Botox is not just for getting rid of wrinkles! It has tons of other uses, including helping to reduce sweating! Excessive sweating, also know as Hyperhidrosis, is relatively common and it effects about 10% of the population. Some people just naturally sweat more than others, while certain endocrine disorders, neurological problems, dermatologic syndromes, and social anxiety disorder or other psychiatric conditions can cause the problem. A lot of prescription medications can also cause excessive sweating as a side effect.
I’m always concerned about sweating because I sweat even when I’m cold! When I’m anxious it gets worse. I’ve tried every deodorant out there, although I haven’t tried Drysol, the prescription one. But Certain Dri, the super strong over-the-counter one, did nothing for me, except make me itch like crazy. Hmm I just noticed there’s a new antiperspirant for excessive sweating called Maxim that you can get on the internet. I haven’t tried it either. It’s annoying because there’s so many things I can’t wear because of the sweating problem. When antiperspirants don’t work, there’s always a surgical option, but that’s pretty extreme.
Botox to treat sweating!
Luckily Botox can now be used for sweating! We offered the treatment at my Medical Spa, but for some reason not too many people did it. The one or two people that actually had the treatment said that they had good results, and I’ve read about it being pretty successful. Last night I was watching Dr. 90210 and Dr. Will Kirby (he was on my favorite show Big Brother) did Botox injections on his male friend’s underarms. First Dr. Kirby shaved the patient’s armpits, and then he applied cornstarch. Over that he applied iodine, and waited a few minutes. When the patient started sweating, you could see purple dots where there was sweating. Dr. Kirby then did a quick series of Botox injections into the armpits, and then he was done! Since I’ve had Botox, I can tell you that the pain isn’t bad at all, and I hate needles! I am pretty nervous about getting shots in my underarms, but I doubt it really hurts that much.
At my Medical Spa, the injector says she does about 8 shots on each underarm, and uses a total of 100 units of Botox for both sides. That’s a lot of Botox, and it would cost at least $1000! The good news is that Botox for your underarms lasts 6-7 months, as opposed to the 3-4 months in your forehead. There’s more good news. A lot of times insurance will cover Botox for sweating!! So check with your health insurance, and then with your Dermatologist. I don’t know how “much” sweating you have to do to be considered having Hyperhidrosis, and I have a feeling your health insurance wouldn’t pay for the treatment if you weren’t considered an excessive sweater. Also, if you do have excessive sweating, read up on it, and ask your doctor about it, because this could be a symptom of a larger health problem.
On Dr. 90210, Dr. Kirby said it would take about 3 days to start sweating less, and within a week, you should be not sweating at all in the treated area, or not much. I totally want to try Botox for sweating, but just haven’t done it yet. I would only do it if it’s covered by my insurance. Right now Botox is mostly used to treat the underarms, but the hands, feet, and face can also possibly be treated.
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September 7th, 2007 at 2:34 am
I used Certain Dri for awhile because I was doing a great deal of walking in frigid winter temperatures–I had to bundle up, but by the time I got where I was going I was often a sweaty mess. I figured out two things: First, nevernevernevernever use it after shaving. Very not fun. Second, it seems to be the sort of thing that builds up over time. So I got into a routine of applying it at night before bed, then in the morning I’d shave and use a regular deodorant.
Botox seems too extreme, to me, unless absolutely nothing else works and it’s getting in the way of your career or something. Even if it lasts 6 months, that’s $2000 a year… or enough to pay my rent for four months. I guess if my insurance covered it I might try it, but otherwise I’d rather be a little damp than broke! Thankfully, I’m in a much better climate now.
September 12th, 2007 at 5:43 am
Maybe I should try botox! I did try drysol and it seemed to work at first and then didn’t do much. I need to see a dermatologist I gues!
September 12th, 2007 at 6:46 am
You’d see really good results with Botox, but it’s expensive! I swear that between Botox and sunscreen, people can look 5-10 years younger!
September 12th, 2007 at 2:46 pm
I called this one dermatologist and they dont take insurance! I’ve never heard of a doctor not taking insurance! I’ll look around! I think my underarms are allergic to clothing. Have you ever heard of that. If I wear a tank top and have fresh air blowing through I’m ok, if I’m restricted with a shirt then I sweat.
September 12th, 2007 at 5:57 pm
All Dermatologists should take insurance, but a lot of treatments won’t be covered under it - Botox for cosmetic purposes, etc. Yeah I think I am like you with the sweating! I remember when you used to always wear tank tops, even in the winter! Now I can only wear tank tops, or I get too sweaty. In the winter, I can’t wear anything too tight, and I try to only wear cotton. I don’t think you are allergic to sweating - I think you just sweat, like me! 10% of the population has this problem, and I’m sure a lot more people have it to a lesser degree.
Oh, and some doctors should cover Botox for sweating, but they will probably have to diagnose you with it first. I would call around to Dermatologists to see if you can find one that would take insurance for Botox for sweating.
September 13th, 2007 at 5:34 am
This dermatologist didn’t take insurance for anything! I didn’t even ask about botox. Weird, huh!
September 13th, 2007 at 11:19 am
I discovered some helpful info on how BOTOX® can significantly reduce excessive underarm sweat at the Official BOTOX® Hyperhidrosis Website. They say excessive underarm sweating (axillary hyperhidrosis) is a medical condition that can be successfully treated. BOTOX® is FDA-approved for the treatment of excessive underarm perspiration when topical agents don’t work (as it says on their site). Just learn more about this treatment, and then ask your doctor to see if it’s right for you. I did, and it worked for me. It definitely has given me renewed self-confidence and self-esteem.
