femalenetwork.com

Scaly skin, neck pain, over-java’d jitter—a paycheck isn’t the only thing you often come away with after an eight-hour-plus day at the office. By quitting time, your body and brain can be so frazzled, just thinking about going out hurts. But don’t cancel your plans yet. Cosmo consulted experts on the most common office ailments and found fast fixes so you can sail through your workday exhaustion-and-ache-free and make an easy transition from hardworking employee to after-hours party girl.

The Overcaffeinated Body Buzz
You need that coffee crutch to start your day, but downing too much morning joe can make you feel like a livewire. “It takes more than 12 hours before caffeine completely leaves your system,” says Elizabeth Somer, registered dietician and author of Food (Holt, 1999).

The quick fix: As soon as you put down that coffee cup, start drinking H20—ASAP—to short-circuit the caffeine current. “Sipping water will help flush the stimulant out of your system,” says Somer. And ease jittery tummy turmoil by snacking on crackers or anything spongy (like a bagel) to soak up the harsh acids that irritate your stomach and make you nauseous. In the meantime, do some busy work—organize your cube, do all your Xeroxing—to burn off nervous energy.

The best way to ward off future caffeine crazies? Don’t overimbibe. Stick to two or three cups a day, alternating your regular brew with decaf or tea. As for the quick pick-me-up, go for protein-packed snacks—a handful of nuts or low fat yogurt—which give your body and brain a healthy energy boost.

The Shoulder Phone-Cradle Trick
No-hands telephone talking can be a huge pain in the neck—literally. “Gripping the phone between your shoulder and your ear contorts your body into a very awkward position,” says Susan Isernhagen, a physical therapist in Duluth, Minnesota, who specializes in ergonomics. “Not only does it strain all those shoulder and neck muscles, but it also slows the flow of oxygen-rich blood to the scrunched-up area. “And people, (regardless of whether they cradle or not) have an automatic reflex to pause—and tense—the engaged shoulder even they’re holding the phone in their hand, according to Isernhagen. To make matters worse, most people have a favored phone side, so the same muscle groups are stressed day after day.

The quick fix: Use a no-cradling-necessary headset—it’s the best way to ward off the ache. If you can’t get your hands on one, alternate phone ears every other call to distribute tension. And do frequent neck and shoulder exercises to stretch and strengthen your muscles. In a seated position, lift both shoulders to your ears and hold for a count of five. Drop the tips of your shoulders as low as you can and hold for another five. Next drop your chin to your chest. Tilt your head to the right and try to touch your ear to your shoulder. Hold for a minute, then switch to the left side. Repeat the exercises twice every hour.

Stale-Air Desert Skin
An arid office atmosphere can turn your skin and lips into itchy agony. “Corporate air goes through centralized heating and cooling systems that sap it of moisture, which increases evaporation of water from your skin,” says Norman Levin, M.D., professor and chief of dermatology at the University of Arizona College of Medicine. By the end of an eight-hour day, you’re drier than the Sahara.

The quick fix: Put a portable humidifier by your desk, suggests Dr. Levine. It will replace the lost moisture in the air. In the winter, you can use a pan of water placed net to a heat source for the same effect. And throughout the day, mist your face with water from a spray bottle.

Before work, turn down the temp and time span of your a.m. showers. “Standing under too-hot water for too long depletes the natural oils that act as a protective barrier and keep your skin supple,” says Dr. Levine. And stock up on face-friendly foods. Getting a daily dose of vitamin A (found in green leafy vegetables and yellow peppers) and C (found in orange and grapefruit juice) will help prevent rough, scaly skin.

The Keyboard Wrist-Twist
A day of typing can wreak havoc on your wrists. “Hand strain frequently starts with an improper sitting position,” says Lin Beribak, a certified hand therapist at the Chicago Center for Hand Surgery and Reconstructive Microsurgery. “Even if you start out sitting straight, within about 30 minutes you start to slouch, putting stress on arm and wrist muscles as you type.”

