Pain and injuries associated with work has become an epidemic across the world. Pain on the job contributes to: increase in stress, decrease in productivity, higher costs to business, lost income, and more sick days and medical leave. It is
Pain and injuries associated with work has become an epidemic across the world. Pain on the job contributes to: increase in stress, decrease in productivity, higher costs to business, lost income, and more sick days and medical leave.
It is no surprise that work-related pain is a growing concern. We have become generally more sedentary and less functional in our movement patterns than ever before. When the human body, which is hard-wired for survival, becomes stationary in one position for extended periods of time, it acquires muscle memory specific to that position. When we move in specific ways over and over again, on one side or in one direction, without working the opposing musculature, we will become out of balance. This will lead us to compensate for lack of equal tension. Lacking this balance or tension from right to left or from front to back leaves the body susceptible and prone to injury.
As I often tell my patients, chronic pain is not often from over use but rather from misuse and/or lack of proper use. We, as humans, are made for motion.
For most workers, it has become very common to remain stationary in one position for hours at a time or to move in similar patterns all day long. The negative structural changes, which are often a result, do not have to stay that way. We have the option to move functionally in multiple planes of motion. One way to best re-achieve structural balance is to move in opposition to the patterns that work (or play) often require of us. This is essentially a therapeutic form of cross training that will help you to be more prepared for the job.
In his book “Pain Free,” author Peter Egoscue writes: “The site of pain is rarely the site of the problem.” This seems contrary to what we are most commonly told or conditioned to believe. For example, wrist pain is often diagnosed as carpel tunnel syndrome or another problem of the wrist. Treatment usually consists of being put in a brace, pain medication and physical therapy for the wrist.
I am not saying that these diagnoses or treatments are wrong, but maybe we can ask some different questions. Why did this occur? How can I ensure it does not come back? What will ensure that when this pain goes away, a new symptom will not show up in a different place? Why has this happened on one side and not the other? What if the cause of the symptom is not always at the site of the symptom, as Pete Egoscue writes?
If the site of pain is different than the cause, I can tell you that the treatment for the wrist pain may not be as successful as we may hope, and surgery may be the next step. However, like many people are experiencing, this is not the last or only choice you have. Working on the bigger picture of postural alignment and functional movement patterns can eliminate pain, restore function, and amaze sufferers of pain all across the country.
Here are four tips for preventing pain and injury from job-related activity:
Tip #1 — Position yourself
Be mindful of how you are working and moving. Set yourself up to be in the best position possible to endure the amount of time you will be performing the task at hand.
Always do your best to use both right and left sides equally. Pull your shoulders down and back to prevent them from rising up toward your ears. Keep your head over your shoulders and not projected in front of you.
Tip #2 — Move about
Get up and move when you can. Remember what Edward Stanley, the Earl of Derby, said in 1873: “Those who think they have not time for bodily exercise will sooner or later have to find time for illness.”
Break up the stagnant patterns by taking a minute or less to move in a different way. Take a minute or two break every 90 minutes. Stretch, stand, walk or exercise on your breaks.
Tip #3 — Warm up
Warm up prior to exercise and play as often as possible. We often think that we need to move faster and workout harder because we are not active on the job. This, called weekend-warrior syndrome, can be compared to taking a rubber band out of the freezer and seeing how fast it can stretch around a watermelon. Warm up and play often to ensure you are keeping your body ready for action.
Tip #4 — Healthy lifestyle
Set yourself up to be less effected by your work and less prone to injury. Living the healthiest lifestyle possible will allow you to be prepared for whatever life may send your way. A professional can assess your bodies ability to move in functional movement patterns, and set up an action plan to restoring balance. Further, nutrition and stress management, will address other possible factors leaving you prone to symptoms.
In closing, I want to share the inspiring words from Pete Egoscue at last year’s Human Event here on Kaua‘i: “We are not fragile! We are of less than 2 percent of species to thrive through the last 2 million years … not fragile, but rather we are made to move.”
• Dustin Dillberg L.Ac. PAS owns Pain Free Kaua‘i in Lihu‘e. His clinic specializes in natural healthcare solutions, including stress-relieving acupuncture, Egoscue Method of postural corrective exercise, nutritional plans and lifestyle medicine. For more information, call Pain Free Kaua‘i at 245-0007.
