Stand Up Right

Overcoming back pain. Regaining mobility. Learning to stand up right.

Yoga for Posture – 42 – Is it Self Massage, or Electro-Shock Therapy?

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Some time ago I recommended self-massage to help you with your posture. Tight, knotted up, unhappy muscles are uncomfortable, or even painful, muscles, which cannot do their jobs. A little work with a foam roller, tennis ball or thera cane can do wonders to loosen them up, make them happy, relieve their pain and give them their jobs back.

Well, a couple of years ago, after a particularly vigorous (for decrepit old farts) game of shinny, we were sitting around the breakfast table comparing aches and pains. One of my buddies told us that he had bought his wife Dr. Ho’s pain relief machine, and that she absolutely loves it.

What is Dr. Ho’s Pain Therapy System? A dummied down version of electro-stimulation acupuncture. You apply the stimulation pads to the bit you want to treat, and fire up the current. The electric pulses cause muscle contraction, loosening them up, and increasing blood flow.

I’ve wanted something like this for years, ever since the late 90s, when I went through three months of actual electro-stimulation acupuncture to begin the repair process on my mangled back. Over the subsequent years I had acupuncture treatments for a number of conditions, including my migraines.

Last week Costco had a special on these things. I remembered Paul telling me how much his wife liked it and that, in conjunction with the 5 days of pain I went through after emptying out the cottage made the decision for me. I bought one.

Now, by the time I bought it, I had naturally recovered from the aches of the move, so I haven’t test driven it yet. I did, however, watch the instructional videos, and there were recommendations that looked an awful lot like some of the acupuncture treatments I took.

So, while I haven’t tried it yet, the day will come that I have to test it out.

When I do, you’ll be the first to hear about it.

Ergonomics Wednesday – 2 – Desk Basics

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Ergonomics

Due to the bat flu crisis and working at home, I got to thinking about ergonomic workspace setup and its relationship to back pain and posture. That led to launching Ergonomics Wednesday here at Standupright.ca, with a post on your desk chair.

I said it before but it bears repeating, working from home is different from working at the office and in my efforts to “overcome pain, regain mobility and learn to stand up right,” one of the things I put a fair bit of effort into was the ergonomics of my office working area. Being at home these last 3 months, I’ve had to apply the lessons learned to my home office.

We began with your desk chair, noting that it needs to be the correct height for you. Your desk is the same; it needs to be the correct height for you. Unfortunately, desks are pretty standard, and the vast majority of them have no height adjustment, so what do you do?

Desk Height Adjustment

I suppose you could get an adjustable desk. There are cheap, manual ones for a few hundred dollars, and deluxe motorized ones for thousands, but why spend all that money if you can avoid it? You could also shim your desk’s feet to raise it, I suppose, but why bother?

When sitting at your desk, you want your elbows and wrists straight, forearms horizontal and upper arms vertical while you’re sitting up straight with your shoulders relaxed. Desks have standard heights, but chairs are adjustable, so adjust your chair to meet these conditions.

If you’re a little too short for the standard desk size your knees and legs won’t be properly positioned, which you can address with props for your feet. You can find a full discussion in last week’s post. It is unlikely you will be too tall for the standard desk height, but if you are, and  all else failing, yes, think about getting an adjustable desk.

Desk Location

Location? Yes, location. Where you put your desk is as important as getting your level with respect to it right. If possible, you need to put your desk sideways to your windows, and as far from them as possible. If your home office geometry and location require you either face the windows, or have them directly behind you, invest in a good set of window treatments.

Why?

Ambient light. We’re into June now, and for most of the day that ol’ Mr. Sun is pouring light (and heat) down on us. Ideally, you should put your home office on the north side of your house to minimize the sunlight, and the heat, coming in. Ergonomics isn’t just about a good chair, it’s your entire working environment, and being too hot means being uncomfortable, means lowered productivity.

Barring a north facing office, in descending order of preference:

  • Turn your desk sideways to the windows, preferably on the north wall of your office.
  • Put your desk on the wall furthest from the windows.
  • Put your office in an internal room (some natural light is good, it is too much that is bad).
  • Get good curtains/blinds to block as much sunlight as possible.