The quick fix: Perfect your posture. Sit at your desk and imagine a straight line connecting your ears to your hip bones. Use a footrest (stacked phone books will do) so that your knees are slightly higher than your hips—it’ll keep your upper body from crouching downward. Drop your elbows to your sides at an angle a little less than 90 degrees. The keyboard should be parallel to the floor, your wrists straight. Then, to stay aligned, choose a don’t slouch reminder, like the phone ringing or a new email chirp. Every time you hear your personal nagging noise, sit up and readjust yourself into this position. “And don’t do a lot of continuous work that involves lifting your wrist up and down repeatedly,” advises Baribak. Instead, break up computer work by alternating it with tasks that don’t require hand motion—like kissing up to the boss.

The Desk-Job Buddha Belly
Pulling desk duty all day can back up you digestion, making your belly feel like a lead balloon. “Sitting relatively still for long periods of time can lead to constipation,” says Peter McNally, spokesman for the American College of Gastroenterology. And constipation can result in a puffed-up gut.

The quick fix: “Stand up from your desk every half hour,” says McNally. Use the bathroom on another floor, return the phone calls standing up, take a brisk stroll around the office—incorporation physical activity into your day will keep your system moving. And be sure not to wear tight-waisted clothes, which can literally squeeze your intestines and trap gas.

Another surefire deflator: Munch your lunch all the way. “Instead of a huge midday meal that’ll sit in your digestive tract—while you sit at the desk generating gas, eating small amounts throughout the day, says dietician Somer. “Lots of petite portions mean even notorious wind-makers (beans, bran, raw veggies) pass through your system quickly.” And skip the snacks at meetings. Gulping and gabbing at the same time makes you swallow, tons of stomach swelling air.

The Eight-Hour Mind Mush
Is your brain so beat by the end of the day, you can barely string a sentence together? “Routinely subjecting your brain to the same stimuli (a predictable work schedule, never changing scenery, habitual thinking patterns) can put you on unconscious autopilot—turn your mind to mush,” says Lawrence Katz, Ph.D., professor of neurobiology at Duke University Medical Center and coauthor of Keep Your Brain Alive 83 Neurotic Exercises (Workman, 1999).

The quick fix: Surprise your brain by exposing all five senses to new experiences. “Challenging your mind with new information switches to the underused parts of your brain,” explains Katz. Rearrange your desktop, shake up your usual schedule, pick a new area to stroll through each day on your lunch break, strike up conversation with a co-worker you barely know—do anything that injects a bit of novelty into your brain. “These things actually forge brain pathways—which is how you learn, problem-solve, think creatively, and stay mentally alert,” says Katz.

Another mind-mending trick: Place colored gelatin filters (available at supply stores) over your desk lamp. According to Katz, colors evoked different emotions. So out-of-the-ordinary hues like purple or blue will jar your brains expectations and boost your mental agility. You can also shake up your brain waves but taking a whiff of energizing nutmeg or cinnamon.

And when you need an after-hours graymatter motivator, hit a restaurant with food you’ve never tried. The foreign smells, tastes and atmosphere will beg your brain to wake up.

The Computer Screen Eye Strain
Watching Windows all day can vex your vision—even long after you’ve logged off. “We tend to stare—even forgetting to blink when we’re in front of the computer,” says Robin Sapossneck, an optometrist in Huntington Valley, Pennsylvania. “Like many other muscle, your eyes need varied movement to stay flexible and strong.”

The quick fix: Every 15 minutes, put your eyes through an optical obstacle course. Pick a spot down the hall or out the window 10 to 20 feet away and look at it for 20 seconds. Then refocus back in your office and roll your eyes as if following the outline of a box. Switch directions. To soothe already aching eyes, rub palms together for 10 to 15 seconds, then place them over your lids for a minute. You’ll get a break from the harsh office lights and the warmth of your hands will bring blood flow to your eyes.

In order to prevent future eye fatigue, place your computer at about an arm’s length away—so you can focus on it comfortably—and 20 degrees lower than your direct line of sight. “If you’re staring at the computer, you may not close your eyes completely when you blink—drastically drying out your eyes,” says Sapossneck. And keep your sunscreen clean (dust adds glare) and out of direct sunlight.