Anxious about going to work in Friday's heat

[Infinity07]

I work in a public sector job, it's very demanding, fairly physical and carries the responsibility of others.
I have a long term anxiety and a panic disorder (under treatment) which work are aware of but it's not really an issue there. However, I do have certain triggers and one thing is when the weather is extra hot like it's predicted to be on Friday (33°c here in the SE). The heat really makes me panic as I get anxious about how it physically makes me feel. I have health anxiety. The older I've got, the worse I seem to experience this.

So I'm debating with my conscience whether to take Friday off work or maybe part of the day off. Work will not accept my anxiety reason regarding the weather, I just know what they're like. So I'd have to say something else.

It's only Tuesday and I'm already getting so stressed about this. Don't know what to do.

Glad some people are making kind and sensible and workable suggestions! Many of the “suck it up” remarks fail to acknowledge that OP will be in a room with up to 30 children - at least outdoors or in a polytunnel you only have yourself to take care of. Take it an hour at a time OP.

I got all excited about hot weather, it will only be 15 degrees here on Friday.

This country. Next - days off if it's raining.

I hate the hot weather too so 🤗 I feel ya. Mine is more sleep related though, I've had insomnia in the past and I like it to stay there. I just hate it as well I work a lot in my car, can't see to drive. I think of it as it's just June. June is the worst month then in July it tends to die off a bit (after the shortest day and all..) so I just concentrate on getting through this month 😂

Sorry, but this is a ridiculous post. Go to work; I'm sure you'll cope.

I work in a nursery and it was unbearable today.
I hate it. Always makes me feel ill, kids always more grumpy and tired, staff more irritable, feeling uncomfortably sticky all day long, stifling hot on the bus home. Gross. Not sure how anyone can enjoy it.
If you can take it as AL, do so OP.

I think you need a longer term strategy OP. There will be lots of hot days. This is a real issue and very debilitating, not just minor discomfort you should just be toughening up about.
I think in your shoes I would disclose it to SM either as a symptom of your long term health condition of anxiety and ask for a discussion about reasonable adjustments or as a menopause issue if applicable (which it may well be if you're at the stage) They might not be sympathetic, but they have a duty to comply with equalities policies.

There are chargeable neck fans you can buy on Amazon. They look like headphones.
Keep your hair tied back as that will reduce heat around your neck, shoulders and head. Keep your classroom cool by opening the windows and keeping the blinds shut.
wear cool, loose clothes.
If your staff room has cool water fountain get a cooling towel, again from Amazon (You need to soak the towel in cold water, wring out excess water then you need to spin the towel in the air to activate (like a rope lasso) and apply to back of neck area etc. When the towel warms up/seems like drying out later in the day simply spin in the air to re-cool. This will give you a cool towel for the duration of the day.)……I got that bit in brackets from someone on Amazon.
keep lots of water with you.

I work in care. Hot stuffy rooms. 12 hour shifts. I’m used to keeping cool in hot weather .

Ice packs! If you are able to hold one in your hand, the hands and feet are the thermostats of the body, if they are cool they should cool you down overall. I HATE the hot weather, this is what has helped me. I sympathise

I think you’ll need to face up to it as there are likely to be a few more of them before the summer is out and you can’t come down with D&V every time.

I feel for you. We’re having a heatwave in Spain at the moment and today the mercury hot 37 degrees, but at least our public transport and workplaces are air conditioned. I have AC at home too, but can’t use it much because of the rising electric prices, so can’t sleep at night. I remember when I lived in London and even 30 degree was unbearable at night and on the tube. I hope you get some cooler weather soon. The U.K. isn’t set up for the heat, same as southern Spain isn’t set up for the cold. Here I find the winters much harsher than the U.K. as you are chilled to your bone with no central heating.

Ohhh I was one of the people that bought one! If only you could also tell me where I put it when the weather turned cooler. 🤔

I also hate the hot weather and am in a greenhouse of an office for 8.5 hours on Friday with no air con and restricted opening windows. I’m freezing a litre bottle of squash, have a desk fan ready, peppermint foot spray and will be having ice lolly breaks

Complete opposite from my experience although I've not had much primary experience. Business attire is mandatory, (dark) suit jackets to be worn at all times, no visible tattoos (so ankles, wrists etc always covered if you've been inked there) "proper" shoes, no open toes, male staff required to wear shirt and tie ... and that's just a snippet of the staff dress code. Not really an issue most of the year with the exception of two weeks in June when everyone looks sweaty and bedraggled because we have to wear suits. Complete lack of freedom when it comes to dress from my professional experience.

Ordered it last night, it arrived this afternoon and I can confirm - it’s amazing!

My DF was production manager in a small village bakery back in the 1960s. Even with all the doors open, it was extremely hot during the summer months, especially with all the ovens going. He was able to spend a fair bit of time in his office, but during his younger days would have been on the shop floor. Everyone just seemed to take it in their stride.

