On Friday, we had a wellness speaker from the Ravenswood Chiropractic and Wellness Center. He was enthralling. He said in the #4 spot for leading causes of death in the U.S.A. behind heart disease, cancer and diabetes was physician related. In other words, people’s propensity to get the quick fix (cut it off, drug me out, lift it up) was escalating as a contributing factor to their demise. I couldn’t find any research to substantiate his claim but of course medical entities aren’t going to own that diddie. And I knew he was selling his services. Yet, I bought in to what he was saying. I believe in a holistic approach. I try to listen to the body-mind-spirit connection and heal from the inside-out.
One of the startling things he said was that he sees clients all day with head and shoulder issues. (ongoing battle for me!) And it’s because we’re always looking down at computer, tablet, and phone screens. For long periods of time, our heads are not evenly balanced nicely on our neck. When we are constantly looking down, our heavy heads tip forward. The strain affects our neck, shoulders and back. One of his takeaway solutions was ensuring your computer screen is at eye level and your keyboard is close to your body. This set-up ensures proper posture.
Following his workshop, I rigged my monitor to be higher with a stack of books. Actually, our entire office did it. It was amazing this simple switch forced my head into its natural position, cradled on my neck. I could feel my shoulder physically drop into place. They no longer had to work hard to keep my head from snapping off.
I’m trying to determine how to fix my home office. I use a laptop. I use it a lot. I love the ease of a Mac Air. It’s light and mobile. Yet, as I type now, I feel my head rolled off my neck perch. My shoulders straining to support it in this unnatural state. There is no way to get a laptop to eye level and have the keyboard close to the body. I might have to get a PC and use the laptop for travel only. The discovery is eye opening. Once I realize the culprit to my body ache, I need to do everything I can to heal and be well.
Healing is a matter of time, but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity.