Anxiety, Sweating, And What You Can Do About It
If you suffer from anxiety, one of your symptoms may be sweating more than usual... the dreaded sweaty face, hands, and wet armpits.
And don’t get us wrong, many people sweat a lot in stressful situations. But when you have an anxiety condition, these feelings (and the sweating that sometimes comes with them) are more constant and can disrupt your day-to-day life.
But remember that anxiety sweating is common. Pinpointing the issue and tackling it head-on will have you feeling confident in no time.
Can anxiety make you sweat?
Yes. Everyone sweats – it's a normal and very helpful bodily function that helps keep us cool and safe. But if you have an anxiety condition, you may sweat more than usual.
Why does anxiety make you sweat?
We sweat when we’re hot and our bodies need to cool down. One of the things that can crank our internal temperature up is anxiety. Why? Well, anxiety conditions are characterized by excessive and persistent feelings of worry, whether it’s:¹
Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) — feeling anxious about many issues and situations, like performance at school or work, family members’ safety, being a perfectionist, and catastrophic world events like earthquakes.
Social anxiety disorder — an overwhelming fear of social situations, embarrassing yourself, being the center of attention, and getting negative feedback, especially when speaking in front of others or meeting new people.
Panic disorder — regular sudden feelings of panic or fear, aka panic attacks, often for no apparent reason.
Phobias — like claustrophobia (fear of small spaces) or agoraphobia (fear of leaving the house).
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) — anxiety triggered by any reminder (sight, smell, sound or thought) of distressing, frightening, or very stressful events that have happened in the past.
Living with anxiety means your body and mind can be on alert almost all of the time. And if you’re also feeling anxious about sweating a lot, this can easily become a viscious cycle.
When we’re feeling anxious, this triggers the fight or flight response in our nervous system. And it affects our bodies in the same way it would have affected our ancestors. Fear is fear, whether it’s running from a tiger or having to make a big speech when you have social anxiety. Fear makes our body think we need to fight for our lives or get out of that situation, pronto. This increases our heart rate and gets the adrenaline flowing, and then we sweat to cool down.
Is it anxiety or nerves (and how do you tell the difference)?
Living with anxiety means your body and mind can be on alert almost all the time. And if you’re also feeling anxious about sweating a lot, this can easily become a vicious cycle.
Where does anxiety perspiration occur?
Anxiety sweating can occur all over the body, but due to our sweat gland placement, it may affect some areas more than others.
We’ve got two types of sweat glands: apocrine and eccrine.
When we get stressed, the larger apocrine glands – mainly in the armpits and groin – start producing sweat.
But, as we mentioned above, stressful situations also cause our heart rate to increase, which gets adrenaline flowing throughout our body. That causes additional sweat from our eccrine glands, which are concentrated in our hands, forehead, and feet.
5 tips to beat anxiety sweats
1. Learn relaxation techniques
Sometimes our anxious thoughts can become overwhelming, and that’s when the anxiety sweat comes. Practicing relaxation techniques when you first start to feel anxious can help reduce physical symptoms. Try this mindful breathing technique the next time you are feeling anxious:
1. Breathe in slowly through your nose for a few seconds, letting the air flow down into your stomach
2. Hold for a few seconds, if you can
3. Slowly breathe out through your mouth
4. Repeat, until you feel your body start to relax
2. Try to distract your mind
If you keep thinking about the source of your anxiety, and then feel anxious about your sweating, it will only make you sweat more. One thing you can do is find a positive distraction. This isn’t always possible, but it could help in some instances. Here are some of our favorite ways:
- Turn on tunes that help calm you down or make you feel good
- Go for a walk – a podcast, music, or chatting on the phone while you walk may also help
- Watch a binge-worthy series or a documentary
- Try crafts, like macramé, crocheting, painting, or knitting
- Read a book, magazine, or blog
3. Stay cool
Being too warm makes us sweat, and if you add anxious sweating into the mix, it can get uncomfortable, fast. The next time the weather warms up, try:
- Avoiding going out during the hottest hours of the day, which is usually 11–3 pm, depending on where you live
- Wear light-colored, loose-fitting clothes made of natural fibers like cotton and silk
- Take cool showers
- Drink plenty of water while avoiding alcohol and caffeine
- Spend time in the shade on hot days
- Keep your home cool by shutting windows during hot days and opening them at night once it’s cooled down
4. Always be ready with an antiperspirant deodorant
Reduce the amount you sweat and protect your pits from sweat and odor with one of our dual-action antiperspirant deodorants. Here are a couple of our favorites:
For women: Degree® UltraClear Black+White Pure Rain Antiperspirant Deodorant Stick
For men: Degree® UltraClear Black+White Driftwood Antiperspirant Stick
They protect you from sweat and odor while putting a stop to those annoying – and sometimes embarrassing – white marks and yellow stains on clothes.
Need something a little stronger? Step your sweat protection up a notch with our clinical range:
For women: Degree® Stress Control Clinical Antiperspirant Deodorant
For men: Degree® Sport Strength Antiperspirant Deodorant Stick
5. Know when to ask for help
If you are finding it hard to deal with your anxiety, you may also want to consider consulting a mental health professional.
Now you’re armed with everything you need to know about anxiety sweating, we hope you feel confident and ready to tackle anything life throws your way. You’ve got this!
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