Posture and Back Pain

Posture and Back Pain

Have you ever hurt your back and scratched your head wondering – how did this happen when my back has felt fine until now?

Patients present to my San Diego Chiropractic clinic on a regular basis with neck pain, back pain and other related symptoms that not only lack a history of pain in that area but have no recent injury or accident to explain their current painful symptoms. 

This is frustrating for the patient yet a typical presentation for me.

When patients come in for care with this type of history recent injury, my inquiries usually lead to a situation that involves excessive postural stress for that patient.

Ongoing postural stress affects our body much like the old analogy of the straws on the camels back.  Our bodies are capable of compensating for quite a bit of stress before symptoms appear.  This is good and bad. 

The good part of this situation is that if we didn’t compensate for all the little stresses that we are subjected to, we would be uncomfortable all the time.  The bad part about compensation is that we often are not keen enough to recognize when our bodies are being exposed to ongoing low levels of stress. 

Once the stress levels build to a certain point, the body part in question reacts with irritation, inflammation and muscle spasm.  This combination produces pain and tightness and usually is the reason that patients call my office.

Postural stress can place an amazing amount of stress on your spine.  One of my reference books has a chart that describes how different body positions affect the amount of pressure on your discs in the low back.  The differences are amazing.

When standing straight up with ideal posture, the pressure in the discs of the low back is 100%.  When lying flat on your back the pressure is at 24%.  While sitting straight with good posture, the pressure is at 140% but when slouching forward with poor posture the disc pressure goes to a staggering 190%.

Considering that most of us sit for a good portion of the day, simply sitting becomes a significant source of stress for the lower back. 

This kind of ongoing stress combined with an awkward twist or bend can generate a crisis for the low back leading the patient to wonder exactly how turning to pick that cup of coffee off the desk behind him / her lead to such a severe back spasm.



Writers Bio

Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.

Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs. www.JonesPainRelief.com

Call Steve Jones at his San Diego Chiropractic Clinic

(619) 280 0554

www.jonespainrelief.com

Visit our Adjustable Economical Mouse Platform website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav

Visit my San Diego Chiropractic Website to make an appointment

Read More Articles on Chiropractic, Nutrition, Preventative Health, Back pain, Neck Pain and more

Repetitive Stress Trauma San Diego

Figuring out what is the root cause of a Repetitive Stress Trauma is of the utmost importance.  Once you have figured out what the source of that stress is, you have figure out a solution.  I provide treatment for many people who simply don’t see the importance in controlling the stress that they impose upon themselves.  Many of them are of the opinion that if they get some treatment that the aches and pains will go away.  For a small percentage of people, this is true.  For most however, resolution of the symptoms of a Repetitive Stress Trauma involves formal treatment with an experienced clinician as well as reducing the physical stress that their work environment imposes upon them.

You have to look at it this way, if you work in a physically stressful environment for 40 hours per week and receive therapy 3 times weekly with each session lasting 30 minutes, you are attempting to counter 40 hours of repetitive stress with 1 ½ hours of therapy.  This formula will not work for most people.  Treatment must include workstation modifications.

I have taken the liberty of outlining some basic rules of setting up an ergonomically friendly computer workstation below.  Trying to come close to these recommendations will go a long way in reducing your work stress.

1)  Placing the input device directly in your immediate reach zone offers natural comfort and maximum hand-eye coordination.  The use of a platform for the mouse is preferable. 
2)  Your chair should have arm rests that are adjustable.   
3)  Your wrist should be either in a neutral position or flexed slightly downward when operating both your mouse and your keyboard.   For this reason, if you select a mouse platform that attaches to your chair, adjustability of the platform is of primary importance.
4)  Consider using a high quality office chair with adjustable armrests and lumbar supports.  It should also allow some degree of recline.  The angle of your hips should be open to about 115 degrees.
5)  Make sure that the upper arm and elbow are as close to the body and as relaxed as possible for keyboard and mouse use - avoid overreaching.
6)  Hold the mouse lightly, don't grip it hard or squeeze it. Place the pointing device where you don't have to reach up or over very far to use it.  The closer you can place it to your body the better. 
7)  Your monitor should be directly in front of you and the upper 1/3 of it should be at eye level.


Writers Bio


Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.

Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs. www.JonesPainRelief.com


Call Steve Jones at his San Diego Chiropractic Clinic

(619) 280 0554

www.jonespainrelief.com

Visit our Adjustable Economical Mouse Platform website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav

Visit my San Diego Chiropractic Website to make an appointment

Read More Articles on Chiropractic, Nutrition, Preventative Health, Back pain, Neck Pain and more

Picking up On Repetitive Stress Trauma:

Picking up On Repetitive Stress Trauma:

I ended my last post with discussing the contributing factors of work duties with the development of Repetitive Stress Trauma.  The reason that work is such a heavy contributor to these types of injuries is the frequency and consistency of the exposure to the aggravating activity.  Most of us work at least 5 days a week, usually consecutive days and we do the same things each day for the most part.  This kind of continual stress exceeds the body’s ability to recover and heal.  Without adequate rest / recovery, a portion of us are susceptible to developing a repetitive stress injury. 

Typical activities associated with the onset of Repetitive Stress Trauma include repetitive gripping, reaching, twisting, pushing, pulling and the use of computer input devices including both the keyboard and the mouse.  Often times, these activities are performed in ways that dictate the use of poor posture and awkward body positions.

Hence we have the perfect formula for the development of a Repetitive Stress Trauma.  Forceful Movements + High Repetitions + Poor & Awkward Postures + Lack of Recovery Time = Repetitive Stress Trauma.

This is not rocket science but it takes some thought to putting the pieces together.  It also takes some thought in unraveling the particular stresses that are or could cause you to develop symptoms.

More Soon,

Dr. Jones


Writers Bio


Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.

Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs. www.JonesPainRelief.com


Call Steve Jones at his San Diego Chiropractic Clinic

(619) 280 0554

www.jonespainrelief.com

Visit our Adjustable Economical Mouse Platform website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav

Visit my San Diego Chiropractic Website to make an appointment

Read More Articles on Chiropractic, Nutrition, Preventative Health, Back pain, Neck Pain and more