I sympathise with OP though. It must be very stressful for her to be teaching a year group she isn't that familiar with and also having to cope with her anxiety. I hope she can find some coping strategies.

Go to Pets at Home and buy a couple of dog cooling mats and cooling bandanas if it's really that bad. You can then keep them cool in a freezer bag with ice blocks and change them over. Put one on your chair. Seriously, they're amazingly cool. Plug a fan in and away you go. I too work in a classroom with a seriously challenging class so I understand how that might get you anxious before you even get there. Just drink plenty and if possible take them outside and in some shade if you can. Read a story - chill. There'll be plenty more hot days to come I'm sure so at some point you're going to have to face it head on. You can do this. 😊💪

Many of the “suck it up” remarks fail to acknowledge that OP will be in a room with up to 30 children - at least outdoors or in a polytunnel you only have yourself to take care of.

As will every other teacher! I'm not in the UK but was at school myself on the hottest ever recorded day here back in the 70s - a good 10 degrees hotter than what you are likely to get. Somehow we, and everyone else at the time, coped.

Somehow we, and everyone else at the time, coped.

So you, along with everyone else have an anxiety disorder do you, namely panic disorder?

Again do you actually know what panic disorder is?

So you, along with everyone else have an anxiety disorder do you, namely panic disorder?

I have already mentioned, in an earlier post, that I have never heard of anyone who gets so worked up about heat. We had never heard of anxiety disorders back then, and even now, while I do know people with them (often self-diagnosed) I have still yet to hear of anyone who can't face going into work because it might be hot. We have far more hot days here than you do in the UK, and while A/C is common there are still many who work in hot conditions.

People in employment have obligations and responsibilites - if they can't cope then maybe it's time to find another job.

There are plenty of jobs more demanding than being a teacher. Many of them will be hotter in summer. People will be having a hotter, tougher time than the OP/teachers on Friday/hot days.

But it's the OP's thread. She has stated her anxiety, and her feelings over the whole thing. It's irrelevant to say that Dave in the steelworks will be hotter. It won't cool the OP down, or make her feel calmer or more empowered about dealing with it.

Being reductive about someone's anxiety, in the hope that you can shame them into 'getting a grip,' is a bit unenlightened.

There are plenty of jobs more demanding than being a teacher

I don’t think there are ‘plenty’ A few maybe but teaching usually tops the list of the most stressful jobs.

I feel huge sympathy for you op because you have to put on an act in a sense when you teach, you can't show weakness, and I am sure that is a component of your anxiety. Could you confide in a fellow member of staff perhaps that you could text them in case of difficulty or just talk to them on the day? Or try and get your class on side and acknowledge that it is uncomfortable and that you will get through it together?

Fwiw, I think the pp who mentioned travelling earlier and having a plan is spot on. I find I adapt much better to heat when I am up and out earlier, like 5 am or 6 am. Make sure you dress appropriately (doesn't matter what you look like as long as you are comfortable) and perhaps bring ice chips in a flask to your class that you can sip, or a flannel in ice that you can apply discreetly to your wrists? A small fan? Drink lots. And focus on the fact that it is Friday and it will soon be the weekend? And perhaps stay late at school doing work and then travel home when it's cooler? Wishing you all the best. You can do it!

I have never heard of anyone who gets so worked up about heat.

The OP suffers from a recognised mental health disorder, that is debilitating & distressing &.chronic in nature.

It has been diagnosed by a medical professional. For her specifically it can be triggered & exacerbated by hot weather.

She is receiving treatment in the form of psychological therapy &/or medication. She is not “self-diagnosed”.

We had never heard of anxiety disorders back then, and even now, while I do know people with them (often self-diagnosed) I

Perhaps you should evolve then.

Improvements in knowledge of & understanding of anxiety resulted in Generalized Anxiety Disorder being recognised as a separate & specific mental health disorder by the diagnostic manual for psychiatric conditions (DSM) in 1980 with other anxiety disorders being included over time.

Namely Panic Disorder, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Social Phobia (or Social Anxiety Disorder). OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) is now included under a separate section.

So would you have any sympathy if it was say a male ex veteran suffering from PTSD (maybe a condition you have more knowledge of & possibly more belief in?) for whom standing in front of & managing and teaching a class of disruptive kids, would feel particularly challenging, were he to experience a panic attack, which is a core symptom of PTSD (along with a host of distressing & disabling other symptoms)?

Would you feel confident if all of a sudden, you would start hyperventilating, difficulty breathing, chest pains, feeling so overwhelmingly terrified that you believe you are going to die, dissociating from your body, being unable to stand, think, speak or see clearly, needing time to recover from it, where typically you will feel exhausted, weak & incredibly. embarrassed/stupid/ashamed)? When at your place of work? In front of a class of school kids?

The OP isn’t “worked up” about anything. She’s trying to work out how she manages her job alongside a horrible, debilitating & difficult to manage health condition.

Have some sympathy.

My post was for @onlythreenow