A battle with back pain is one of the most debilitating things that can happen to you while working. Following the pandemic, countless people had their work world flipping upside down. Many employees were forced to switch offices or work from home. While working from home comes with plenty of enjoyable benefits (i.e. pajamas all day), it can be taxing on your body. The refrigerator stuffed with delicious brownies is always only feet away from you. Temptations to lay down in your sweatpants, munch of sweats, and put Netflix on in the background flood your mind.
What has this shift in how and where we work caused? BACK PAIN! And lots of it…
Fortunately for you and your spine, we are here to unravel the best ways to deal with back pain while working from home. These actionable health tips will help you keep your body in shape, sharp, and feeling good.
1. See a Chiropractor (after work)
We had to start with this one – since we are chiropractors – and because this tip is helpful for people who need pain relief ASAP. If you are experiencing excruciating back pain, consider seeing your local chiropractor. They can help you treat back pain and provide you with immediate relief. Don’t wait until after work if you are in a TON of pain. Seek back pain relief through chiropractic care. Click here if you want to learn more about how a chiropractor can help improve your health. Now, back to the action!
Chiropractic care is a great way to treat back pain. The adjustments that chiropractors provide can provide pain relief and also help realign parts of the body that are ‘off’. Have you ever woken up feeling physically in pain for no reason? It could be from how you slept…. OR, it could be because of your working habits. Many people that work long hours don’t have great posture. They find themselves constantly sitting down, staring at the computer, and typing.
Chiropractors specialize in helping people improve their postures. This doesn’t only have an effect on your back pain. It could also be causing you pain in other areas. Chiropractic care helps treat shoulder pain and neck pain for people that work long hours. If you are typing 1000’s of words per day, there’s a good chance your shoulder may start to hurt. Don’t work in pain! Contact us to learn how a chiropractor can help reduce your pain while working.
2. Stretch in the Morning
Nothing beats a deep stretch first thing in the morning. Except for maybe a hot cup of freshly brewed coffee. Both of these things will help you get through a workday. However, only one helps prevent back pain (to our knowledge).
Stretching helps warm your body up to start the day. For people that sit for long hours, this is key. Your body naturally becomes stiff over time from long periods of sitting down. Avoid getting stiff throughout the day. Stretch your back in the mornings by touching your toes. You can perform a variety of different bending stretches like this to loosen up your back muscles. Do you ever wake up with a stiff back? Try stretching things out first thing in the morning. Here are several morning stretches that help loosen up your muscles:
- Touch your toes
- Side oblique bends
- Downward facing dog (yoga)
Stretching does not cost you a thing and can be extremely effective at helping you deal with back pain while working.
3. Go on Walks
Movement is critical to avoiding back pain. What is an easy way to do this during the workday? Try going on short walks throughout the day. You can do this during your breaks or lunch hour. If your schedule is tight and your manager doesn’t want to give you time to walk, quit. Just kidding! However, you should have a conversation with them. Emphasize the importance of health and how this will help you avoid getting stiff throughout the day.
Let your manager know about any backaches or pains that you’ve experienced while working. If they care about you as an employee, they should be flexible when it comes to your health and wellness. Vocalize that walking for short periods of time throughout the day helps treat your back pain while working. Not to mention, it helps with overall productivity too.
Going on a walk stimulates your brain cells, which helps cognitive function. Try it next time you are experiencing writer’s block (or worker’s block)! Not to mention, going on walks reduces stress and anxiety. For anyone that gets stressed out at work, taking a short walk can help calm you down. If you can get outside to move your body and walk, even better. This will help warm up your muscles and keep you relaxed for the remainder of your workday. Say goodbye to back pain with this workday hack!
4. Exercise
We get it. Not everyone has the luxury of exercising in the middle of the workday. BUT, if your schedule is flexible enough to do this, you should take advantage of it. Exercising is a great way to break up the day and regain the energy that you’ve spent at work. Our bodies become very stiff over time when sitting for long periods. Exercising helps maintain strong muscle health. The stronger you are, the less likely random injuries are to occur.
You can also use exercising as a preventative wellness practice. The more that you exercise and move your body, the less likely you are to suffer from back injuries when lifting things. If all the gyms by you are expensive, ask your employer if they offer employee incentives for health and wellness. For example, many employees can use their health savings account for chiropractic care. This, of course, depends on your employer. Fingers crossed that you got a good one! You can also use a health savings account to cover a gym membership. Start working on your body throughout focused exercises to get rid of back pain.
5. Invest in a Better Chair
Where do you sit each day that you’re at work? You must be extremely honest with yourself about the quality of this chair. Would you let your grandmother sit in your work chair all day? If your answer is a hard NO, then you should consider investing in a better chair.
Think about you. You spend potentially 8-12 hours per day in this chair. That is upwards of 60 hours per week – which is 2,880 hours per year. That’s 120 full days sitting in that thing! Yikes!! Invest in a good work chair if you are someone that spends a ton of time in it. Back pain can start from having a poor-quality chair. Avoid dealing with back pain while working by treating yourself to a high-quality throne.
6. Purchase a Standing Desk
For the go-getters, try out a standing desk to help you deal with back pain while working. Now, you can still purchase that nice chair that you dreamt of. However, if you stand up for parts of your workday, it helps break up the long periods of sitting. A standing desk forces you to stand while typing, texting, emailing, and calling. It typically takes some time to get used to and is not for everyone.
Standing desks help align our spines and improve our posture. It’s easier to slouch while sitting in a chair all day versus standing. More employers are beginning to invest in standing desks for their employees for this very reason. Standing desks help decrease the amount of back pain people deal with while at work. The less pain that you are in, the more enjoyable work becomes.
Treat back pain through these tips
Many people deal with back pain while working. Our lower backs, in particular, are extremely vulnerable to aches and pains from sitting for long periods of time. Switch up your environment and work setup to help treat back pain that you’re experiencing at work. Jobs are not always enjoyable, and they are especially not enjoyable when you’re dealing with back pain. Invest in your health and body through these wellness tips.
Dealing with Back Pain? Come see us!