Did your mother ever tell you to stand up straight?
Are your children-hood memories peppered with such phrases as ‘Don’t slouch!’? As an osteopath, I am here to tell you that sometimes, only sometimes, your mother was indeed right.
Back pain and poor posture are directly linked. Most relevant to our society today is our posture as we sit at our desks. If you work at a desk, you may know what I am writing about! There is a strong incidence of neck pain and back pain in desk workers. Frequent headaches can also feature and these can be related to how the neck is functioning. These symptoms can really affect our working day and can even persist and interfere with our home lives and our hobbies. However, there are a few things that we can do that can really help increase comfort at a desk.
First of all, it is very important to have the computer screen directly in front of you. Having the monitor off to one side can put the whole spine out of alignment and increase the strain passing through key areas, which will lead to aches and discomfort.
If using the telephone a lot, we can develop the bad habit of holding it under one ear by hunching one side of the neck and shoulder. This, in my experience, is a key culprit in cultivating neck pain and if you are guilty of this, I strongly recommend the use of headphones. These will allow the neck to remain straight and prevent irritation and spasm of the postural muscles.
A supportive chair is also important when working from a desk. The chair should support the lower back, guiding the pelvis into a forward tilt and promoting a straight upper back. This prevents the head from being held forward and straining the neck muscles, which can cause pain, stiffness and headaches.
Lastly, teaching yourself to be more aware of your posture could lead to huge improvements in quality of life - a simple change and at no extra cost! This applies to everyone, young or old, female or male. Whether you work from a desk, behind a counter or bending over clients for long periods of time like I do, being body aware can prevent these aches and pains from developing.
A simple trick to check our posture is to imagine a string is coming out of the top of our head pulling us up. This will naturally allow our shoulders to drop and bring our whole spine into a more correct positional alignment. It may feel odd at first but persevere and get your colleagues, friends or family to help by keeping an eye on you!