But again, why is reducing the amount of sunlight important?

Eyestrain

If you have sunlight landing directly on your monitor, you will get eyestrain trying to see your monitor. There are monitor shades to help with this, but it’s a whole lot better to avoid the problem in the first place.

You can find a full treatment of eyestrain here. Here’s the Cliff’s Notes version.

Symptoms:

  • Sore or irritated eyes
  • Trouble focusing
  • Dry or watery eyes
  • Blurred or double vision
  • Increased sensitivity to light
  • Pain in the neck, shoulders, or back

Earned if we didn’t circle all the way back to posture and pain. That list is directly copied from the WebMD link, and they’ve missed one. A big one. Headaches.

For those of us afflicted with stress or cluster headaches, or migraines, eyestrain is a gateway to head pain. As are neck, shoulder and back pain. As is light sensitivity. As are vision problems.

So, to sum up, in order to work efficiently and pain free, to enjoy your work, you need to get your desk properly positioned in your office. There’s more about desks, but we’ll leave that for next week.

Poor Posture is a Pain in the Neck

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Some time ago I did a little bit on tech neck. And then, I did a bunch more on…tech neck. Why? Because for years I suffered it, and since correcting it I’ve noticed more and more people who continue to suffer it. Along the way I learned that there is no “epidemic of Tech Neck,” as one shrieky writer put it.

So why do I notice it more and more? Basically because “once you see it, you can’t unsee it.” You know what I’m talking about; once you’re aware of something, it is easier and easier to see. Like when you buy a car, suddenly you notice how many of them are out there.

Anyway, it’s posture Thursday and I’m supposed to be writing about how posture correction fixed something else. Well, this morning I was reading an article at spineuniverse.com on axial neck pain and it got me to thinking.

Back when I switched from weekly yoga as a minor component of my exercise routine to regular yoga as the core of my exercise routine I suffered from a number of interrelated back pain and posture problems. As it happens, tech neck and axial neck pain were two of them.

Tech neck, properly known as forward head posture, leads to over stretching and over stressing the muscles of the shoulders and the back of the neck. This in turn can lead to a bunch of other problems including headaches, migraines, and axial neck pain.

Axial neck pain is:

Pain that remains localized to the neck and immediate surrounding structures and does not involve dysfunction of the arms, hands, fingers, or other body regions.

(Quoted from the spineuniverse.com article linked above.) Translated from medical docterese into English, axial neck pain is pain in the back of the neck.

Further along in the article, “How is axial neck pain treated?”

Gentle stretching and strengthening is encouraged in the form of self-directed exercises or formal physical therapy.

Hmm, gentle stretching and strengthening. Where have I heard that before? Did somebody post an exercise does exactly that?

And even before I got specifically into posture correction, after about a year of regular yoga (although Bikram Yoga is not best described as “gentle stretching and strengthening”) I noticed two big changes pertinent to this. One; my neck no longer hurt all the time. Two; the frequency, severity, and duration of my migraines were all reduced. Then, after moving specifically into posture correction exercises, these changes became even more pronounced.

Further, “How can axial neck pain be prevented?

  • Keeping your neck muscles strong can help prevent the development of axial neck pain.
  • Proper posture while sleeping includes sleeping on your back or side with a pillow that supports the natural contour of your neck.
  • When using a computer, ensure that your eyes align with the top third of your screen.
  • When reading, avoid extended periods of neck flexion (looking down) by keeping your arms supported in the arm rests and ensuring your glasses, if you use them, are pushed up on the bridge of your nose.

Point 1, we’re back to postural correction exercises. Point two, funnily enough, I addressed sleep as a postural problem here. Point three goes to ergonomics, and point four (in addition to ergonomics) says, “fix your posture…sit up straight.”

The good news, if you read that article, most axial neck pain is like mine was; easily diagnosed, easily treated (without surgery) so that “…symptoms usually resolve within 4-6 weeks from the onset of pain.”

So you see, it’s not just me. The doctors over at spineuniverse.com also want you to fix your back, fix your posture, and live a life free of back pain. No, seriously, their final suggestion:

Optimizing posture, ergonomics, and muscle strength can prevent the onset and help mitigate the symptoms of axial neck pain.

