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I work in Tokyo where they keep the office on about 26C (78.8F), which is normal according to Japanese standards. I come from Louisiana where we keep our house on 68F (20C). Wearing long pants is not a rule but everybody here does it. There's about 100 employees on my floor and I'm the only one who ever seems to be burning up.

What can I do about this? Even if I wear shorts my back and legs get damp. And my chair is already a mesh like chair with holes all through out it to allow airflow.

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If you're the odd one out, the burden falls on you to adapt.

  • Get a personal desk fan to keep yourself ventilated.
  • Dress for the temperature. Lightweight, loose clothing that is meant for warm environments like linen will make a big difference.
  • If there is a cooler part of the office, ask to move your workstation there.
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  • Good advice in general. I would add that when I lived on the East Coast, what helped me adapt the best was to do some outdoor exercise in the heat every spring. Not so much I dropped from heat exhaustion, but enough to feel very, very hot. Only a couple episodes went a long way to resetting my internal thermostat to find the regular ambient temperature more reasonable. And of course avoid any colder a/c at home, if you have it, as that totally invalidates any efforts to acclimate.
    – user90842
    Nov 1, 2018 at 20:42
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You mention legwear (shorts vs. pants) and a mesh chair, which are a good start of things to look at. Additional things to try would be:

  • Different shoes and socks (feet have a disproportionate impact on perceived body temperature)
  • Different clothing materials - linen as MackM mentioned, or wool (woven thin, it's actually a comfortable warm-weather material)
  • If acceptable to your coworkers, a personal fan as MackM mentioned; try it in different locations, you might find that e.g. blowing on your feet and calves is more effective in reducing discomfort than blowing on your arms.
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