Category: Slouching

how can my wrist pain come from my neck? (blog)

10/7/2014

New Patients at Geelong Spine Centre are often surprised that their wrist pain is actually coming from their neck.

(How can that be?)

Often times, a pinched nerve in the neck causes pain in the wrist or hand. Auto accidents, poor posture, neck strain and poor ergonomics stress the neck and its nerves, causing pain into the wrist and hands.

There are even documented cases of patients who have had carpal tunnel surgery with no benefit since the real problem was coming from their neck and the nerves that originate from there. This is also why poor posture sometimes manifests in electric shock sensations in the arms, hands, legs and feet.

At Geelong Spine Centre, we have had many patients find relief for their wrist, arm, and hand pain from our treatments for their neck and spine.

Contact Geelong Spine Centre to see if your wrist, hand, leg or foot pain can be helped by our rehab programs. No drugs or surgery.

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"why is your head so far forward?" (blog)

30/6/2014

Forward Head Posture (10cm) causing long term pain

"Why is it so far in front of your shoulders?"

Have you ever been asked this by a family member? Have you ever seen a photo of yourself from the side and wonder, "why is my head so far forward?"

Have you ever seen someone on the computer and noticed their head is about 10cm in front of their shoulders?

It's called "Forward Head Posture" for a reason. Looking at your posture from the side, your ear should be right above your shoulder, not 5 or 10 cm in front of it.

Forward Head Posture (FHP) causes many problems including headaches, TMJ pain (jaw pain), neck pain, disc herniations, muscle strain, arthritis, and pinched nerves (Mayo Clinic, volume 18 #3, 2000). FHP also puts stress and strain on the joints and discs of the neck and spine.

Your head weighs roughly as much as a bowling ball, 4 or 5 kilos, and the proper spinal curve in your neck helps hold this weight upright under gravity all day long. The muscles of your neck assist this process, fighting gravity as well.

But if you have lost the curve of your neck, or if you hold your head forward (FHP), the muscles have to work much, much harder, just to keep your head upright. And after 16 hours a day, this becomes exhausting for the muscles and is a tremendous waste of energy.

Using the bowling ball analogy for your head, consider this:

    If you had to hold a bowling ball with your hands all day, every day, would it be easier to hold the     ball:

        1) close to your chest, or
        2) at arm's length, with elbows straightened?

(Try this experiment at home with a container of milk in your kitchen. Can you hold it for 1 minute more easily against you, or at arm's length?)

It is much, much easier to hold it close to your body, and your sore neck muscles know this from holding your head (bowling ball) forward all day long.

Research shows that for every 3cm of Forward Head Posture, it is as if your head weighs 5 kilos more, as your neck muscles strain to hold it in place.

Laptops, mobile phones, and even everyday jobs like dishes and laundry cause Forward Head Posture, and anyone with children also knows that most activities with kids causes FHP as well.

Forward Head Posture (FHP) is one of the most prevalent, detrimental postures that we treat and correct at Geelong Spine Centre. Our CBP Spinal Rehab Program specifically targets Forward Head Posture to achieve proper spinal alignment, and to relieve pain and symptoms associated with FHP. Many of our patients have careers with poor ergonomics such as computer programmers, graphic designers, dental hygienists, students, and many others.

Contact Geelong Spine Centre at 5229 9888 to see if Forward Head Posture is causing your pain and symptoms. We have your pain relief!

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My back pain is making me miserable! (blog)

27/6/2014

Find your pain relief at Geelong Spine Centre:

"My crook back! "
80% of Australians will have back pain in their life, and sometimes this pain is so severe they have to miss work for an extended period of time.

Back pain is extremely common. Only the common cold causes more missed days from work.

Why is back pain so common?
Almost anything can cause back pain: Accidents, injuries, poor posture, loss of spinal curves, and activities as harmless as gardening can cause back pain under the right conditions.

The loss of healthy spinal curves also contributes to pain, dysfunction, and accelerated degeneration.

We often see patients who have neglected their health for years, and think they are stricken with back pain "all of a sudden", but the problems were there for years.

For example:
A patient will have bad habits for years while lifting heavy things, twisting and slouching at their job, texting with forward head posture, and have other poor postural habits, and then think "their back goes out all of a sudden" while tying their shoes one day.

Well, it isn't tying shoes that injured their back, but the years of poor spinal habits that took their toll over the years!

The shoe-tying was the "straw that broke the camel's back", and often leaves the patient confused, since spinal weakening and degeneration was going on for years unnoticed.

At Geelong Spine Centre, we have had great success with improving different types of back pain. Scoliosis, poor posture, loss of spinal curves, sports injuries, computer-slouching and many other causes of back pain can be corrected without drugs or surgery in many cases.

