My basement office makes me feel physically bad.

January 20, 2005 6:38 PM

I work in a basement office in a relatively confined area with poor ventilation. I end up with a case of 'office ick' when I leave. It's similar to the way one feels after being on long flight. My hair goes flat. It greases up and so does my face. I feel gross and by 3pm I'm dying for a shower or at least just to wash my hair. This does not happen when I'm not at work. [mi]

FYI, shampoo is Whole Foods 365 botanical, Biolage conditioner about once a week. Makeup is pressed powder and mascara. Nothing extravagant. I'm not taking two showers a day that often anymore. What can I do to stop this nastiness?

posted by pieoverdone to Health & Fitness (6 answers total)

My guess would be general dehydration.

For your skin, I would think that drinking *lots* of water (like, up to a gallon a day) would help. Possibly also spritzing your face with it. A number of beauty-product companies also make "perk up your skin!" sprays; you might want to check out the Body Shop or someplace similar.

As for your hair, you might want to stop washing it so much, and start conditioning it more often. My own hair (thick, *very* straight, so YMMV) used to grease up halfway through the day when I washed it every morning, but now that I wash it every other day, it's fine for that entire time. (I do rinse it thoroughly with water on the days I don't wash it.) It sounds like it's producing grease because it's drying out and overcompensating, so if you let it retain some of its natural oils, and replace those oils with conditioner when you strip them off with shampoo, it might even itself out.

If you try this, though, you may want to start on a doing-nothing weekend. Your hair will likely get VERY greasy for a few days until it's used to the new routine. (I had some very, very bad hair days when I switched!)
posted by occhiblu at 6:54 PM on January 20, 2005

This is tough. I used to recommend ionizers until I read sources like this; however, it also states that if you buy a HEPA-quality portable air cleaner of the right size that it can help (of course, they tend to cost the earth). Although aimed at home air quality, I think the link is still a useful resource because it describes in detail what works to clean air and what doesn't: plants, no, unless you have a greenhouse full; ionizers, no, because they're unhealthy, etc.

Do you share the office with others who've noticed the same thing? If you work for good managers, is there any chance you can mention this to them? If it's been a while since the air ducts were cleaned, or if there's a miracle and they want to actually buy a HEPA cleaner for your space, it might be worth a shot. In the meantime, my little office defense system is lots and lots of water, short walks outside for fresh air if I'm feeling really stifled, and skin toner. It's not the same as clean air, but at least I feel more comfortable. Good luck.

(Oh, and what occhiblu said about hair washing has been true for me too.)
posted by melissa may at 7:15 PM on January 20, 2005

I agree with the dehydration. Pick up a face spray that uses essential oils as well as water, pure water will make it dry out more. Keep some blotting papers handy for your face, they soak up grease without removing makeup. Shiseido makes some fantastic ones, they're the best I've tried.

For your hair, your shampoo may be drying out your scalp. Maybe try using a gentler shampoo (I don't know what Whole Foods products are like). When I'm stuck on a long flight, I find just brushing my hair fairly often works well.
posted by orangskye at 7:21 PM on January 20, 2005

For all this hair talk, I wonder if y'all reallize hair changes as you grow (gasp) older. I had oily hair all my life 'til sometime past 30. Now I have painfully dry hair (very fine).

As for your office air, perhaps you need to get the EPA or OSHA involved. The situation sound unhealthy.
posted by Goofyy at 9:05 PM on January 20, 2005

I've never had this problem but maybe a couple of houseplants might help?
posted by j at 6:21 AM on January 21, 2005

I also work in a basement office, and I commiserate with you. Aside from the excellent advice about keeping hydrated, it is worthwhile to consider whether the company you work for is willing to listen to your issues. My basement was remodeled about 2 years ago. Prior to this, my co-workers and I spent some time tracking our issues, headaches, etc., and presented our concerns to our boss. My employer invested in some environmental testing that revealed that we didn’t have enough air down here. The remodel gave us better ventilation, as well as better lighting, furniture, and the like, and it has made a big difference.
posted by omphale27 at 7:33 AM on January 21, 2005