Are you on your phone or at a computer reading this right now?
Take a minute to evaluate how you’re sitting. Are you sitting up straight with the screen at eye level? Or, is your neck and/or back hunched while you’re reading?
If your answer is the latter, you’re not alone. It might seem innocuous to hunch a bit while you text or browse the internet, but when many spend an average of over 4 hours and 30 minutes on devices every day, those stressors on your neck and back add up.
There’s a name for this: tech neck. While this isn’t an official diagnosis, it is something many chiropractors and health practitioners have been noticing in patients with the rise of smartphone and computer usage.
Let’s take a look at what tech neck is and how you can relieve tech neck pain.
What Is Tech Neck?
Tech neck is defined as a condition where the muscles in your neck and back are repeatedly stressed through poor posture, hunching, and positioning as a result of using smartphones, computers, and tablets.
Hunching over your phone might not seem very damaging, but over time it can lead to serious muscle tension, stiffness, and pain. As you can see in this diagram, hunching over your phone or tablet can be equivalent to 60 pounds of strain on your neck.
That certainly adds up over time to cause painful and uncomfortable symptoms.
Tech Neck Symptoms
At its core, tech neck is a problem of posture and repetitive stress to the same areas of the body. Neck pain in general, not just tech neck pain, is quite common with up to 70 percent of people experiencing neck pain in their lifetime that interferes with their daily activities.
Tech neck symptoms include:
- Pain in the shoulders, neck, and/or upper back
- Hunched and/or rounded shoulder position
- Head positioned more forward than normal
- Stiffness in the neck, back, and/or shoulders
- Reduced mobility
- Headaches and migraines
- Jaw pain
These symptoms can range in severity depending on your technology use along with any other conditions you have.
Remember: tech neck doesn’t exist in a vacuum.
If you’re having other problems with back pain, injuries, or other conditions, this can compound the effects of tech neck and worsen your overall condition.
Tech Neck Pain Treatments & Relief
Thankfully, there are quite a few treatments and relief options for you if you’re experiencing tech neck pain and symptoms. Here are just a few to consider:
Chiropractic Care
A back or neck pain chiropractor is an excellent resource for those suffering from tech neck pain. Tech neck can be exacerbated and can affect spine health, making a chiropractor an excellent choice for treatment.
Chiropractors use a variety of techniques including FAKTR, chiropractic adjustments, and other forms of therapy to strengthen your muscles, improve spine health, and align your body to reduce symptoms and relieve pain.
Your chiropractor will also look at any other conditions or injuries that could be leading to your symptoms alongside your technology use to create an integrated, full-body plan to work on your issues. This will include at-home stretches and exercises that you can use to strengthen your neck, back, and shoulders.
Reduce Tech Time
The simplest option here would be to reduce the time you spend on your phone, computer, tablet, gaming console, or whatever your tech of choice may be. Even reducing your use by an hour a day can have a big impact on your symptoms and your recovery.
Remember: even if you have the best chiropractor, a great diet, and do your exercises, it won’t mean much if you continue with the behavior that caused your problem in the first place.
Long term recovery requires dedication and hard work. Make that commitment to put your phone down, or at least use it without hunching and bending your neck.
If you can’t reduce your time on technology, you can take frequent breaks to give your neck and your muscles a break.
Improve Posture
Speaking of not hunching, bad posture is a huge part of the tech neck problem. As we mentioned earlier, the angle at which you tilt your neck to look at your phone affects how much pressure and strain your neck, back, and shoulders are subjected to.
Sitting up straight with your phone or computer at eye level is your best option for reducing strain and improving your posture while using your technology.
Computer stands and specialty ergonomic chairs make this much easier for those working on computers. For phones, make sure you hold the phone up at eye level.
Stretches & Exercises
Stretches and exercises work to strengthen the muscles and connective tissue in the neck and back. This helps to reduce pain and strengthen your neck over time to be able to handle increased stress.
Reduce Your Pain and Get on the Path to Health
Tech neck pain might be a new problem, but neck pain sure isn’t. Dr. Scott Rosner has helped many of his patients overcome neck pain as a result of injury, tech use, and more.
If you’re ready to get on a journey towards a pain-free life, contact us here to make an appointment.