taken many years, I have found a solution to all these problems. And it has not been thanks to the many specialist doctors, or dentists, or hairdressers, or any so-called “professionals”, but only with my persistence and research on the Internet, losing a lot of time and money along the way. Whoever seeks finds (even if it is later than sooner). Although the book is aimed at young girls, of course anyone can benefit from reading it, at least one chapter, be it a man or a woman of any age.

And well, what better date to launch a book than before Christmas! I do not expect to earn lot of money with this, it would be enough for me to know that the knowledge I share arrived and helped someone who needed it.

Merry Christmas!!

*Where to buy the book:

As an Amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

*Book in English: https://amzn.to/3fNCJxK

*Book in Spanish: https://amzn.to/33tbuUd

A small summary

Hello everyone!!

This month’s post is going to be a compilation of everything I’ve been writing about on the blog, since I started with three posts in 2015, until I decided to take it more seriously and write a monthly post as part of my goals for the year in 2017.

When I started the blog I wanted to share things that I had discovered by myself, especially through the Internet and from my own experience and that of others, over the years. They were doubts, questions that do not appear so much in beauty magazines and on blogs and YouTube channels, or that in the case of appearing I considered they had wrong or incomplete answers (such as taking the pill if you have acne or resorting to laser if you have hair on your face…). I really wanted to address problems and solutions that I thought were not being publicized enough.

In 2015 I explained how the irrigator (in its eco-friendly and cheap version, the Italian So-Wash) is the secret weapon that dentists do not want you to discover, along with the coconut oil + bicarbonate toothpaste. A toothpaste that also works as a deodorant. I also published the most visited and consulted entry of the entire blog, the one that talks about electrolysis hair removal. A post that I updated later showing the progress of my “do it yourself” results in this regard.

In 2017, I started talking about my experience with hirsutism and acne, I defended Roacutan and Ovusitol against the contraceptive pill and I talked about some simple and cheap measures like aloe vera, castile soap (Dr. Bronners), the importance of changing face towels and the pillowcase (better if it is made of silk) often. I have also talked about the importance of nutrition (the now fashionable smoothies) for the skin and the little-known mineral makeup.

Also in 2017 I dared to confess the existence of tonsil stones and anal blackheads, in the most eschatological blog post. I spoke again about hair, but this time about hair on the head: I was interested in henna as an alternative to dyes and allergies, but I was worried that it would not cover gray hair well.

I also talked about health issues, such as period pain, and how I try to control them by always keeping omeprazole and ibuprofen close at hand, in my emergency bag. Or the problem of belonephobia, so poorly treated by most health professionals and which causes serious trauma to many people. I still hadn’t found a definitive solution to this issue, but reading the book Overcoming Medical Phobias gave me some hope. Trying psychological treatments (hypnosis, neurolinguistic programming) gradual exposure (with images, videos…) and using the applied tension of the muscles could be the key. In my case, I also think that choosing a different site from which to draw the blood (perhaps the hand and not the inside of the elbow) could have an influence. I’ve been working on this for the past few months, and I’ve gone from feeling a bit dizzy just reading or watching videos about it, to being able to tolerate it (at least from a distance). I also think that the time of day influences, since for example I have the lowest blood pressure and I am weaker in the morning, which is precisely when the blood extraction procedure is done (and on an empty stomach). A reader advised me to use Buzzy and I have it ready to try in the future. What I’d really like to try though is the Seventh Sense Biosystems TAP. I keep writing them to see how to acquire it but it seems that at the moment only certain laboratories have it (I have also written to them and they do not respond). I hope it is only a matter of time, because it gives me the impression that there may be the solution. Other alternatives are the use of Vacutainer or butterfly needles for extractions. I had considered these alternatives, so I would also like to try. Anyway, hopefully in the future I can write a post explaining how I finally solved the issue. It would be my personal big hit on these issues, along with the discovery of electrolysis :))

In the blog I have also shared my personal manias, such as my rejection to long nails (which does not mean that I do not take care of my hands), my rejection of feet, of absurd fashion stupidities like ripped pants, my horror of intestinal parasites and of noise. And I have defended the use of the forgotten bidet, protection from the sun but not with creams, internal and external hydration and attention to the lymphatic system.

