How do you tell a male work colleague he sweats in the office

katie99

There is a guy in our office who dresses very well but he tends to sweat a lot.
He is a lovely bloke and we all get on well together.
However, in this recent heatweave of ours he perspires at the drop of a paperclip!
Yesterday morning he arrived at work at 9am, removed his suit jacket only to display horrible sweat stains under his arm pits. His shirt was soaking.
He was wearing a deodorant but that seemed to disappear as the day wore on to be replaced with a bad sweaty smell.
He had a coffee with me and later lunch with me and other girls.
The girls remared on his sweaty glands and the horrible aroma.
What can we do?

Brendog

Theres nothing you can do if he sweats alot....some people are just like that and can't help it.

You can complain if he doesn't shower...
Its a legitimate complaint becuase it violates most Health and Hygiene polices of offices and work places.

Just be discreet about it as it can be very embarrassing for the person involved












p.s.....Heatwave?? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAA

monkeypants

Leave a new can of Lynx or something similar out on his desk one morning.

Blazer

In fairness he's probably aware of it but can't help it.
Weather has been extremely close lately so maybe have facilities turn down the temp in the office just a degree or two to combat this.

Maple

I don't think this is for TLL, bouncing to PI? Feel free to bounce it wherever.

Maple.

lovetea

You could just take him aside when there is no one about and say that you noticed that the deoderant isn't strong enough and you could say you had a bit of a problem like that yourself ( i dunno it might soften the blow a bit??) and you recommend wearing this type of deoderant..

Though in practical terms he isn't wearing strong enough deoderant he should try mitchum, i find its really good.

Although he might get offended regardless just to warn you. Good luck!

oohlala

Why do you feel the need to confront him on this? I can't understand why sweat stains would offend you so much? Or is it the smell to much to bear? Before you do say anything i would advise you to think on how you would feel if someone said this to you. Its something that i imagine would offend most people so you should really think out a way of saying it that is as inoffensive as possible. It is possible that he has some sort of a disorder, these are more common than you think.

Also from your post you say you get on well with him but you don't mention standing up for him when other people commented on his perspiring. If you are going to approach him as a friend trying to be helpful then you should act like one when he comes under criticism. Can you imagine if people in your office were discussing you perspiring excessively? It would be humiliating to almost anybody.

Lastly i think you should decide what you want out of this. I assume its to get him to change, what if it is a disorder and he can't change? What if he doesn't see a problem and won't change? What if he can't afford the expensive deordorants? I'm just giving you other options to think about because this may seem like a reasonable thing to you but you could be about to ruin your friendship with someone you claim to get on well with, so think it through.

Eve_Dublin

To be honest, I would put up with the smell to save his feelings. Putting a can of Lynx on his desk is a terrible idea! How would you feel if someone did the same? If someone approached me and told me I smelled, I would be mortified. Put up with it.

I promise this Irish "heatwave" won´t last forever

MissFlitworth

katie99 wrote: »

He had a coffee with me and later lunch with me and other girls.
The girls remared on his sweaty glands and the horrible aroma.
What can we do?

I hate this stuff in an office, people huddled around together bitching about their colleagues.

There's nothing you can do bar turn up the air con. Sweatstains are none of your business at all and it's awful to think you'd all be standing around gossiping about them. If the smell gets to the point you can't cope with it talk to your HR department who will then send out a general email to everyone in your office about hygiene standards. If he's not normally like this and it's just the extremely muggy weather we're having at the moment causing it then leave well enough alone

oil painting

Eve_Dublin wrote: »

To be honest, I would put up with the smell to save his feelings. Putting a can of Lynx on his desk is a terrible idea! How would you feel if someone did the same? If someone approached me and told me I smelled, I would be mortified. Put up with it.

I promise this Irish "heatwave" won´t last forever

Yeah thats very mean to leave the deodorant on his desk he is probably embarrassed about it, is there anyone he is really close with in the office that could mention it quietly and diplomatically? It could be suggested that he bring a change of shirt through out the day, poor guy work environments can be tough going he probably knows everyones talking about it.......

mikemac

DO NOT leave a can of deoderant on their desk.
That is harsh.

Some people just sweat easily, there are any number of threads on it here.
And it doesn't even mean he is unfit, even super fit people have this, their body is super efficient at working to cool itself down.

If you are a friend then have a quick chat and don't go reporting back to your workmates.

And I guarantee he is most certainly aware of it.

