This year, many people are working from home due to the pandemic. The work-from-home trend has been great in some ways (it’s helped people save on gas and vehicle wear-and-tear), but it’s been challenging in some ways as well. In particular, it’s created new demand for physical therapy as people experience more backaches, headaches and other general aches and pains that come from working in an environment not meant for it. Here’s why the demand for physical therapy is growing this year in direct response to more people working from home.
Working in Non-Office Spaces
When you’re working in a professional office space that’s designed for that specific purpose, you’re more likely to maintain good posture. Most office desks and chairs are designed to complement one another. Desks are usually designed to allow the people sitting at them to type, write and take care of all their other duties while maintaining a healthy, upright sitting position.
Unfortunately, this is too often not the case for at-home work stations. Many people don’t have dedicated office spaces in their homes, and they may not have the time, budget or space to convert an existing area of their home into an office. As a result, many people end up working from their couches, kitchen counters, dining room tables, and even their beds.
As you can imagine, working from these areas can create significant strain on the body. When countertops are too high or too low, they can cause strain in the shoulders, back and neck. Some people may also experience strain in their elbows and wrists as they try to type on their computers while hunched over or while holding their arms up unnaturally high. It is these unnatural working conditions that are leading many people to search out physical therapy.
What You Can Do if You Have Work-From-Home Pain
If you’re one of the many people experiencing increased physical pain due to working from home, don’t ignore it. It’s not likely to go away on its own. In fact, without physical therapy, the pain may become so severe that you are no longer able to work for a period of time. To keep this from happening, it’s wise to seek out help as soon as possible. Newport Medical and Wellness Center offers a variety of treatments and classes that can help, including physical therapy and LongSpine Method classes.
Wellness by Design Physical Therapy is a rehabilitation service for people living in pain. The treatment offers manual techniques such as nerve flossing and neurofascial release to help relieve discomfort.
Newport Medical and Wellness Center also offers the LongSpine Method, which is a therapeutic exercise class that’s intended to strengthen the muscles responsible for good posture. The class helps keep the spine, peripheral nerves and limbs long and limber. Those who take the class typically report improved core stabilization and decreased pain associated with working from home.
Improve Your Posture and Reduce Your Pain
By improving, treating and strengthening the muscles responsible for good posture, you can improve your ability to work from home without significant pain. In addition to physical therapy and LongSpine Method classes, you should also work to set up an ergonomic workspace in your home.