Some posts include novel therapies, such as the natural solution to myopia (including much cheaper glasses), a problem that I had previously discussed. In this regard, I recently read a piece of news about some drops to solve myopia developed by a university in Israel … I’ll be watching too. Hopefully ending myopia without surgery will my third hit :))

*To buy the products I speak about (I only recommend products that I’ve tested):

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases

*From the United States:

·Buzzy: https://amzn.to/2ZTLvDF

*From Mexico:

·Buzzy: https://www.buzzy.com.mx/

*From Spain:

·Buzzy: https://amzn.to/2RUnzMh

Hirsutism and acne: my experience

Hello!

After the post about electric hair removal I thought it would be convenient to go a little deeper on the subject of hirsutism and acne. These are two problems that I have suffered since I was a teenager (now I am going to be 30 years old) and which have taken me so much time to have under control. It really is a problem that has made me suffer a lot, and I had to do a lot of research on my own to see how to solve it. Doctors do not take you seriously because they do not consider them a health problem, just an aesthetic issue (in my case I do not even have polycystic ovaries), my mother did not give it any importance, all the insecurities I had when putting on a bikini or to intimate with a boy … and some years ago there was not as much information on the Internet as now! I did not know that electrolysis hair removal (very important to know for girls with hair problems) existed until I was 25, although it is a method that has been working more than 100 years!

Let’s start with the issue of hair and then I will move on to acne. As I explained in the previous post, laser (Diode Lightseer is the one I know and I know it works, as long as the person who applies it takes his time-minimum 2 hours for legs-and puts it at a considerable power) only works in very terminal hairs (very “hard” hair), and even though it does not work impeccably. For me it worked more or less in my legs, even though my hair is black and my skin is quite pale so that I am the ideal client. Well, even after 5  laser sessions, I had to go over my legs with electrolysis (although much more on the thighs than down my knees, since on the thighs my hair was less thick). Having done electrolysis in the first place on my legs would have been too much because it is a very large surface, although I know people who have done it and spent less money than me. Laser works better on your groins because it is the hardest hair we have in our body. As for the armpits, I think I would have saved money by doing electrolysis directly, since it is not such a large area (after 5 laser sessions, I left it and I have removed the rest with electrolysis, by myself). For arms it will depend on the person, but I do not recommend laser since they ask you to shave them before, and at least in my case I have fine hairs there. Although whole arms are also a large surface, I think it is worth doing them directly with electrolysis.

Let’s move on to treatments that are not laser /electrolysis. When I was a teen I bleached my lower back for the summer, using a bleaching creme. I had quite good results. But when the hairs grow back, they have black roots! I also used to bleach my facial hair at first, but I do not recommend it: hairs started appearing longer and longer because of the bleaching. So I started waxing my face. At the beginning it was great, but with the wax you also eliminate fuzz, and then that fuzz starts growing stronger. In the end I opted for tweezers, to remove only those hairs that were black. But tweezers make hairs grow stronger and bent. If you then want to start with electrolysis, you must wait a few weeks without tweezing. When I started with electrolysis my nightmare (at least in my face) disappeared, in addition to achieving perfect eyebrows! (When I tweezed my face and eyebrows I used to spend half an hour every day with the tweezers, which added to the body hair removal once a week).

