If you’re anything like me, you’ve got a combo of puzzle pain (neck), knitters knots (shoulders) and Brooklyn-99 binge-watching back from being 100% committed to Staying Home for the good of others.
Or if you’re anything like my husband, you’re probably feeling sore from all the home improvements and yard-care you’ve been doing now that we can’t spend our weekends hanging out with other people.
More time at home inevitably means more time spent doing things differently. Maybe your home workspace set-up isn’t quite as ergonomically-sound as it would be at work (and I just know you’ve spent months trying to get it just right in time for working from home to become mandated). Maybe you’re spending more time on the floor with your kids, because it isn’t worth fighting them to sit at the table and you just need to get on their level.
Pandemic or not – we see this all time. A change to routines, workspace and weekend activities inevitably means a change in the load on your body. And when it happens all at once (ie, you paint the roof or pull up an entire garden bed over a three-day-weekend, something you haven’t done for years), your body doesn’t quite know how to cope with that load and you wake up sore.
Likewise, time spent looking down at a puzzle, or holding up your nearly-completed knitting/crochet project while you work, and/or finishing an entire season of your (new) favourite tv-show or movie franchise at the same time (#multitasking) causes a change to the load in your body. It doesn’t matter if your posture is perfect (but if you’re anything like me, it probably isn’t) and you take regular breaks to stretch/move/visit the fridge – the bottom line is that our body doesn’t adapt quite as quickly as our brain commits to completing these new tasks.
The bad news is that a solution isn’t one-size-fits-all but the good news is that there are plenty of things you can do to help. We suggest taking regular breaks (so swapping from one task to another might actually be better in the long term, even if it disrupts your progress/train of thought in the short term). Something as simple as getting up to fill your glass with water and doing a lap around the house breaks the static posture that’s likely to be causing you some tightness and discomfort. Even better is getting outside for some fresh air – a walk, a ride, throwing the ball with your dog or even just moving outside into the sunshine (appropriately protected of course) and making sure you take some deep breaths while you’re there.
You’ll probably find that your local health care provider is still be open and available for consults – now is a great time for some TLC so book in for an appointment to prioritise your health and wellbeing in a time when it is so easy to neglect. As well as management for back pain, our chiropractors can also give you advice on setting up a home workspace to suit your body and your workload.
You can book appointments with our practitioners online at latrobehealthcentre.com.au or by calling 03 5222 6868. We’d love to help you (and celebrate your new hobby as well)!
