Lighten up before you sling that heavy bag/purse/backpack over your shoulder. Keep it simple, pare down that bulky wallet or heavy purse. Moms and dads, avoid toting your babes and toddlers for long stents on just one hip or side. These habits often lead to chronic back, neck and shoulder pain. Your kids can develop pain too. Lugging heavy backpacks (equal to or in excess of their body weight) banging (and toting) drums and tubas. Musicians experience mysterious sore, achy muscles and back, necks and shoulders from sleppin’ gear, setting up and breaking down, sitting in one position or marching. (View Fashion Hall Pain slideshow at end of this article).
Over-Burdened? Heavy Bags & Other Accessories
Schlepping heavy purses, backpacks, and computer bags can a the source of neck, back and shoulder pain. When carried on one shoulder, the extra weight causes you to lean to one side, and the other side to contract, stressing muscles (especially in shoulders), resulting in chronic pain. Accessories like bangles, bracelets and/or large rings can put excessive pressure on the hands, fingers and joints.
Shoes: Going too Low or too High?
Flimsy footwear, strappy sandals, cushy flip flops and shoes with no backs affect more than just your feet. High heels tilt the pelvis forward, destabilizing the ankle joint, over-arching the back, placing excessive pressure on the balls of your feet. For example, 3” heels increase the pressure on the balls of the feet by up to 76%. Flip-flops, though iconic offer neither support nor protection for feet, and can contribute the development of plantar fasciitis.
Up-Dos Got you Down?
Up-dos are great for special occasions, but for everyday wear, tight hairstyles pull the head forward and tighten the skin around the skull, causing tension headaches. Routinely clasping hair in tight bands or braids can not only headaches but also hair loss.
What Are You Carrying in YOUR Wallet?
Guys notoriously stuff wallets into their back pockets. Sitting on bulky wallets torques the pelvis, forces one side to angle too high. This misalignment causes everything else to shift, but not in a good way. When the hips rotate, one side is more contracted than other, which tilts one shoulder and leads to chronic pain. Yikes. Yes, we do accept cards and Apple-Pay.
Got the “Too-Too Tights”?
Tight clothes can compress organs and impede efficient digestion. Tight clothing can restricts movement and also cause muscle strain. If your rib cage is restricted, shallow breathing can result. And remember, spandex can be friend or foe, depending on your body type, the fit and the occasion. Some of us can wear yoga pants in public, some of us should only wear them only in yoga class.
Since massage can work well to soothe aches, relief pain and release muscle tension and stress.. Let your therapist know about any any pain and stiffness you are experiencing. Together, the two of you may be able to determine the source of some of your chronic pain and help to relieve it.
[slideshow_deploy id=’400′]