Prevent Muscle Pain, Stress and Injury From Computer Work - 5 Steps You Can Use Immediately
Working on a computer has serious physical consequences.
Repetitive movements, combined with minimal activity, can cause muscle pain and injury.
Recent research suggests that stress can affect muscle activity during computer work.
Your mental state can impact how hard your muscles are working.
It can contribute to fatigued muscles and repetitive strain injuries.
Symptoms of Repetitive Strain Injuries (RSIs).
When movement patterns are repetitive, damage occurs in muscles and connective tissue.
This is known as a repetitive strain injury, or RSI.
Pain does not always arise immediately.
Signs of injury may take years to develop.
So, your body might be feeling the onset of an RSI for years before activity is impaired.
Studies reveal role of stress in RSIs for computer workers.
In December 2007, Rietveld and colleagues at the University of Amsterdam revealed that stress stimulates muscle tension in computer users.
They concluded that stress may contribute to increased RSIs, and that psychological conditions may be risk factors for RSIs.
In 2002, Laursen's research team, of the National Institute of Public Health in Copenhagen, Denmark, learned that mental demands during computer work increased muscle activity.
In 2003, a study by Wahlstrom et al.
, at the Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Sweden, showed that stress was associated with higher muscle activity in the trapezius muscle.
Workers who reported high levels of emotional stress worked more often with lifted shoulders and exerted more muscle work.
5 simple steps you can take to reduce stress before and during computer-work.
1- Take a brisk, short walk.
Give your muscles and brain a boost.
Improve blood-flow and oxygen, and lift your spirits, with a short but powerful dose of cardio exercise like a brisk walk.
2- Drink plenty of pure water.
Even mild dehydration can produce arthritis and flu-like symptoms.
(Avoid sugary drinks that play yo-yo with your energy, mood and weight.
) If you keep sipping, then you'll need to periodically use the restroom, which makes you get up and move.
3- Align your posture.
Turn away from the computer and focus on your posture.
How are you sitting? Take a few moments to improve posture and alignment.
4- Meditate.
You can tune in anywhere, anytime.
Imagine all of your muscles getting softer, lighter.
Imagine all of your pain or stress passing along like drifting clouds, moving away from your mind.
5- Relieve physical and emotional tension before work.
Live a healthy lifestyle, and get help in troubled times.
Prevention will allow you to focus on your work, free from worries.
Repetitive movements, combined with minimal activity, can cause muscle pain and injury.
Recent research suggests that stress can affect muscle activity during computer work.
Your mental state can impact how hard your muscles are working.
It can contribute to fatigued muscles and repetitive strain injuries.
Symptoms of Repetitive Strain Injuries (RSIs).
When movement patterns are repetitive, damage occurs in muscles and connective tissue.
This is known as a repetitive strain injury, or RSI.
Pain does not always arise immediately.
Signs of injury may take years to develop.
So, your body might be feeling the onset of an RSI for years before activity is impaired.
Studies reveal role of stress in RSIs for computer workers.
In December 2007, Rietveld and colleagues at the University of Amsterdam revealed that stress stimulates muscle tension in computer users.
They concluded that stress may contribute to increased RSIs, and that psychological conditions may be risk factors for RSIs.
In 2002, Laursen's research team, of the National Institute of Public Health in Copenhagen, Denmark, learned that mental demands during computer work increased muscle activity.
In 2003, a study by Wahlstrom et al.
, at the Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Sweden, showed that stress was associated with higher muscle activity in the trapezius muscle.
Workers who reported high levels of emotional stress worked more often with lifted shoulders and exerted more muscle work.
5 simple steps you can take to reduce stress before and during computer-work.
1- Take a brisk, short walk.
Give your muscles and brain a boost.
Improve blood-flow and oxygen, and lift your spirits, with a short but powerful dose of cardio exercise like a brisk walk.
2- Drink plenty of pure water.
Even mild dehydration can produce arthritis and flu-like symptoms.
(Avoid sugary drinks that play yo-yo with your energy, mood and weight.
) If you keep sipping, then you'll need to periodically use the restroom, which makes you get up and move.
3- Align your posture.
Turn away from the computer and focus on your posture.
How are you sitting? Take a few moments to improve posture and alignment.
4- Meditate.
You can tune in anywhere, anytime.
Imagine all of your muscles getting softer, lighter.
Imagine all of your pain or stress passing along like drifting clouds, moving away from your mind.
5- Relieve physical and emotional tension before work.
Live a healthy lifestyle, and get help in troubled times.
Prevention will allow you to focus on your work, free from worries.
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