NECK PAIN AND POSTURAL OVERLOAD

An adult’s head can weigh between ten and fourteen pounds, approximately the same weight as a bowling ball! Good alignment of your head relative to your neck helps to reduce unneccesary strain.

This principle is highlighted when you hold something with an oustretched arm, as opposed to a bent arm, which can make the object feel heavier and cause your arm to fatigue more quickly. Similarly, sitting slumped over a desk with the head carried forward of the shoulders, can put strain on the muscles, discs, ligaments and joints in the neck. If this poor postural alignment continues over a protracted period there may also be associated loss of motion in the joints in the neck and mid back with possible stiffness and reduced overall motion. Further associated symptoms occurring secondary to postural overload include headaches, migraines and shoulder girdle pain.

How we can help

At our chiropractic clinic which is located near St Pauls, we try and educate patients about the importance of maintaining a good posture, advise on patient specific ergonomic setups and also prescribe individual mobility, stretching and strengthening exercises which focus on reducing the strain of sitting at a desk for prolonged periods.

Hands on treatment is focused on addressing associated neck and shoulder girdle pain through a package of care including soft tissue work, manipulation and mobilisation.

For further information regarding work station setup, please see the posture page. Alternatively, we will be running clinics to advise patients on posture.

For more information, please do not hesitate to contact us at enquiries@body-motion.co.uk