As for these gossiping women, in my experience the women will cry "it's freezing" if somebody dares to open a window or touch the air conditioning. :mad:
Is that going on here? Every office I've been in had this

LegacyUser

Hi,

I suffer from an excessive perspiration disorder called Hyperhydrosis. An yes sometimes when the humidity levels in an office were high, I simply could not do anything to control my underarm and forehead sweating. Even with specially prescribed deodorants. I was ultra aware of my condition and it has led to prblems with anxiety and depression. These are often linked with an extreme hyperhydrosis sufferer because the person feels so self concious and helpless about their disorder.

Please, please, please be sensitive to your colleagues feelings...

If someone confronted me about it in an office setting it would destroy my self confidence.

My guess is he may be all too aware of his problem.

Bear this in mind. How badly does it really affect you??

d'Oracle

I suggest OP quit her job.
If this idea isn't a runner, then I suggest she find a way to put up with it.

Its bloody warm around these days and if you have to wear a suit to work this may just happen. I doubt he is unaware of it, but there isn't much to be done about it.

HavingCrack

Lynx is awful stuff, Sure for Men (the silvery red can) is the way to go

LighterGuy

I think if he sweats alot. thats his deal.
as someone said above if he smelled BAD! well that be different .. i'd let them know for their own reasons. to put them wide.


but sweating? ... no. thats his deal.

Miss Fluff

katie99 wrote: »

However, in this recent heatweave of ours he perspires at the drop of a paperclip!
Yesterday morning he arrived at work at 9am, removed his suit jacket only to display horrible sweat stains under his arm pits. His shirt was soaking.

How intolerant of you. He can't help it. It's like saying "OMG he's got a blackhead on his nose! OMG! OMG!:eek:" Sweating is a bodily function that happens whether you like it or not. Some people are prone to sweating more than others so you're not really in a position to hav an issue with this in all fairness.

Putting a can of deoderant on his desk is cruel and spineless imho. If his BO is causing you that much upset then you need to say it to him. It's only fair.

I caught a whiff of a friend of mine recently and I came right out and said it. We were out one evening and her pits were quite whiffy and I just said "hope you don't mind me saying but am getting a bit of a whiff, I know I'd want someone to tell me". She was so grateful. If you get on as well as you claim with this chap, simply say the same thing. He may have a medical condition and there is nothing he can do. Or he may genuinely not realise how bad he smells, and will be glad you told him.

Either way, rather than talking about him, you should say it to him.

What's the problem? Do you think he doesn't know he sweats, if he has massive pit stains? Some people just sweat a lot and there's nothing they can do about it.

jd83

Can of lynx is an awful idea. OP you’re just going to have to put up with it or keep your distance. Obviously the guy can’t help it, it’s a medical condition and am sure he is conscious of it so confronting him or putting lynx on his desk is a no no. Sure we will be back to our normal artic weather conditions soon enough anyway.

LighterGuy

A person can sweat for a lot of reasons... yeah. some medical. But usually its from:

- Just out of shape. even sitting there can make some people sweat when its warm.
- Too much alcohol can make even a slim person even sweat. I've seen it in jobs where people were hitting the booze big time. Hey, their lifechoice. Othertimes, they were hitting the booze cause they had problems in other areas of their life ...

Either way, its something i wouldnt make an issue out of. If someone doesnt realise they sweat. No big deal. Its them.

It would just be poor rude to pull someone aside and say "you sweat too much!" ... make a person feel embarressed. If you were very close to them, different story. Just putting them wide. But from the sounds of it, its just a working relationship. Dont be rude and mention it to him.

magooly

This product was mentioned on Matt Cooper today.

http://www.odegon.com/

Odegon Iron-On Fabric Tags are the only inert, non-allergenic, odourless, long lasting, base neutral, environmentally friendly solution to body odour.

Not only that, they are free from chemicals and have no fragrance.

If you want instant, effective and reliable odour control or just peace of mind, buy Odegon Tags.

mikemac

I heard Matt Cooper also today and was thinking of this thread

That guy from odegon seemed like a bit of car salesman to me but hey, if the product works then go for it! It's sounds great and cheap to try

A doctor who was pretty knowledgable and talking a lot of common sense without the sales talk had this site
www.sweating.ie

And they recommed Driclor.
Seriously, this stuff is the biz, they sell it in boots.

katie99

This is a sticky one! Pardon the pun.

1) The office is not ganging up on this guy. Both guys and girls have smelled the sweat from the guy. It is revolting. I merely referred to the sweat stains as part of my overall question.

