Low Back Pain After Working From Home?
Working from home can be great for a variety of reasons, more flexibility with schedules, less traffic, and more sleeping time! However, a lot of people have started to experience quite a bit of low back pain or discomfort from sitting all day. If that’s you, this blog is for you.
Low back pain can be debilitating and can affect upwards of 80% of Americans, but with our busy lives and schedules, it may feel like a challenge to find time to find a solution or make a doctors visit. The good news is that is where we as Physical Therapists can help you get a jump on your back pain symptoms and avoid back pain becoming a debilitating event within a few sessions.
What are some things that would be beneficial to do for my Back Pain?
Try to break up the amount of time you are sitting. We know this can be difficult with back-back meetings or getting tunnel vision, but even if you can stand up for a few minutes every hour or so, your back with thank you.
Motion is lotion! A ton of research has been conducted on low back pain and the best evidence indicates that we need to move more. When we move more, our body’s lubricating fluid, called synovial fluid (kinda like oil in a car works better after a few minutes of driving), helps joints move better and feel less stiff. Some exercise/movement recommendations will be made below that would be a great starting place.
Stay hydrated. In our spine, we have these cushion-like discs that help absorb impact. These discs are comprised of water and collagen, so when we drink water, it helps our discs stay happy and healthy to absorb impact of standing/sitting/exercising all day.
Here are some exercises to start with:
Cat cow— one of the best “bang for your buck” exercises, great for low back stiffness or neck stiffness
Thoracic wall extensions— great if you have been sitting for a prolonged period of time to reduce hamstring/back tightness
Sciatic nerve glide— Great if you have some hamstring tightness
Open books— Perfect for decreasing mid-back stiffness
Disclaimer: These exercises are for general low back stiffness and will not be a “cure-all.” It would be best to be examined by a physical therapist to determine the appropriate exercise regiment and activity modifications.