September 26th, 2007 at 11:07 am
Jeni,
Quick question - when the over productive sweat glands are “shut off” by the BOTOX does the sweating migrate elsewhere? My problem with using Certain Dri (which does sting like mad on freshly shaved underarms ) is that the underarm sweating ceases (wonderful thing) but then I end up sweating elsewhere (back, palms) where I normally wouldn’t sweat. Would this also happen with the BOTOX?
Thanks for posting this informative article as I think there are many people with this problem but it’s a rather embarrassing topic - even one top bring up to one’s physician. I really appreciate the information :)
September 26th, 2007 at 6:52 pm
Since the Botox prevents the sweat from coming thru your armpits, I would assume it would work the same as if you had the operation that prevents armpit sweating, or even what happens with Certain Dri. I never noticed a problem with Certain Dri, but I was of course still sweating from my armpits, so the sweat wasn’t forced to go somewhere else! So I would guess it would effect you the same was as the Certain Dri, since it’s just locally stopping the sweating in one area, rather than causing your body to produce more sweat. Oh and the Certain Dri made me itch like crazy, no matter when I used it!
October 6th, 2007 at 2:23 pm
Unfortunately, I know a lot about this topic, as I was diagnosed with hyperhidrosis when I was 12 years old. I had excessive sweating of both my hands and my feet. I have tried every deodorant, including Drysol on both areas.. Drysol had so much alcohol in it that it made the skin on my hands peel. I then tried Botox on my hands and it was HORRIBLE. We all know how Botox works; after a day being treated, the muscles in my hands were soo weak that I could not even pick up a dinner plate. I couldn’t even carry a magazine. My Dr. was trained by Arnie Klein,
MD, so he was the best of the best. I have also used a machine that you put your hands on two water-soaked pads that ran electrical currents through it. Painful, but highly effective for about 3-6 weeks at a time. Nothing really solved my problem until I had the surgery that cut specific nerves that caused the problem. It cost about $6,000, but with my history, my insurance paid for it. As a result, my sweating has decreased by about 90%, but now I do sweat more throughout my body to compensate for the sweating that previously came from my hands and feet. My condition was so severe (I was a Sales Rep for a major Breast Implant manufacturer), I couldn’t even shake hands with people. The surgery is the only way to ensure a permanant solution. My dr was in Beverly Hills and had patients from all over the world. It literally changed my life. My heart goes out to anyone with hyperhydrosis, it is a very embarrassing condition.
October 7th, 2007 at 1:25 am
Thanks for sharing your story Elaine. I’m glad you finally found a solution that works, even though you had to go through a lot to get there! I am lucky that I have a really mild case of hyperhidrosis, and I just have it under my arms.
February 13th, 2008 at 8:54 am
hi im katie i have a massive problem its my face it goes like really red its sooooo annoying but i heard that if you have botox in your underarms it can reduce this?
is this true if not do you recommed anything else :S
thank you
February 13th, 2008 at 8:01 pm
Katie,
I hadn’t heard of using Botox in your armpits to reduce facial flushing, but after a quick Google search, I’ve found that it is possible to do that. Also, here’s an article about getting ETS surgery, which reduces sweating and flushing: http://rosacea.iinet.net.au/hl/m4058.html .
I also wonder if it would be effective to treat the flushed areas themselves with Botox, rather than the armpits (which require a lot of units of Botox). You would need to find a doctor that has experience with this. Since Botox prevents certain muscles from moving, a doctor could tell you if facial treatments would be possible or not.
I’m not familiar with any topical treatments to prevent facial flushing. I’ve only heard of surgery in the past.
February 13th, 2008 at 8:02 pm
Katie,
Also, I forgot to mention, but depending on the cause of the redness, IPL laser treatments might help. They reduce redness in your face, but whether or not they would reduce flushing, I don’t know.
March 8th, 2008 at 9:07 pm
I am only 12 yrs old and I have a MAJOR sweating problem. At school I always have to practically have my arms glued together, or I wear a jacket(which probably makes me sweat even more) to cover it up, so that I can raise my hand to answer a question and all sorts of stuff like that. It is pretty much ruining my life and I HATE it. I want to get the botox thing but I dont know if i’m old enough for it, or if my mom will want me to get it. I have tried Certain Dri, and the secret brand of ant-perspiranat that you apply @ bed time and in the morning but nothing seems to work. And even to today when i went shopping I couldn’t get stuff off the higher racks because people would see my sweat. I have tried wearing a whole bunch of shirts so that it wouldn’t get to my outer shirt, but as I said NOTHING seems to work. Please e-mail me back a.s.a.p to give me more info on what to do. Thank you so much.
March 18th, 2008 at 2:41 pm
Samatha:
I’m sorry that you’re going through what a lot of adults are going through, but no matter what the age is, it’s very embarassing to us all. I’ve tried everything from baking soda/vinegar/lemons to Certain Dri and nothing seemed to help until my doctor gave me a prescription for the product HyperCare. It seems to be working so far. I just need to keep my armpits clean and bacteria free and I use Noxema or Tea Tree Soap a few times a week for that!! The HyperCare burning is not bad like Certain Dri either!! It’s a prickly! type burn! HyperCare has a small attached sponge that’s used for applying “dabs only” of the product to the skin at night time. It’s used for 2-3 nights and then you can go without sweating for days!!! It’s not a roll on like Certain Dri and other products. HyperCare is not expensive at all either and it last a long time. I hope that you can purchase HyperCare and I hope that it works for you!! Good Luck!!!
**Don’t forget, to only wear cotton shirts too!!!!***
April 11th, 2008 at 7:09 pm
Thank you! Actually I just got back from the dermatologist and as soon as she walked and asked me a couple questions, she was recomending te botox thing. She didn’t even prescribe me anything, so now in a bout a month I’ll be getting that done! I am so excited.I hope it works!