Sit Comfortably Without Back Pain  

It shouldn’t have to hurt just to drive or take the train to work, watch your favorite television show, or enjoy a good book in your easy chair.  

No doubt back pain can put a damper on your daily activities. But if you work as a secretary, computer programmer, taxi driver, or in one of the hundreds of other occupations which require you to sit for hours on end, severe lower back pain can even threaten to end your career. 

Whether you just feel an occasional twinge when sitting for long periods, or can barely sit down without an explosion of pain, we’ll show you how to eliminate the pain and give you some practical tips to help you sit comfortably once again. 

First eliminate the cause of your back pain 

Back pain is a symptom letting you know that something is wrong. Sure, you can mask the symptom by popping some pain pills whenever your back acts up. But pain medicine won’t solve the problem! 

Again, your back pain is simply a clue to finding the problem. Let’s say you already have chronic lower back pain. For sake of example, let’s assume you go to your healthcare provider and find the source of your back pain is a pinched nerve due to a herniated disc. 

“Aha!” you may think – fix the herniated disc and no more pain. But hold on a minute. You may have eliminated the source of pain – but not the cause. What’s the difference? Glad you asked! 

The source of back pain isn’t the cause of back pain 

There’s a subtle but important difference between finding the source and the cause of your back pain. In this case the source was a pinched nerve caused by a herniated disc. This is the kind of condition that most healthcare providers will look for and treat. But solving the condition doesn’t solve the root problem. 

Getting to the root problem requires understanding why your spinal disc herniated in the first place. After all, something  had to cause your herniated disc in the first place! 

In the vast majority of cases, conditions that cause back pain are caused by postural dysfunctions. This simply means that the bones of the pelvis, spine, head, neck, and/or shoulders are in an abnormal position. Abnormal curvature of the spine lies at the root of nearly all back pain. 

Now the key to correcting these postural dysfunctions is to realize that your bones only go where your muscles put them. The reason your bones are not properly aligned is because of something called muscle imbalances.  

The root cause of nearly all back pain 

Muscle imbalances occur when one set of muscles becomes overdeveloped and tight while opposing muscles become weak and stretched out of their normal position. By treating the real root cause of your back pain – muscle imbalances – you not only eliminate back pain but keep it from coming right back! 

The most effective way to eliminate muscle imbalances is through Muscle Balance Therapy. This innovative approach helps you permanently stop back pain through a careful assessment of your muscles followed by specific exercises to strengthen the weak muscles and stretch the tight muscles to restore proper muscle balance. 

So let’s talk about how sitting causes muscle imbalances. Whenever you are in the seated position, your hip flexor muscles are tightened and your glutes, or butt muscles, grow weak from being in a relaxed state. Over time this leads to muscle imbalances that affect the position of your pelvis and spine – which will eventually lead to conditions which cause pain while you sit! 

Tips for sitting comfortably 

You can sit longer without pain just by sitting correctly. Here are some ways you can maintain good posture while sitting and minimize stress and the formation of muscle imbalances: 

·         Get up frequently! Use a timer if necessary to remind yourself to stand up and stretch to give your hip flexors that needed break at least every hour – more often if possible. 

·         Adjust your chair height and workstation to sit close to your work, elbows rested on the arms of your chair or desk, shoulders relaxed. Computer users should position the monitor about 18-24 inches from their face with the eyes roughly in line with the top of the screen. 

·         Use a back support such as a lumbar roll or even a rolled up towel placed in the hollow of your back. When driving, sit closer to the wheel to support the hollow of your back. 

·         Align your back against the back of your chair. Avoid slouching or leaning forward while sitting. 

·         Try alternates to sitting on a chair, such as kneeling on a pad or sitting on a therapy ball. 

·         Use a BackJoy orthotic device to relieve pressure and strain from sitting and prevent pain caused by glutes flattened under your seated weight.