More people miss work for back pain and mental health issues more than any other ailment. If you sit for too long, your back muscles begin to tire making you slump, whether this is at home or in the office. This has the effect of loading your lumbar spine (lower back) discs by uptown 150%!!
If you have had a lumbar spine problem or suffer from low back ‘niggles’ then this prolonged posture can be very harmful for both your spine and your muscles. Also, sitting in a slumped posture places a great deal of strain on your neck joints and shoulder muscles, which, can then lead to headaches, neck and shoulder pain. Adding to this, is the constant twisting that many people do to reach for the phone/filing cabinet, computer at work, or, at home sitting on the sofa awkwardly, then what you have is a receipe for pain.
What can be done to help? Obviously prevention is better than cure but most people only contact an Osteopath when they already have the problem. I have a treatment protocol and a programme of stretches specifically for computer and laptop users that is designed to help relieve the back and neck problems associated with poor sitting posture. Research has shown that the best approach is a combination of advice, manual therapy treatment such as Osteopathy and a prescribed exercise regime…
It is essential to break the cycle of repetitive strain, muscle fatigue and pain. To do this we should recharge our muscles and take the strain off our joints and discs every 20 mins. Even if it is for 20-30secs! Micro breaks every 20 minutes are crucial to preventing your muscles from tightening…
If you are already suffering with back and neck pain then book an appointment and see how we can help you with practical advice, treatment, exercises and preventative advice to help avoid a reoccurrence in the future.