You wouldn't put a 60-pound weight on your neck every time you look at your phone -- but that's the force you're putting on your cervical spine when tilting your head down. The fix: Give your noggin' less reason to tilt by holding your phone like a T-Rex. Keep your elbows to your sides, holding the phone up higher to your face, so you can read it while keeping your head straight. The human head weighs about 10 pounds. The more you tilt your head forward and down, gravitational forces dramatically increase the weight felt by your neck. So tilting your head 30 degrees is like making your neck lift 40 pounds. A 60-degree tilt is equivalent to 60 pounds of force.
When you look down at a starry ocean, teal sailboat watercolor sea waves night iphone case phone, your neck has to work harder to hold up your head, Tilting your head 60 degrees puts 60 pounds of force on the cervical spine, Dr, Ken Hansraj, a New York back surgeon, calculated the force felt on the cervical spine when texting and looking down, and published his findings in the journal Surgical Technology International, He's currently working on a book about spinal health, Technology may have increased the frequency of this neck pain, but Dr, Hansraj said simply being more mindful of keeping good posture is a starting point to healing..
"The body changes and the body is very forgiving," said Dr. Hansraj. Sitting properly at your desk can make a big difference. Laptops can be terrible for your posture, so it's vital to have a good desk setup to avoid hunching and leaning forward. The fix: Sit up straight with your feet flat on the floor. (You may need a footrest if your desk height isn't adjustable.). The top of your monitor should be at your eye level, about an arm's length distance away from you. Your elbows should be at your sides when typing, wrists flat on the table as you type. You don't want to be reaching far for your mouse.
A proper chair would have armrests hugging your sides, so starry ocean, teal sailboat watercolor sea waves night iphone case you don't lean outward to rest your arms, Ergonomic specialists can assess your office setup and make suggestions for better keyboards and chairs, Ask your human resources department if they offer any help in this area, Stretching regularly not only relieves the strain on your neck, but you'll look super cool doing it, In the end, we all end up leaning and slouching, The fix: Counter the computer crunched-up strain by stretching in the opposite direction -- bend your head back and look up, Take breaks to do this throughout the day..
It's also helpful to stretch your arms back and squeeze your shoulder blades, along with rolling your shoulders. If stretching doesn't relieve your discomfort, see your doctor and talk to a specialist. It's what it took for me to finally feel better. I've spent the past four months retraining my body through physical therapy, chiropractic adjustments, as well as taking stretch breaks and being more mindful of my posture. If you need a catchy way to remember good posture, enjoy this song about tech neck, written for CNET by Dr. Hubert.