Now let’s see treatments: contraceptives Diane 35 (for 9 years). Yes, it works perfect, it improves skin and hair … some people gain weight or have depression, it was not my case and that’s why I took them for so many years. But it does not solve the problem and it’s not the best solution for your health. I took Androcur for a few months, but I do not recommend it because when I stopped (although I did not stop Diane 35 at the same time) I had a horrible outbreak of acne: that’s when my treatment with Roacutan began. Ant egg oil: I tried it and it’s a scam, it does not do anything. Peppermint tea: I drink tea twice a day, I really do not know if it works or not, but it is harmless. Ovusitol (inositol+vitamine B): I started with it when I stopped with Diane, I have one per day and the same thing: I do not really know if it is doing something but it is a supplement, and it has very good reviews

Regarding the issue of acne, I had teenage acne but not very serious, just some spots on my forehead. To get rid of them I started buying all kinds of treatments at the pharmacy, and they only made it worse. Just two years or so after having my period for the first time the doctors put me on Diane 35 and I forgot the problem. But when I was 20 (I forgot including this in the previous paragraph) I tried laser hair removal on my face. BIG MISTAKE!!!! I have to say, first, that I did not shave before (and I’m happy I didnt do it!!!!). The medical laser center where I went (opportunists with no ethics at all, taking into account that I was just 20 years old, with a low self esteem and going by myself) charged me almost 90 euros per session and I had a total of only four hairs eliminated (just the super black ones) and spent about three months (I think I did three sessions in total) avoiding social life and classes because they would not let me tweezing, or waxing, or bleaching or anything. I had to avoid sun completely. A total nightmare. And it did not work at all. Just in those months I stopped taking Androcur (I only had it for some months, I started feeling depressed but I dont know if it was due to Androcur or to all those circumstances). So, I do not know if it was the laser or stopping with Androcur, but I started having a cystic acne that I had never have before. Laser on your face, which is an hormonal zone, can produce more hairs, you only have to Google it: laser + paradoxical effect. I had never had severe acne, with painful pimples leaving scars. Trying to fix a problem I got a worse one. The solution was Roacutan: six months and problem solved. For all those girls who have problematic acne, it’s really worth it. It’s worth 6 months of not drinking alcohol (better for you!) and avoiding sun and putting on cream and chap stick all the time, really. Contraceptives only hide the problem. It’s not the same case if you just have the typical hormonal pimples before your period, I still have those, but it’s not a big deal.

Foto
Love Roacutan!

Although some say it doesn’t, I think diet has an influence, not only in acne but in the general appearance of your skin. I recommend having plenty of fruits and vegetables, for me it was quite difficult but I made a total change in my diet and I have been drinking smoothies for years. Down here I  put a link to a page that I follow (in Spanish), where they propose very varied juices. The author proposes juices because they are easy to digest and smoothies may have too much fiber, which can cause some people bad digestions. I do not have a juice extractor, just a simple blender, so I always drink smoothies with fiber and it’s fine for me. Also, I do not like wasting food and I dont see myself cooking with the leftovers:

http://www.habitos.mx/

Enough for today. I still have things to say about cosmetics and different foods (also associated with the topic of acne), but I will develop these topics in other posts.

I hope my experience may help you, and if you have any question do not hesitate to comment or contact me !! :))

*To buy the products I speak about (I only recommend products that I’ve tested):

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases

*From the United States:

  • Ovusitol (don’t buy with vitamin D because it doubles the price, if you want vitamin D it’s better to buy it alone): https://amzn.to/2FGFVO9
  • As an alternative to Ovusitol you can buy inositol+folate (as long as you ingest the same quantity of inositol and folate as in one ovusitol dose). The resulting price per day is almost the same and folate is supposed to be better absorbed than folic acid.
  • Inositol (in powder format you get a better price than in pills, with a precision kitchen weight you can calculte the exact amount): https://amzn.to/3ksI9zp
  • Folate: https://amzn.to/2ZSLMH8

*Fom Mexico:

-Inositol (sólo estaba disponible en cápsulas): https://amzn.to/3iKEk8a

-Folato: https://amzn.to/2FL3iWu

*From Spain:

*UPDATE!: read my post Electrolysis + oral hygiene (updated and expanded)