It has been revealed that there are “cures” for neck and shoulder pain while working at the office. You just have to ditch the following nasty habits in order to see the results.
3 tips and tricks to stop office pain
Are you experiencing frequent shoulder and neck soreness due to phone or computer usage, or sitting for extended periods? Simply loosening the muscles in your neck and shoulders will not alleviate stiff neck muscles. While massage and relaxation techniques may offer temporary relief, they fail to address the root cause of the issue.
The cervical spine in your neck consists of seven vertebrae, providing flexibility and versatility in all directions. It also houses crucial spinal nerves and nerve roots. Compression of these nerves can lead to back or arm pain, numbness, and weakness.
If you are only experiencing tightness and stiffness in your neck, the muscles surrounding your neck may be too tense and not severe enough to cause nerve issues.
Numerous muscles surround your neck, most of which connect to your neck or back from the back of your head. When the muscles in your upper back become too tense, the pressure extends upwards to your neck, causing stiffness.
Mr. Fuyong Chang, a physiotherapist based in Taiwan, has shared some common improper habits on his online program. Check them out below.
One of these habits is the unconscious shrug. When the height difference between the desktop and the chair is too significant, the shoulders tend to shrug up when raising hands to work on the desktop.
This posture can cause muscle tension and prevent relaxation. To avoid shoulder shrugs, it is recommended to keep the hands naturally hanging down on the sides of the body, raise the forearms, and keep the back arm at a 90-degree angle. This posture can help relax the shoulders and neck while working.
The other issue is leaning on elbows. In order to prevent shoulder shrugs, it’s important to pay attention to how often your elbows are resting on surfaces throughout the day, such as desks, chair armrests, or sofas. These actions can cause tension in your shoulders without you even realizing it.
Another common cause of muscle tension in the neck and upper back is excessive head bowing while looking at cellphones and computer screens.
Even just 10 minutes of maintaining a position where your phone is placed at the level of your navel can overload your muscles and cause discomfort in your neck.
To prevent this, Mr. Chang recommends placing your cell phone at a height between your chin and chest. However, it’s important not to hold your phone at eye level for extended periods of time, as this can cause shoulder pain.
