Is Too Much Screen Time Ruining Your Posture?

As we go about our daily lives, most of us aren’t constantly monitoring our posture, but the truth is that posture is a significant regulator of our overall health. Our spines have a specific shape, contour, and angle when functioning properly, and if external stressors cause the structure of our spines to deviate from the norm, this negatively affects our delicate spinal cords and nerves protected within. Altered spines can lead to extreme pain, breathing problems, increased threat of injury, loss of mobility, and nerve damage, to name just a few symptoms. 

While on the topic of important issues we tend to ignore, let’s talk about screen time. Most American adults spend an average of 8.5 hours per day looking at a screen. You already know what you look like when you’re on a screen, because you see other people on their screens everywhere you go: in coffeeshops, on the train, at the airport. Basically, we’re all spending way too much time with our backs bent, our shoulders hunched, our heads jutting forward, and our necks tilted downward, and it’s bad news for our upper bodies.       

Screen Time and Posture 

Let’s face it. We’re not going to suddenly stop using our phones, computers, and tablets, so screen time is here to stay. But the reality is that screen time not only alters our posture, but also puts real strain on our bodies, which can, at the very least, lead to neck, back, and shoulder pain, as well as injuries of our arms and wrists. 

Screen time causes bad posture, because when we’re sitting at our computers, or holding our phones or tablets, we tend to let our bodies relax as we focus on the content in front of our eyes. When we do this, our lower backs slump, our shoulders turn inwards and roll forwards, and our heads tilt forward so that we can look down at the screen. This places our spines in an unnatural position that strains our muscles, nerves, and ligaments. Over time this strain not only causes pain, but also makes correct posture difficult to establish and maintain, possibly disfiguring our necks, backs, and shoulders permanently. 

These changes in posture develop slowly over many years, and, if ignored, pain can begin to impact other parts of the body as well, such as our lower backs, hips, and knees. Imbalances in posture also make the body much more vulnerable to injury, even when just participating in everyday activities such as walking or climbing stairs.

Help for Poor Posture

Screen time is an inevitability for most of us, but there are actions we can take to lessen its effects. First off, set up your workspace well. Make sure you have a chair with good back support, and make sure that your computer sits at the right height and is a proper distance from your body. 

You should also take frequent breaks. Stretching and yoga are great, but light weight lifting and movement that gets you some cardio exercise, (such as walking up and down the stairs a few times), is even better. While it takes a little discipline, try setting a timer that goes off five minutes before the end of each hour, and devote those last five minutes to getting some exercise.  

Regular massages are also a great way to correct the effects that long term screen use has on posture. Here are a few ways massages combat the impacts of too much screen time.  

Relax Tense Muscles

Massages relax tense and stressed out muscles. During a massage, knots in your musculature are stroked and kneaded until they are no longer tense. When the muscles are not forced into a contracted state, they no longer pull on your spine. This should allow you to comfortably straighten your back, neck, and shoulders into a healthy posture. Deep tissue massages are your best bet for really loosening up those tight, sore, badly contracted muscles.

Lengthen Shortened Muscles

Bad posture actually shortens your neck and upper back muscles, the ones that hold your scapula and rotator cuffs in place. As your muscles grow shorter and tighter, they also grow weaker, particularly at the points where they should be supporting your spine. A massage therapist will stretch and lengthen tight, short muscles, and, as these muscles become supple once more, it will be easier to strengthen them through exercises like yoga and light strength training.

Facilitate Free and Correct Movement

Once your muscles are warm, loose, and relatively free of tension, you’ll be able to move more freely and establish and maintain correct posture. Allowing your body to reinforce natural movements, and building musculature that facilitates correct posture in the long term, are some of the most beneficial aspects of massage therapy. Moving freely and maintaining correct posture will also help deal with any residual pain that poor posture might be causing. This will also take pressure off joints and ligaments that may have been compensating for posture-related pain.  

Reduce Pain

Speaking of pain, the slouching and hunching that comes with extended screen time can cause pain in your lower back, neck, and shoulders. Massages not only loosen muscles and relieve tension, they also help push toxins out of your muscles, where they are carried away in the bloodstream. With fewer toxins, like lactic acid, your muscles will begin to feel much healthier and you will likely notice less pain.

Reduce Risk Of Arthritis 

Research has shown that poor posture is one of the causes of Osteoarthritis, because prolonged posture problems can cause the cartilage between bones and joints to wear thin. This eventually causes bones to rub together, which is quite painful. Regular massages stimulate joints to produce synovial fluid and also increase blood flow, both of which reduce your risk of developing arthritis. Since regular massages also improve your posture over time, the long term likelihood of developing arthritis is lessened.   

In a perfect world, you’d spend less time on your screen and more time outside. But work, school, and other demands of life require more screen time than is healthy, and that’s just the world we live in. 

If you’ve been feeling a little slouchy lately, or are experiencing pain in your back, neck, or shoulders, book your appointment with Jeromeo today. We provide massages in a variety of modalities, and whether you’re an athlete, dealing with an injury, suffering chronic pain, or just want a relaxing and uplifting experience, we cater our results-oriented massages to the specific needs of our clients. 

We’re experts on reversing the effects of too much screen time, and we can help you build both core strength and the long, lean back, neck, and shoulder muscles you need to keep your body moving freely and your spine healthy. We have a number of packages available, and our talented and caring massage therapists love working with our clients to find the massage practices and packages that suit every need and budget.

Shoulders back, head up, spine straight! You got this, right? 

For a little help, call us today!