Back pain is a reality for many of us that work in the office. Studies show that over 1 in 4 American office workers report some level of back pain weekly [1].
The main component to handling the back pain in the office is to be mindful of your posture when sitting in your chair. This means monitoring slouching, hunched shoulders, and the curvature in the small of your back. But with so much to accomplish during a work day, actively monitoring posture is probably the last thing on your mind when you’re working. To help with this, there are 3 small changes that you can make to your work environment to make it more back pain friendly.
1. Use A Back Pain Lumbar Support Roll
Available on Amazon , this little buddy right here can save your back from some serious pain. Affordable and easy to use, all you have to do it attach it to your chair, make sure that the roll presses into the curve in your lower back while sitting, and you’re good to go. Just this change alone can make a huge difference with back pain and should be at the top of your list for changes to your office space.
2. Change Your Office Chair
Your beautiful, leather, CEO chair may look absolutely stunning in person, but functionally, many of those seats do not offer the proper amount of low back support and could be sending you on a one way ticket to back pain city.
The best ergonomic chairs come fully adjustable, from an adjustable headrest, to seat heights, and everything in between.
The cost of ergonomic chairs can be, unfortunately, high and cost prohibitive to some. But to that, I always ask the question: did you consider the cost of an ergonomic chair against the long term health of your back? In the beginning, it can just start out as just simple back pain. But, over time, the condition could degenerate into something much worse that could possibly require surgery if not monitored correctly and frequently. I can’t count the number of patients that have had back surgery due to ignoring back pain for long periods of time. If the cost really is to high for you, then the lumbar roll in Tip #1 becomes an absolute MUST BUY.
3. Adjust The Height Of Your Computer Monitor
You should be mindful of everything else at your desk when working: the angle of your knees when you’re sitting down, the angle of your elbows as you’re typing, the distance from your monitor, and the angle of your computer monitor. I believe that computer monitor height at your desk is the most important factor to maintaining proper posture at all times.
Human Solution has a great tool for easily calculating many aspects of a perfectly ergonomic workstation, whether you’re seated or standing at a mobile workstation.
Just enter in your height where indicated and it will calculate your optimal seat height, monitor distance, etc., to create the perfectly ergonomic workstation.
By following the recommended distances and heights using the calculator, back pain issues should be relatively non-existent, provided that you follow my other tips.
At the end of the day, it really is up to you. Pay attention to yourself and how your environment is set up around you, and you’ll be that much closer to removing back pain from your life forever!
Dr. Asha Pumarada is a licensed Physical Therapist and co-owner of Complete Physical Rehabilitation. With over 20+ years of treatment experience, she is a McKenzie Certified back pain specialist, an LSVT BIG certified specialist for Parkinson’s disease, and is one of the most sought after vestibular therapy specialists in Elizabeth and Jersey City, they specializing in the treatment of all dizziness, vertigo, and imbalance issues along with her husband, Dr. James Pumarada.