Avoid back pain while working from home!

In view of the coronavirus crisis, most companies have given its employees an opportunity to work from home. In this article, the author talks about how working for long hours by occupying one position at home can lead to severe back pain. The article further talks about certain steps which can be taken to maintain a proper posture and flexibility.

Hyderabad(Telangana): Work from home means we tend to opt for the most comfortable spot at home and end up sitting in an awkward position for long durations and later on complain about back aches. Its adverse situation can lead to mechanical pain, which mainly occurs if we don’t maintain a proper posture, poor seating or due to incorrect bending or lifting movements. Dr. Uday Krishna Myneni, MS MCh (Orth), Senior Orthopaedic Consultant, KIMS, Hyderabad says, “The core area where such a pain can be experienced is the lower back region, where the spine is a little bit flexible. So, if we don’t maintain the proper posture while we sit, stand, sleep or bend forward, the flexibility is hampered. Thus, the pain can arise from these four main areas, that are- disc, vertebra, muscles and spinal joints”.

Sitting for long hours in front of your computers or laptops can lead to mechanical pains, “The pain commonly occurs in two regions- upper back and lower back. 95% of the people with such problems can be treated in a non-surgical way.”, says Dr. Uday, for which he recommends the following measures that can be followed.

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Rest Properly

Rest your back on a surface that is neither too hard, nor too soft. Sleeping on the floor can aggravate the pain and so, he advises resting on a properly cushioned bed, along with maintaining a proper posture.

Move Your Body

Sitting for long hours in the same position can cause stiffness and so, taking break becomes important. After every 1 hour, take a 10 minutes break and do the following:

Walk around your home

Stretch your spine

Stretch your back

Do some shoulder movements

Move your neck- sideways, up and down, and rotate in both the directions

The exercises should be done in a slow and gentle manner. This will help relax the muscles, enhance circulation and muscular spasms will be relieved.

Use The Packs

Even after resting and exercising a little if the pain still continues then put some ice pack or heat pack, whichever is available at home, on the affected area. In case of their unavailability, a hot water bag can be used. You can also dip a towel in hot water, squeeze the water out and place it on the affected area. This can be done thrice a day for 10 minutes.

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Medication

If the pain still persists, even after practising all the aforementioned measures, a doctor can be consulted over the phone call (as in the case of lockdown) or in person and an anti-inflammatory medicine may be advised.

Hence, it becomes important to treat your acute pain. Being physically active is important, especially now when we work from home during the lockdown. Prolonged sitting in the same position with our laptops or desktops can lead to complications and thus, taking breaks often becomes necessary, accompanied with some stretching exercises, which do not require any gym equipment.