Chiropractic Care Champlin MN
Your Health and Your Posture In The Office
Your posture directly affects your health, and improved posture can lead to better well-being.
Chiropractors believe that the relationship between your skeleton, muscles, nervous and bodily systems is vital for good health. If your spine is misaligned or joints misplaced then this will upset your body’s balance and therefore any aspect of your health could suffer.
If your posture is poor this will put unnecessary stress on your muscles, ligaments and tendons which could be the cause of your stiff neck. Until these are corrected most conventional treatments for your neck will only have a temporary effect.
Our backs were not designed to spend long periods of time sitting at desks – a common feature of many work environments. Spending six to eight hours a day in front of a computer can lead to shoulder, arm, hand and neck problems, as well as issues with balance and coordination. One study has found that over 45% of office workers experience neck pain. Back problems are big contributors to lost productivity in the workplace.
Low back pain is one of the most common causes of disability among people of working age, and its impact on industry is enormous. It’s been reported that after headaches and colds, back pain is the third most common reason for taking time off work. Specifically, the work-related physical activities that are believed to be related to the onset of low back symptoms include lifting heavy weights, bending and twisting, and, of course, working in the same position for extended periods.
Common Posture Problems
- Forward Head Posture
- Round Shoulders
- Rotated Hips
The good news is that postural issues can be corrected, and even in some instances reversed.
Chiropractic & Posture
Chiropractors are experts at analyzing posture and spinal problems. Chiropractic is the science of locating problems in the spine, the art of reducing their impact to the nervous system, and a philosophy of natural health care based on your inborn potential to be healthy.
A Chiropractor searches for the problems that are at the root of poor posture, analyzing spinal curvatures, movement and alignment. Some of the postural analysis a Chiropractor performs include assessing a patient for:
- changes in the stance (e.g. the outward turning of one or both feet)
- alignment of the knees
- leveling of the hips or pelvis
- height differences across the shoulders
- tilting of the head and neck
- forward tilting of the pelvis
- forward head translation
- increase in the spinal curvatures
- changes to gait (walking)
The Spine and the Nervous System
Common interferences to the nervous system occur between some of the 24 moving bones of the spinal column. A loss of normal motion or position of these bones can irritate or impair the function of the nervous system.
This can disrupt the transmission of controlling nerve impulses. With improved spinal function people often report improved organ and system function. Your Chiropractor can help remove any interference that may be impairing normal health.
When under proper control of your nervous system, all the cells, tissue, and organs of your body are designed to resist disease and ill health. The Chiropractic approach to better health is to locate and help reduce interferences to your natural state of being healthy.
What to Expect
Your initial consultation will involve reviewing your medical history, neurological tests such as checking your reflexes, a spinal examination, plus a thorough assessment of your posture. This will be done in both standing, sitting and lying down positions to see exactly where you require spinal adjustment.
You may also be x-rayed or be sent for an MRI scan to rule out more serious conditions such as tumors or a fracture that has been missed. Advice on nutrition and lifestyle may also be given.
Following a thorough examination a chiropractor will use manipulation to adjust the misalignments in your spine. These involve short thrusting actions to put the misplaced vertebrae back to where they should be. You may feel some discomfort afterwards but this will only be temporary and be no worse than a bruised feeling. You will probably require a number of treatments to consolidate the adjustments. Your chiropractor will probably suggest you return at regular intervals to ensure the initial condition has not returned.
For information about posture problems, as well as some tips to address them, speak to your Minnesota Chiropractor to help you assess your postural health and find out how to improve your posture and your well-being.