Patient education and ergonomics are also addressed during treatments at Geelong Spine Centre, as the saying goes, "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure (link)".

When X Rays are needed to see spinal curve loss, arthritis, degeneration and other problems that can complicate back pain, our office refers patients to Lake Imaging, and other imaging centres in Geelong and the Surf Coast.

Contact us at 5229 9888 to see if your back pain can be helped by our rehab program without the use of drugs or surgery. We have your pain relief!

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Newborn baby? enjoy your parenthood more! (blog)

24/6/2014

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Parents, don't let pain and fatigue get in your way!

Newborns deserve every ounce of our love, affection, care and attention...there is no doubt about that! A beautiful new baby is just about the most exciting thing in this world.

So it is no wonder that parents sometimes forget to take care of themselves during this exciting time. As the weeks and months continue, fatigue and sleep deprivation really start to take their toll, and back pain, neck pain, and headaches often follow right behind.

One reason is that fatigue affects our posture, causing forward head posture and rounded shoulders, which cause pain and headaches over time. The muscles around the spine and neck have to work overtime just to try to hold everything upright in these tired, stressed positions.

Poor posture and forward head posture actually waste your energy, since your muscles have to work harder to keep you upright in these stooped positions under the force of gravity all day long. Holding our children in our arms adds even more to this workload.

It is safe to say that parents of newborns (and grown children as well) often have a shortage of energy, so wasting this energy on poor posture is the last thing that a new parent needs.

At Geelong Spine Centre, we have a complete rehab program to improve bad posture and forward head posture, which can cause wasted energy and fatigue, causing pain over time.

Contact us at 5229 9888 to see if we can help you during this exciting time in your life, and we hope you get some sleep tonight!

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your mum was right: sit up straight! (blog)

10/6/2014

Poor posture puts excessive strains on the neck & spine

Ergonomics?
Your mum knew more about health than you realised as she told you, "don't slouch!". Poor posture is linked to many problems and symptoms, both short term and long term.

"Posture is a window to the spine" is an old saying that speaks volumes. If your posture is crooked, then your spine will be as well.

A research journal studying how posture relates to overall health found:

“Posture has been shown to affect and moderate every physiologic function from breathing to hormonal production. Spinal pain, headache, mood, blood pressure, pulse, and lung capacity are the functions most easily influenced by posture" - AJPM 1994:4;36-39

This article shows how much posture is related to health, pain, and symptoms. At Geelong Spine Centre, proper clinical posture is essential to overall spinal health and relieving pain and symptoms. We use CBP Systems to improve poor posture, poor spinal curves, and to treat conditions such as whiplash injuries and scoliosis.

Poor posture needs to be addressed and corrected in order to have proper standing, sitting, walking, exercising, and even sleeping postures. At Geelong Spine Centre, we have the rehab techniques necessary to improve poor posture in all of these positions, so that your spine is in an optimal position.

We have patients who travel long distances for our services, and we have been able to help patients who have found little relief in their past. We credit much of this to our posture correction techniques and CBP spinal correction services.

Contact Geelong Spine Centre at 5229 9888 to see if your poor posture is related to your health problems, pain, and symptoms.

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your pain is not a case of "bad luck" - (blog)

6/6/2014

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Do you feel lucky?

Accidents do happen.
Injuries from falls, car accidents, sports, and unexpected traumas cannot be prevented in most cases.

But the damage we do to ourselves is the direct result of bad habits and laziness almost every time.

A simple Google search would tell most people how to lift heavy items properly, how to not slouch at the computer, or how to stretch properly (links). And even though these search results are often not 100% accurate, we usually DON'T hear patients saying they searched all they could and unfortunately got bad information.

What we usually hear at Geelong Spine Centre is:
"Doc, I just couldn't be bothered."

The old saying is that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. An accumulation of bad habits, bad ergonomics, poor spinal health, and bad diet almost always ends in disaster in the form of pain, symptoms, disease, and suffering.

Fortunately, the patients who come to us at the first sign of problems, or before serious problems arise, are usually in-and-out with a quick treatment.

But when patients wait for years or sometimes decades, they usually say the same thing when faced with their advanced degeneration, arthritis/disc disease, or chronic pain:

"If I only had taken this seriously years ago..."

Some have waited so long that they unfortunately need surgery and serious, multiple interventions.

Contact Geelong Spine Centre for your pain and symptoms to see if our treatments can help you without the use of medications or surgery. We have your pain relief!

See our Google+ Profile Page

0 Comments

how can my wrist pain come from my neck? (blog)

"why is your head so far forward?" (blog)

My back pain is making me miserable! (blog)

Newborn baby? enjoy your parenthood more! (blog)

your mum was right: sit up straight! (blog)

your pain is not a case of "bad luck" - (blog)

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