Pain in the neck?

Computers, though a usefuful thing to work with, can cause health problems. Noted fitness expert PEG JORDAN explains how to avoid these and keep fit..

COMPUTERS are a fact of modern life. Many of us spend hours each day at our desktops or laptops, sitting in a fixed position, peering at our computer's display, and typing. An unwelcome consequence of these repetitive, continuous activities is lingering, nagging pain that is slow to heal, and interferes with necessary, important work. Computer-related pain may mean pain in the neck and shoulder, radiating arm pain, and/or wrist pain.

The locations and types of pain are sufficiently characteristic to be termed "repetitive stress syndrome". Another term might be "overuse syndrome", a term used in sports, referring to common conditions such as shin splints and tennis elbow. The cause of reptitive stress syndrome is self-evident: doing too much of the same thing for too long a period. But there is a catch: we need and want to work, and the hours fly by, unnoticed, as we sit in one awkward position for too long.

What can we do to prevent these types of problems? David Lemberg, a chiropractic orthopaedist explains: "The solution is two-fold. One is to pay attention, close attention, to the ergonomics of your computer work. The second is related to physical fitness." Ergonomics is the science of examining people and their working environments as it affects efficiency, safety and ease of action. Your workplace should be designed so that you can do a lot of work and still be functioning well. These key points will help you optimise your work space.

Monitor: The monitor should be positioned so that your neck flexes slightly and your angle of gaze is directed downward about 10x. Looking up uses the neck and upper back muscles, leading to muscle tightness and fatigue. Looking down at a slight angle alleviates this unnecessary tension. Rotating your head to look at the monitor is a frequent cause of neck, upper back and arm pain.

Chair: The chair seat height and the keyboard should be aligned so that when your hands are on the keyboard, your elbows are parallel to the floor. In other words, in an ergonomically efficient typing position, your elbows are neither above nor below the keyboard. They are on the same plane.

Mouse Pad: Similarly, the mouse should be close to the keyboard, so that good elbow alignment is maintained. You should not have to reach for the mouse. Take it from me. I learned this the hard way. I bought a new computer with a wider keyboard, and suddenly my desk was not wide enough to put the keyboard and the mouse on the same sliding surface. So I thought I could get away with the mouse being about four inches higher and further away on the desk. Within one short week of writing, I suddenly could not lift my arm straight over my head without grimacing and experiencing a wrenching pain in the shoulder.

I had given myself a repetitive stress injury (RSI), namely tendonitis, an inflammation of the tendons in the shoulder area. The swelling of the inflamed tissues also created a narrowing of the passageway in which certain nerves had to travel. Pressure on those nerves created a numbness and tingling down to my fingers. But here is the hardest thing to cope with RSI. Even after you remedy the environment, you do not necessarily get instant relief. These injuries can take up to 8-12 weeks from which to recover.

Some other tips for you to avoid workplace stress injuries include:

Move frequently: Get up every hour for at least 5-10 minutes and enjoy a quick break. If you can, get a change of scenery and some fresh air. This will reinvigorate your mind as well as your physical body.

Get fit: Start a physical fitness plan. If you are fit, you are less likely to injure yourself in general, and you will recover quickly if injury or trauma happens. Regular aerobic exercise plus strengthening and conditioning exercises will tone your muscles, tendons, ligaments and even lubricate your joints, helping you match the challenge of rigorous work and adapt to stress. You will be able to withstand better the repetitive stresses such as typing on the keyboard if you put your hands and forearms through a quick shaking of the fingers, stretching them back from the base of the palm, and occasionally squeezing a soft rubber ball or tennis ball.

Maintain good posture: Whether you are at the computer or away from work, try to create a mental image of how you look when your posture is good, and then get in that position whenever you remember. For most people, shoulders tend to ride upward during the course of a stressful day. Where are yours right now? Can you drop them a little. I bet you can. Keeping them slightly elevated wastes a lot of energy, creates fatigue and produces trigger points that cause pain.

Shoulder, elbow, and wrist joints participate in this cycle of tension, and soon the fatigue and aches radiate down the entire arm. Gently remind yourself to let go of these tight neck and upper back muscles, allowing your shoulders to assume a neutral position, resting on your upper rib cage.

If you are currently experiencing repetitive-stress types of pain or injuries, you may want to check out a chiropractic treatment for yourself. In studies comparing various types of medical modalities to treat these injuries, modern chiropractic care demonstrated the most substantial benefit, provided there are no other underlying medical conditions responsible for the pain. A chiropractic manipulation of the upper back may help restore normal joint function and relieve pain.

However, leaving your work station and computer in angles that are all wrong for your body, and expecting a chiropractic physician or massage therapist to "fix" the damage is just a waste of time. Go to the source of the problem first. Correct your work station, practise good ergonomics and take frequent, short breaks. If your boss objects, just tell him or her your five-minute ergonomic break is preventive insurance against five days or lost work.

E-mail the writer at: peg-hindu@hotmail.com

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