Most common physical weakness which occurs to the working sector are lower back pain, leg pain and shoulder pain which occurs because of the high demand in a job and a very less control of the situation. Back pain at work occurs due to the prolong sitting, bad posture while sitting and excessive stress on the lower part of the body.
Also stress in the workplace has become very common due to the various demands of the job in the market. Physical illness due to the stress in the job is one of the main issues among the employees as well as employers.
There are many ways to reduce the effects of the back pain even though it belongs to long term sickness. Read this post to know more about the ways to reduce back pain and the best ways to avoid back pain at work while sitting at desks for long hours.
Ways to Stop Back Pain at Work:
There are various ways to control back pain at work to some extent even though theses tips does not cure it completely but it reduces the back pain to a great extent. Here are few ways to control back pain at work.
1. Change your posture when working with a system:
Nowadays, most of the employees work with computer or a laptop for many hours together. And this might lead to back pain because of the wrong posture and prolonged hours. It is very important to change the posture often. One important tip is head your high and in straight with your shoulders. Always avoid straining your head forward near your system. This wrong posture will strain your back and hence avoid it completely.
2. Use a well supported chair:
This is a very important tip to avoid back pain at work. Ask for a chair which gives a good support to your back and it should be slightly reclined to relax during work. Never use a chair which does not suit or support your back. This might cause severe issues to your lower part of the body. Hence, it is very important to pick a chair with a good support.
3. Do breathing exercises often:
Breathing exercises will reduce the back a lot while at work. It does need any special place to do it. Breathing exercises can be done at any place. All you need to do is to concentrate on your breath. Inhale and try bringing your navel towards your spine and then exhale. This breathing exercise will engage your core muscles and it will support your upper body.
4. Note the position of your feet:
Try to adjust your legs and keep them flat on the floor. Make sure the distance between the legs should be same with of the shoulders. By this you will avoid stress on your knees and on your back.
5. Take quick breaks:
Try to take quick breaks from work by moving away from your chair. Get up from your chair at least once and walk around for 5-10 minutes way from your desk. By this you are energizing to work more as well concentrating on your physical wellness too.
6. Do few easy exercises at your desk:
There are many easy exercises that can be done while sitting at your desk. Try doing some shoulder rolls, stretch your arms, legs few times to reduce pressure on your spinal disks as well as it increases the blood circulation. Massage your shoulders , roll up and down for few minutes to relax your spine from stress. These easy exercises will help reducing back pain to a extent.
7. Avoid squinting and use a wider screen:
If you are not comfortable with the screen size, use an extra desktop instead of a laptop. Do not lean forward or squint your eyes to work with your system. It is better to change to a system with a wider screen than stress your whole back towards the screen.
8. Never cross your legs:
Crossing your legs on your chair causes severe issues to your spine. By crossing your legs you tend to contract muscles and over stretch them around your pelvis which will hinder the blood flow to the spine. So, try to relax and sit comfortably without hurting your back. Even though it is difficult always try to uncross yourself consciously to avoid back pain.
How to Avoid Back Pain While Sitting:
It has become common, most of the office environment have a culture of working more than 10 hours at the desk. Due to prolonged sitting, most of the people tend to slouch in their chairs for many hours together which causes a strain on the spinal cord. If incorrect position of sitting continues for prolonged period, it causes severe issues on the back and damages the spine. Here are the few tips to avoid back pain while sitting.
1. Use ergonomic chair:
Ergonomic chair is a chair which is specially designed to increase the back support and it also helps to maintain a good back posture. Also it is very important to adjust the chair according to each individual body’s comfort level.
2. Height adjustment is very important to avoid back pain:
Always adjust the height of the chair according to your monitor height to avoid stressing your back. When the height adjustment is not proper you tend to lean forward or stress your neck to work. By this your spinal cord gets hurt if its continues for many hours. Hence, never hesitate to adjust sitting position, height according to your monitor.
3. Do not parallely talk over the phone and work:
Most of them tend to do multitasking parallely talking in phone and working on the other side. Never try to pin your phone between your neck and shoulder as it is a very wrong sitting posture. This might lead to stress to your back and it hurts muscles. Avoid phone cradling completely. Finish your call and then work. Best tip is to stand and talk and then continue working.
4. Do hamstring stretches, and back stretches when you feel uncomfortable:
There are few simple exercises like hamstring stretches, back stretches which can be done while you sit in your chair.
Hamstring stretch is like you have stretched your right leg forward and move it up for five minutes and relax and then vice versa. By this exercise your lower back becomes relaxed. Back stretch is a exercise where you need to place your hands on the armrest and twist completely on one side for few seconds on the other. These two simple exercises relaxes your back completely while sitting on the chair.
How to Avoid Lower Back Pain:
It is very critical for many of the employees to have stretch often or move away from sitting at your system. Here are the few tips to avoid lower back pain.
1. Use headset:
If you are in a job where you need to talk continuously over the phone as well as work simultaneously, try using a headset instead of a handset. This will not alter your position and cause back pain.
2. Apply ice packs or an heat bag on your back:
When your back pain is very high and you could not resist it, try using ice pack on your back for sometime or use heat bags on the place where it hurts for sometimes. Even though it does not cure completely it gives a relief from the back pain.
3. Carry pain relievers:
This might not be the best choice but pain relievers gives a immediate remedy to avoid back pain. Use a pain reliever along with the ice pack or heat bag for immediate remedies. This will maximum decrease inflammation caused on your back.
4. Give yourself some massages on your back:
When you feel uncomfortable at your back try moving away from your place or just give a nice massage to your lower part of the body gently. It just relaxes your body completely and heals the pain to some extent.
5. Try acupressure by yourself:
Acupressure is also an excellent remedy to leave the pain. Try learning the exact points and do acupressure on the spots to get a relief from back pain. This might help to relax from back pain for sometime at least.
Conclusion:
Getting a back pain has become very common health issue because of the bad lifestyle and food habits. And the worst part is back pain has started to occur at very young age and it has become a severe health issue to most of them.
Even though the tips to avoid back pain can cause some relief it is very essential to change the entire lifestyle completely to lead a healthy life. Yes, it is unavoidable to reduce work hours or move away from sitting at your desk.
But it can be balanced with a good lifestyle, eating habits, and also working efficiently in the given hours rather than sitting many hours and wasting time which causes health issues. Hope this post helps you to know what is back pain and the best strategies to overcome the back pain at work.
