Santa doesn’t just sit at a desk for work! He is out in
the world, in and out of his sleigh, getting
the help of others (elves and reindeer!) to do part
of the hard, back-wrecking work. However, he also works from his
home/workshop which certainly creates stress and pain for him
like it does for the
rest of us who now realize 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 heavy chores. He moves!
Yorkville Chiropractic and Wellness Centre encourages all of our Toronto
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 have.
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 altered 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% didn’t have an office
chair; 32% sat in an ergonomic chair. 71% were bothered
by constant or intermittent disruptions.
52% worked longer hours. Only 30% took frequent
breaks. (1) Students experienced much the same as the workers
did when their learning and teaching was done
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 as little pain as possible
demands some preparation. Your Toronto chiropractor is
up to the task to help you prep.
WORKING FROM HOME: THE SET UP
Any new venture needs a plan. Starting
without the plan backfires for many. 89% of
new-to-working-at-home workers who replied
to a survey stated some musculoskeletal pain.
Upper back pain was described as being a result of
nonergonomic work environments with non-favorable computer
configurations while nonergonomic postures were related
to headache and low back pain. (3) A survey of university
employees documented that 61% of them had
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! Regardless of the new
work-from-home trend that resulted in more sedentary
lifestyles, reduced physical activity, and greater
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)
Yorkville Chiropractic and Wellness Centre offers some simple, gentle exercises for our
Toronto chiropractic patients. Begin them after we do a thorough exam and you begin noticing
relief with our gentle chiropractic spinal manipulation care.
CONTACT Yorkville Chiropractic and Wellness Centre
Listen to this PODCAST
with Dr. John Murray on The
Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he shares
relieving chiropractic care for back and neck pain patients with The Cox®
Technic System of Spinal Pain Management on The Cox®8 Table.
Make your Toronto chiropractic
appointment now. Be like Santa: move, delegate
the heavy lifting, adapt your workspace! Happy Holidays!