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“Back” to School Get Ready for Learn How Proper Posture & Ergonomics Can Keep Your Back Pain-Free

Most people strugglewith sitting and standing up straight. Many of us can remember being told by our parents and teachers that good posture is the key to good health later in life! We all roll our eyes, as this demand seems annoying. However, as we grow older, we realize that good posture goes beyond appearances and looking confident. Sitting and standing with good spinal alignment can actually help prevent back pain. Your spine is meant to operate in a specific way. Each time youmove, sit, or stand in ways that disrupt the correct position and operation of your spine, you can end up creating long term problems. Physical therapists are great at teaching patients how to practice proper posture. Your physical therapist will help you to understand the importance of it, and give you the education necessary to make sure you’re achieving excellent posture every day. How Does Good Posture Relieve Back Pain? When you begin physical therapy, you will learn how to develop good posture, recognize when you are not practicing good posture, and discover many ways that healthy patterns of movement can minimize your back pain. Developing good posture through physical therapy can help you avoid back pain in several ways: 1. Avoiding Incorrect Anatomical Changes. Did you know that the ways in which you use your spine can actually cause changes in your anatomy? It’s true. Sitting hunched over can cause excess stress and can eventually lead to damage of

your spinal discs, muscles, joints and the nerves and blood vessels traveling through your spine. Thankfully in most cases the damage can be reversed by physical therapy. Targeted exercises, stretches, and education can help your body learn to sit and stand correctly! 2. Good Posture Encourages Flexibility and Strength. Prolonged poor posture will cause pain over time as muscles become weaker due tomisuse. In order to compensate for thisweakness, surroundingmuscles and tissues become tight and less flexible. Changes in tissue length cause the body to move inefficiently and incorrectly, eventually causing pain. When sittingwith proper posture, it is easier to raise your arms high overhead compared to when you are sitting with incorrect posture. It might take time in physical therapy to gain the strength and flexibility you need to keep ideal posture and spinal alignment. The work you do and the effort you put in with your physical therapist to achieve your goal will lead to greater overall fitness. The more flexible you get, the stronger you’ll be, and the less likely you are to suffer from nagging back pain every day. 3. Improved Posture with Everyday Activities. Your therapist will teach you how tomaintain good posture during sports and everyday activities such as running or walking. Improving your overall posture will lessen the wear and tear you put on your spine every day. This will also minimize your risk of developing back pain from these activities. We can help you get “back” to pain-free with improved posture. Call us today to schedule an appointment!

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