Santa doesn’t just work at his desk! He’s out in
the world, in and out of his sleigh, enlisting
the assistance of others (elves and reindeer!) to do some
of the hard, back-breaking work. However, he also works from his
home/workshop which surely creates stress and pain for him
like it does for the
rest of us who recently realized the dream of working from
home. However, we can learn from his example. He doesn’t just sit
at a desk. He gets help for challenging chores. He moves!
Apple Country Chiropractic encourages all of our Williamson
work-from-home friends to do the same as well as undergo
alleviating chiropractic treatment
for the back pain, neck pain, shoulder, and other pain(s) you may now experience.
THE DREAM: WORK FROM HOME, LEARN AT HOME
Working from home: the dream job for many
of us…until the dream came true. There are some stunning
statistics on how work-from-home has changed so many
of us. One study of 232 telecom employees found that
39% had more pain in the low back, 48% in the upper back/neck, and 27% in their
hands. Only 33% reported not having any such
musculoskeletal pain issues. (Women reported more issues than men.) 30% worked in a separate room
at home, 32% worked in a dedicated area of a room with
other people of the home, 38% worked in a non-separate area like
the dining room. 41% did not have an office
chair; 32% used an ergonomic chair. 71% were bothered
by constant or random disruptions.
52% worked longer hours. Only 30% took frequent
breaks. (1) Students underwent much the same as did workers when their learning and teaching was performed
at home: low back pain for 73%, neck pain for 69%, shoulder pain for 59%. Contributing
factors for students were pain, academic stresses, personal/emotional issues,
work environment, and time in front of the computer. (2) For the
work-from-home dream to come true with less pain
demands some preparation. Your Williamson chiropractor is
up to the task to help you prepare.
WORKING FROM HOME: THE SET UP
Any new venture necessitates a plan. Starting
without the plan goes wrong for many. 89% of
new-to-working-at-home workers who participated in a survey described some musculoskeletal pain.
Upper back pain was said to be a result of
nonergonomic work environments with suboptimal computer
configurations while nonergonomic postures were related
to headache and low back pain. (3) A study of university
employees documented that 61% of them experienced
more musculoskeletal pain working from home with neck, shoulder and low back
pain being the most common. Women reported
significantly more pain than men. Seat height and monitor distance were significant risk factors
for discomfort and pain in work-from-home employees. (4)
HOPE FOR NEW WORK-FROM-HOME PAIN
There is hope! Despite the new
work-from-home trend that prompted more sedentary
lifestyles, reduced physical activity, and more
musculoskeletal pain like back pain, researchers mentioned
that exercise and less sitting around successfully decreased
low back pain and even ‘cured’ it for participants in their study. (5)
Apple Country Chiropractic presents some simple, gentle exercises for our
Williamson chiropractic patients. Begin them after we go
through a thorough exam and you begin noticing
relief with our gentle chiropractic spinal manipulation care.
CONTACT Apple Country Chiropractic
Listen to this PODCAST
with Dr. John Murray on The
Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he describes
relieving chiropractic care for back and neck pain patients with The Cox®
Technic System of Spinal Pain Management on The Cox®8 Table.
Schedule your Williamson chiropractic
appointment soon. Be like Santa: move, delegate
the heavy lifting, modify your workspace! Happy Holidays!