We all know how it goes.
It's a hot, humid summer day and you're running late to work as usual.
As you descend into the simmering subway, you glance down and see the hand on your watch inching dangerously close to 9 am.
That's usually when you start to sweat, both literally and figuratively.
Once you emerge from the train, you struggle to make your way through the hot sticky crowd of morning commuters, then sprint up the stairs and make a mad dash to your office building.
Somehow you manage to slip into your seat with only a minute to spare. But there's just one little problem.
Running through the streets like a maniac has made you hot AF and now, you can't stop sweating.
You duck into the ladies room, only to look in the mirror and discover that your silk shirt is covered in splotchy sweat stains, your matte complexion has morphed into a melted makeup shit show and your sleek 'do now resembles some sort of frizzy lion's mane.
The sight of this makes you panic, and the fact that you can't stop sweating makes you start to sweat even more.
It's a vicious cycle that we've all unfortunately faced at least once in our professional lives.
So what the hell are you supposed to do when the heat turns you into an all out Sweaty Betty?
First, you need to cool down and stop sweating before you can try to do any sort of beauty damage control.
So we set out to find some simple tricks that will help you chill out when you're plagued with perspiration at the office.
Drink up.
Dehydration will cause you to feel even hotter, so make sure you stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water and avoiding beverages that contain caffeine.
Don't fan yourself with your hand.
Turning your hands into a makeshift fan may sound like a great way to solve your perspiration problems. However, this is the last thing you want to do when you're hot because flapping your arms all over the place will cause your body to produce even more heat.
Instead, you can use a piece of paper to make a fan or, even better, find an open window or an AC vent in the office to stand in front of for few minutes.
Freshen up.
Herbs such as mint are known to have cooling properties, so throwing a few sprigs in your water bottle, popping a mint in your mouth or chewing on a piece of peppermint gum can help you chill out.
Cool your pulse points.
Applying ice or a cold compress to pulse points at the wrists, neck, elbows, ankles or behind the knees can help you cool off quickly since blood runs close to the surface in these spots.
If you don't have ice on hand, running each of your wrists under cold water for 10 seconds should also help you cool off.
Just add ice.
Researchers have found that chugging a chilly drink like a slushie, smoothie or glass of ice cold water can ward off perspiration by cooling your body from the inside out. Your stomach contains thermoreceptors that play a role in regulating sweat output, so when something super cold hits your stomach it will tell your brain to chill out on the sweat.
Your stomach contains thermoreceptors that play a role in regulating sweat output, so when something super cold hits your stomach, it will tell your brain to chill out on the sweat.
Suck on something frozen.
Sucking on something cold has been shown to lower your core temperature. You can cool down by sucking on an ice cube or noshing on a healthy, frosty treat like frozen fruit.
Try heat snorkeling.
Snag a glass from the break room and fill it with ice cubes. Then, hold it up to your mouth and gently blow into the glass. The ice makes the air you are blowing into the glass cool down, and since the cool air only has one way out, it bounces off the back of the cup and blows onto your face.
Think cool thoughts.
If all else fails, you can try to convincing yourself that you are actually freezing cold or think about frigid snow-filled places like Antarctica.
While this method may not physically cool you down, this little mind game has been known to make you feel a bit cooler for some reason.