Another reason I keep telling you to learn to stand up right.

Sleep Your Way to Good Posture

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Wait, wut? Sleep your way to good posture?

Absolutely, just follow along.

Wait, wut? Sleep your way to good posture?

Absolutely, just follow along.

It’s posture Thursday now, wherein I usually write about how postural correction has improved some other aspect of my life. This week’s somewhat belated posture Monday covered that, on the topic of migraines, their triggers, and how postural correction helped reduce the frequency and severity of my migraines.

One of the triggers I addressed was sleep deprivation, how getting myself over tired, in conjunction with another trigger or two, leaves me susceptible to a migraine. But what is the connection between sleep and posture?

Well, let’s begin with this; being tired, mentally or physically, has a detrimental effect on your posture. Simply put, it’s hard to stand up straight, when you can barely stand at all. A good night’s sleep is critically important for maintaining both the energy and mental focus necessary for good posture.

More than that, HOW you sleep affects your posture. Consider that you spend 7 – 9 hours sleeping. That’s a long time to hold your body in a particular shape, particularly in stage 4 (REM) sleep when your muscles are turned off and you literally cannot move. If your body is in a posture healthy shape, you are giving yourself a night’s posture correction. If your body is in an unhealthy shape, you are doing the opposite.

So, how then to put yourself in a good shape for your posture?

  1. Don’t cheap out on your mattress. Buy the best mattress you can afford, your spine, your sleep and your all around health will thank you for it.
  2. Don’t cheap out on your pillows. As with your mattress, you’re going to spend a long time on them, so buy good ones. I recommend having at least two; one for your head, and one for your knees or stomach.
  3. Set up your bed for optimal sleep. How you do this will depend on your primary sleeping position; front, side or back.
    • For front sleepers, a thin head pillow (or none), so your neck isn’t back bend and turned at the same time. Then, a second, thicker one, under your tummy so your lumbar spine isn’t over curved.
    • For back sleepers, a moderately thin head pillow so your neck isn’t tipped forward like you’re reading your phone. Then, a second one to prop up your knees to control your lumbar curve.
    • For side sleepers, a thicker head pillow so your neck isn’t bent to the side as you rest. For the second one, I like a fairly thick one between my knees so my (very deep socketed) hips don’t cause my lumbar to twist.
      • How exactly you set this up is entirely dependant on your sleeping position and anatomy. You’ll need to experiment with it before you get it just right.
  4. Cool your bedroom one or two degrees below daytime. There’s a fair bit of research that shows we get better sleep in a cooler room.
  5. Get to bed earlier. Rule of thumb; sleep before midnight is twice as good as sleep after midnight.
  6. Sleep in bed. I know that sounds obvious, but falling asleep on the couch while binge watching Game of Thrones is very bad for you back. Go to bed.
  7. Finally, bed is for sleeping and Mommy/Daddy night time activities. No TV, no tablet, no phone. Read an actual paper book if that’s part of your night time wind down routine, but NO ELECTRONICS. They mess with your sleep cycle.

Making sure you get sufficient, restful sleep will do wonders for your back and posture. And that’s in addition to reducing migraines, and all the other benefits of a good night’s sleep.

Living and Thriving in Spite of Migraines

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It’s posture Monday, wherein I normally give a step by step breakdown of a posture or exercise I have found useful in helping to improve some component of proper posture. Thursday I usually tell a little story about how the process of posture correction has improved some other aspect of my life.

Today, Imma flip the script, and talk about one of the benefits.

Recently I joined a Facebook community, Changemakers Thriving Online. I’m not entirely sure I can call myself a changemaker right now, but I’d like to be. In introducing myself to that community I connected with a lady whose focus is helping

…migraine suffers to reclaim their life from chronic pain by transforming their resignation into acceptance and their resentment into taking responsibility for whatever circumstances they find themselves in.

As it happens, one of the benefits I have accrued through my efforts in, “Overcoming Pain, Regaining Mobility and Learning to StandUpRight” is (drumroll, please) overcoming cluster headaches and migraines. When I mentioned this to her, she asked how I did it.