2) Noone is slagging him or criticising him. He has all our sympathies. But if you have to work closely with somebody who perspires so much and smells as a result you would want advice on what to do.

3) I have no intention of humiliating or embarrassing the guy. No we won't be leaving a can of deodorant on his desk.

4) I shall inform him politely and with sublety about the problem and suggest a deodorant.

Thank you all for your contributions.

southofnowhere

Nivea have great deodorants in my opinion.

Lynx is a body spray by the way, not an anti perspirant (seriously, forget the ads). Anyone who uses it as such will get that pungent sweat/lynx mix

Joan Fontaine

You cannot say anything. Deal with it. If he's not smelly in the morning then he's obviously showering prior to work and due to his excessive sweating problems (such as hyperhydosis mentioned above) it's causing a foul odour.



And by the way, I hate that sitting around b1tching about colleagues crap - when I hear people at it, it always makes me wonder 'what the hell are they saying about me when I'm not here?!'. Horrible.

skooterblue

LighterGuy wrote: »

A person can sweat for a lot of reasons... yeah. some medical. But usually its from:



Either way, its something i wouldnt make an issue out of. If someone doesnt realise they sweat. No big deal. Its them.

Here is a third option: Maybe he does know about it. Maybe the guy is suffering the side effects of taking antidepressants. Maybe the guy has enough on his plate without having to be made little of by the rest of the office?

mikemac

If the guy is walking in at 9am and his armpits and shirt are drenched with sweat, trust me , he knows. I've been that guy

And it certainly is not because they are unfit or lazy or struggling to walk up a stairs. Fitness is not the issue

In Fact, fit people sweat more as they are efficent at cooling their body.
Score one for the unfat lads

Dave_24irl

This happens in offices quite alot. Usually it is a way for the office politics dynamic to play out i.e. by talking about your colleaque and how utterly unacceptable his body odour is, you are all safe in the knowledge that it isnt you being talked about. I saw this happen in an office I temped in last summer.The poor guy was confronted with it and made to feel awful. Worst still the reasons behind it, (he was on anti-depressents) were disclosed previously to his line manager. It was nothing short of nasty, bitchy ganging up.

My advice is to get over it. Drop it. There are more important things in the world and in the office to deal with than talking amongst your colleques about this guy. From your post you suggest you all have been conversing about it. This is as unnacceptable as the body odour to be honest.

Perhaps a bit more emapthy wouldn't go amiss. Try imagining how you would feel if they were discussing your personal hygene behind your back?

LegacyUser

What about women who drown themselves in perfume, its like breathing some form of toxic, how come thats never a prob and would I be right in assuming that all your co workers concerned and bothered by him are women?

oil painting

guest50 wrote: »

What about women who drown themselves in perfume, its like breathing some form of toxic, how come thats never a prob and would I be right in assuming that all your co workers concerned and bothered by him are women?

Well the perfume obviously is a problem -for you, if it bothers you why dont you bring it up in work and discuss its a fair point, but your judging all women unfairly here not all women wear perfume in work and it may bother some women too likewise the smell of B.O would bother both men and women.

Blackdrag

Alright this one’s right up my street.

I’m a IT consultant, my job states i have to work closely with people.

I have to take shower gels, sprays, fresh clothes and more to work every day. its even as bad as i have to wash 3 times a day.
Trust me there is nothing you can do or say to this bloke to make him feel any less embarrassed.

It’s horrible when you’re standing there and you have a roll of sweat go down your arm, even in the winter i have to wear a vest to work. (of course i work out, not over weight, nice toned body so it doesn’t offend... and the vests are nice as well lol)

Posters are right there is very little you can do as he just can’t help it i suppose if you ask him if he’s warm you can find out if he has a tolerance to heat. If so the best thing you can do is have him closer to the air con if you guys have that in the office.
I’ve found I’m best in 2-4 degrees anything over that I’m like the bloke of the lynx advert with the fish. And its not a joke....

BumbleB

Eve_Dublin wrote: »

I promise this Irish "heatwave" won´t last forever

thanks Eve,




Rain Rain go to Spain.

Magenta

The way I would handle this is, in casual conversation with him, mention that I am finding it very hot lately, and find myself overheating a lot. Ask him if he feels the same, if he says he does, say that you heard of this stuff called Driclor that you're going to try out.

Alternatively, you could ask him if he knows where the nearest Boots is- if he says yes/no, say that's great/that's a shame, because you heard of this brilliant stuff called Driclor and you're dying to try it with the weather being so hot.