Neck Pain While Sitting At Desk – The world seems to be changing rapidly and we are all adapting to the changes that come with facing a global crisis. You may find yourself working from home during the stay-at-home order, which helps ease the curve and prevent the spread of the new coronavirus, COVID-19. You may be new to working from home, so we want you to have the information you need to set yourself up for success and avoid neck and back pain. We hope you find these 3 tips helpful, compiled by our amazing expert Rachel Harren, who is graduating from the University of the Pacific in May with a doctorate in physical therapy!
Do you work on a laptop? Do you spend most of the day writing on the couch? Assess your table setting and check out our tips for creating the perfect layout. We’ll start from the bottom!
Neck Pain While Sitting At Desk

Some of us have learned to work from home. Others are adjusting to working remotely as our community responds to COVID-19. We understand that not everyone has a formal desk in their home. Whether or not you’re used to working from home, we recommend changing where you spend time at home throughout the day whenever possible. Consider working at the dining room table, office desk, or coffee table for a few hours, then switch to the dining room table to switch to a standing desk.
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When the work day is over and you’re curled up in bed on your tablet or phone scrolling through the day’s stories, keep these same tips in mind. If you need to spend more than 20 minutes on the Internet, use systems like Apple TV or Chromecast instead of tapping on your phone. If you want to use your small device for entertainment, you can check out and order online the original pads, tablets, and phones.
Our bodies moved! Many cells in our body are nourished solely for hydration, healing, and injury prevention through fluid circulation and dynamic movement processes that keep ligaments, discs, and tendons flexible and hydrated. So, try to change your position for at least 30 seconds every 30 minutes.
Many of us spend most of the day sitting and fall into unhealthy habits when it comes to our appearance. Some of these habits may include:
If you’re showing any of these cravings, you can set a 30-minute timer. When the timer goes off, you can:
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Are you more of a visual learner? Here is a 3 minute video that provides similar information:
As always, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact your local MTI Physical Therapy Clinic. We are an essential service according to the Department of Health and we follow all guidelines to keep everyone safe. Therefore, we are still open for clinic visits if required or e-visits if you are an existing patient. We are here to support you during these difficult and uncertain times.
Rachel Harren is a physical therapy intern working with Rebecca Catlin, PT, DMT, OCS, FAAOMPT at MTI Physical Therapy’s First Hill Clinic. He now plans to graduate from the University of the Pacific School of Physical Therapy with a degree in physical therapy. She is president of her class and treasurer of the Diversity and Social Justice Society. You see it everywhere – at home and in the office, walking down the street or standing in line: “technical neck”, or stress. Your muscles when using phones, tablets and computers. It’s a problem that gets worse as people spend more time on their devices. eMarketer estimates that Americans will spend more than eight hours per day on a digital device by 2022, 4 1/2 of which will be spent on non-voice activities.

As a result? Dr. said that he had headache, neck pain, neck pain, and itchy shoulder joints. K. Daniel Rio is a world-renowned cervical spine surgeon and coordinator of Auch Spine at New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical. the middle
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Here, Dr. Rio, who is also a professor of orthopedic surgery at Weill Cornell Medicine and Columbia University’s Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, analyzes the causes and symptoms of technology neck and offers ways to adapt it to your body properly and safely. Digital devices.
: When you work at the computer or look at your phone, the muscles in the back of your neck must contract to lift your head. The more you look down, the harder it is for your muscles to work to lift your head. Staring at smartphones, computers or tablets all day can make these muscles very tired and sore. This is what we call technical neck.
What are the symptoms of technical neck? Headaches, neck stiffness, neck stiffness, and pain between the shoulder blades are common complaints. Some people say that it is difficult to look up after looking down for a long time. When looking down at 45 degrees, the neck muscles do the work of lifting about 50 pounds of potatoes. This puts a lot of stress on the joints and discs in your neck, causing them to wear and tear. In severe cases, pinched nerves in your neck may cause numbness, tingling, or weakness.
Most people are told to sit up straight while working at the computer. Unfortunately, this is bad advice. When you sit with your back straight, the muscles in the back of your neck should contract to lift your head without putting too much pressure on your back plate. Therefore, standing upright for long hours can harm your spine and neck.
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The best way to sit is to recline the chair 25-30 degrees and support the back to prevent reclining. In this position, the back plates and neck are subjected to much lower forces than in the upright position, and the muscles behind the neck do not have to contract to lift your head.
When you lean back, some of your body weight rests on the seat instead of falling directly off your spine. Therefore, the spine is less stressed, and as a result you feel less pain. Most people do this wisely by using a chair while resting, as sitting upright does not injure the neck and back.
Get up early and move often. If you have a sedentary job, get up and walk around every 15-30 minutes, even if it’s just one minute. It improves blood circulation and relaxes the neck. It is good not only for the neck but also for the rest of the body. Studies have shown that excessive sitting is dangerous for the heart and shortens life.

Second, find a chair with good back support and lean back as much as possible while working. This will reduce the stress on the neck muscles and prevent them from getting tense. You can tell if you slouch by doing the following: First, if you sleep in that position, your neck should fall back. Alternatively, if you bend forward and place your hands on the back of your neck, you will notice the neck muscles contracting and tightening. As you lean back, they relax and soften.
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“When you look at 45 degrees, your neck muscles are doing the work of lifting a 50-pound potato. – Dr. K. Daniel Rio
Are there other lifestyle changes that might help? If neck pain is really bothering you, I recommend that you do regular aerobic exercises. This can be done by running, swimming, brisk walking, or using the elliptical or stationary bike repeatedly. When you do aerobic exercise, it sends oxygenated blood to tired muscles and removes chemicals that cause inflammation and pain.
If you do this for 20-30 minutes three or four times a week, your heart rate and breathing rate will increase and you will sweat more, which will improve the health of your neck and back. It also helps in reducing the tension in the back of the neck.
First, the muscles must be tense to lift your head. But the muscles tighten and put more pressure on the discs. This causes the discs to wear out quickly and look like discs
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