Have you noticed the following symptoms?
• Upper back pain ranging from a chronic, nagging pain to sharp, severe upper back muscle spasms.
• Shoulder pain and tightness, possibly resulting in painful shoulder muscle spasm.
• Intermittent arm pain or sometimes tingling into hands when arms out in front of you for prolonged periods.
• Frequent headaches.
One big contributor to your symptoms could be from excessive mobile phone use or ‘text neck.’ Almost all of us single handedly rely on our phones for everything these days from paying for our coffee, to work emails and even reading the news. It’s no surprise then that excessive mobile phone use can lead to poor postural mechanics and also pain and dysfunction.
Below are some simple tips to help reduce your discomfort and help you look after your upper back and neck a little better:
• Hold your cell phone at eye level as much as possible. The same holds true for all screens—laptops and tablets should also be positioned so the screen is at eye level and you don’t have to bend your head forward or look down to view it.
• Take frequent breaks from your phone and laptop throughout the day. For example, set a timer or alarm that reminds you to get up and walk around every 30 or so minutes. Set an alarm on your device, get up go for a walk and while you’re at it have a glass of water.
• Set aside technology free time in your house. Make sure everyone is off electronic devices at dinner time and talk a little to one another about your day!
• Bed time is for sleep; when you go to bed so does your phone. It is important to put the phone down at night; using the device, especially in poorly lit areas, put excessive strain on your eyes. The light also interferes with our body’s natural sleep process making it harder to go to sleep. And we all know what we are like when we are tired and grumpy!
Chiropractors are qualified to recognize the effect of excessive device time can have on your posture and function and can work with you to relieve the symptoms by realigning the cervical spine, strengthening the surrounding muscles and educating you in prevention. The following video also shows 3 simple neck and shoulder mobility exercises that can help manage your neck discomfort
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKmKHMIGhLk
References
1.”Text Neck”. CAA. N.p., 2016. Web. 1 Mar. 2017.
2.”FORWARD HEAD POSTURE”. Chiro.org. N.p., 2017. Web. 7 Mar. 2017.
3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6296804/
