I’m sure you know what a monkey is. And I am equally sure you do not know what munky is! Munky is a portmanteau I created using the words musty and funky. I use the word munky to describe smells that are unusually pungent and abnormally stifling, which most definitely applies to the odor my underarms produced when I worked out this week.
Did you know we actually have two different types of sweat glands? The eccrine glands excrete the sweat we use to cool down, which is mostly water, and the apocrine glands release sweat when we're stressed or upset. Many factors can contribute to the munky or change in smell of your sweat, from stress to eating certain foods and drinking booze, and other factors like hormonal changes, diabetes, or liver or kidney problems.
A sudden change in the way your body smells could be a sign of something more serious, and good reason to schedule a doctor's appointment.
Thank you for those helpful tips. I really like the tip about keeping some deodorant in your bag. One morning I was rushing to get to work, and forgot to apply my deodorant. I was so self conscious all day, and worried that my students might get a wiff of my different scent. Having some deodorant on hand at work would have made me feel more at ease.
This post made me laugh! I always find myself doing the the pretend stretch just so I can lean over and smell my underarms (stretch, sniff, sniff). I try to keep a travel size deodorant in my bag for days that I forget to apply. Due to the overwhelming responsibilities of being a single mother I know just what you mean by stress sweat. I also find keeping your underarms shaved helps with keeping that MUNKY smell down. This was a fun article to read and respond to!-)
Hi Candise,
Thank you for those helpful tips. I really like the tip about keeping some deodorant in your bag. One morning I was rushing to get to work, and forgot to apply my deodorant. I was so self conscious all day, and worried that my students might get a wiff of my different scent. Having some deodorant on hand at work would have made me feel more at ease.
This post made me laugh! I always find myself doing the the pretend stretch just so I can lean over and smell my underarms (stretch, sniff, sniff). I try to keep a travel size deodorant in my bag for days that I forget to apply. Due to the overwhelming responsibilities of being a single mother I know just what you mean by stress sweat. I also find keeping your underarms shaved helps with keeping that MUNKY smell down. This was a fun article to read and respond to!-)