Of the PT Persuasion: For Writers - Ergonomics
Have you ever wished for a resource that helped writers cut back on hours and hours of researching how to accurately portray injuries and medical conditions? Look no further. In this blog series, I’ll be discussing just that. What makes me qualified to do so? Well, I’m a Physical Therapist! Or, rather, I’m a writer…Of the PT Persuasion.
One of the things I see most in the clinic is back and neck pain. Anecdotally, approximately 50% or higher of my patient population on a daily basis is coming to me for some sort of spinal pain, and most of my patients with complaints of upper-back and neck pain say the same thing: “Well, I know it’s because I work a desk job, but I can’t not work…”
True, you can’t not work. And, if you’re a writer, you know you can’t not write. That’s why this episode in my Of the PT Persuasion series is devoted to workspace ergonomics so you, as a writer or as someone who works a desk job, can set yourself up for success.
First off, let’s talk about what poor posture can do to the body.
Mammals are naturally lazy—an evolutionary behavioral pattern that allows us to conserve energy—and, humans being mammals, we fall readily into this pattern. Now, for millennia, humans weren’t sitting at desks with monitors in front of our faces for 8+ hours at a time. No, if our hunter-gatherer ancestors wanted to take a break, they’d find a sunny spot in the grass and sprawl out comfortably, head and neck supported and back naturally aligned.
Sitting in a chair, while relieving the pressure on our feet and legs, actually doesn’t do that much for our spines. In fact, sitting actually increases the amount of pressure exerted through our lumbar spines (low back) as compared to standing. Sitting in bad posture almost triples the pressure through the lumbar spine. And the cervical spine or neck? Well, for every inch your head moves forward of your neck, ten extra pounds of pressure go through your cervical spine/neck. Let’s think about that: the average head weighs about 10-12 lbs, so every time you’re craning your neck forward, you can be doubling, tripling, even quadrupling the weight of the head atop your neck to weigh equivalent to a cinder block.
So, what does all this extra pressure mean? The spine is built like a mega stack of s’mores, where the graham cracker is the sturdy, bony vertebrae, and the chocolate and marshmallow are the intervertebral disks. These disks are cushions, shock absorbers, pressure diffusers, and mobility enhancers, and they’re what people are referring to when you hear “herniated disk.” Now, think of what happens when you bite down on one edge of your s’more. The marshmallow almost inevitably is going to squish out the other side. That is an exaggerated version of what happens to your spine when excessive pressure is exerted asymmetrically (i.e. when you slouch). S’mores-themed conclusion: You’re killing me, Smalls!
But if it’s so bad for us, why do our bodies let us do it? This brings me back to: we’re lazy. Poor posture is a result of us using passive support rather than active support. That means we’re turning off our muscles (which require energy to support us = active support) and instead using passive support to keep us upright. Passive support, in this sense, refers to bones, ligaments, and other support structures like the intervertebral disks, which don’t require energy to operate.
Okay, so how do we keep our marshmallows safely in our spine and not damage them?
Let’s start with workspace ergonomics. There are a few key pointers I like to give my patients to improve their posture, reduce their neck strain, and offload their spines.
Use a chair with lumbar support or a lumbar roll to help retain the natural curvature of your spine
The chair should be at a height where your feet can rest flat on the floor, and the armrests should be adjusted to rest at the height at which your elbows naturally rest
Your keyboard should also be at the height at which your elbows naturally rest
The top of your monitor screen should be at eye-level and should sit an arms-length away from your face
Of course, this is the ideal scenario, in which your desk and chair and computer can all be adjusted to suit your needs. This usually isn’t the case. In fact, I’d wager you’re probably sitting there, hunched over your phone, thinking, “Well, I don’t even sit at a desk when I write! I snuggle up on the couch/bed…”
…I’m not even judging, as I (me, the professional—hi. I’m the problem, it’s me) sit here writing this from my recliner.
But, the good news is, I also have tips for those of us who choose not to write from a desk, or even from a chair.
Move around every 20-30 minutes. It’s not only beneficial for your body, but it gives your eyes a break, too.
Perform chin tucks. This is a simple exercise that helps reset your neck posture. All you have to do is sit up tall and draw your chin straight backward like you’re making a double chin. It’s the same motion you’d do if someone were coming in for an unwelcome kiss; you’d retract like a turtle.
Perform shoulder blade squeezes. This is another simple one that targets your upper back muscles to get rid of that slouch. Sit up tall and squeeze your shoulder blades down and in like you’re trying to pinch them toward your back pockets. You should not feel your shoulders come up toward your ears!
Perform stretches. Interlock your fingers behind your head like you’re about to get arrested, then lean backward, opening up your chest. It helps if you have a chair back or even a foam roller you can lean back over.
Disclaimer: these three exercises are ones I do with my patients on a daily basis, but I am there, in person, to demonstrate and supervise exercises. While these are generally simple and harmless, please note that there is always a small, but inherent risk to activity; should you experience pain, stop immediately.
I can’t promise these tips will fix any existing conditions or maladies—you should see a professional, in-person, for that—but I will say that prevention is truly the best medicine. So. Be aware of your positioning and posture, take breaks, and reset with exercises.
Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this installment to Of the PT Persuasion.
Disclaimer:
If you’re seeking medical advice for yourself or someone you know, you should speak to a medical professional. This blog is not intended for diagnosing or treating real-life medical conditions, only fictional ones.
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