So, Maria, this one’s for you.

For those of you who do not suffer migraines, rest assured, my separation of cluster headaches and migraines is no accident, they are different. You can suffer one, or the other, or (if you’re really lucky like ol’ Andrew here) both.

I will not bore you with the gory details of what separates migraines from regular headaches. If you suffer migraines, you know, if you don’t suffer them, bless you, you don’t.

First rule of migraine club is: Know Your Triggers. Migraine triggers can be (but are not limited to):

  • Dietary factors (hunger, dehydration, alcohol, particular foods)
  • Sleep deprivation
  • Weather changes
  • Stress
  • Sensory stimuli (lights, certain sounds, overstimulation)
  • Hormone changes (particularly in women – menstruation, pregnancy and menopause)
  • Muscle tension in the back/neck (Tech Neck and other posture problems are big here)

My triggers are; stress, weather, illness, sleep deprivation, hunger, dehydration, overstimulation, sugar and poor posture.

Second rule of Migraine club: Avoid Your Triggers. Does red wine trigger your migraines? Dark chocolate? Caffeine? High fructose corn syrup? Remove them from your diet.

Third rule of Migraine club: If You Can’t Avoid a Trigger, Mitigate It. Got stress problems? There are things you can do about that. Got sleep problems? There are things you can do about that. Got posture problems? If only we knew of a guy who started a blog for the specific purpose of talking about that, and then every Monday he posted an exercise to help with posture correction.

And here we circle back to a couple of my recurring themes; living a healthy lifestyle, centred in regular, vigorous exercise, and serendipity. You know, pure, dumb luck.

When my migraines were at their worst I was:

  • Stressed out
  • Eating poorly
  • Sleeping poorly
  • Slouching through life

Hey, there are four of my triggers right there. I lived on the cusp of a migraine, 24/7, all it took was a weather change and BOOM, two days in a darkened room. But then something happened (and stop me if you’ve heard this one), my wife started going to Bikram Yoga four times a week. Shortly after that, I also started going four times a week.

I’ve already written about the glories of the Bikram torture chamber a time or two, so without boring you by repetition, I’ll simply sum up. It’s hard work. And you sweat, a lot. And it acts as “a 90 minute moving meditation”. And there’s some weird thing about doing yoga regularly that gets you to clean up your diet (without you even realizing it).

After several months of Bikram classes I noticed that my migraines were greatly reduced in frequency.

Why?

Let’s return to rules two and three. Avoidance and mitigation.

As I ramped up my workouts I found myself always hungry. Being always hungry I was far less likely to skip a meal, and due to that weird property of yoga, far more likely to eat good food rather than crap. After about a year I found that not only did I not eat sugary treats, I actively avoided them, because they made me feel lousy. Bye-bye hunger and sugar triggers.

And the Bikram classes themselves are tough; 90 minutes, 1000 calories or more burned.  Hard exercise and meditation kill stress, so bye-bye stress trigger.

And when I say you sweat a lot, think about 90 minutes of hard exercise in 110 degree heat. I can sweat up to 3 litres (for you Americans out there, that’s over ¾ of a gallon). To be ready for that, I developed the habit of hydrating through the day, and limiting my caffeine intake (caffeine is a diuretic, it removes water from your body). Bye-bye dehydration trigger.

And all that hard exercise? Absolutely exhaustipating. I’d go home, eat a decent dinner, and collapse into bed for a much better night’s sleep. Bye-bye sleep deprivation trigger.

And finally, posture. The years of yoga have done so much to help my posture and back pain that they inspired me to start this little blog. I’ve actually seen people consciously straighten up when walking past me (not just you, Matt). Bye-bye poor posture trigger.

So there it is in a nutshell. From 2nd year university, well into my 40s, I lived with migraines. At their worst, they were debilitating, causing a major reduction in my quality of life. Although I am unfortunate enough to be susceptible to migraines, I am fortunate enough that, through the steps outlined above, I have been able to reduce their frequency from every week (or more) to once in a while. Of all of the marvelous benefits I have received from a regular yoga practice, this one is perhaps the greatest.

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