The Silent Effects of Poor Posture
Poor posture isn’t just about slouching—it’s a gateway to multiple physical issues, including chronic back pain, fatigue, and reduced mobility. The way you sit, stand, or even sleep can either support your health or silently sabotage it. Thankfully, effective physical therapy, posture correction strategies, and targeted treatments can help reverse these problems.
How Bad Posture Affects You
Your posture has a powerful influence on your musculoskeletal health. Let’s break down the major ways bad posture impacts your body:
Forward head posture
Holding your head forward strains the neck and shortens the muscles in the back of the neck. This can lead to:
- Chronic neck pain
- Radiating pain into the shoulders or arms
- Tension headaches
- Even low back pain
If you’re frequently dealing with these issues, our Back and Neck Pain treatments are designed to relieve pain at the source.
Mid-back slouching
Slouching compresses your ribs, pushing your head forward. This contributes to:
- Mid-back pain
- Neck issues
- Compression of vital organs like your lungs and heart
Chronic postural dysfunction may lead to internal issues as well, and in such cases, our Chronic Pain Management program can offer targeted relief.
Low back
Low back pain is very common with poor posture. The back muscles have to contract excessively to keep you upright, causing you pain. Bad posture also causes abnormal wear and tear on the low back, increasing the risk of arthritis in the spine. Sitting poorly for long periods puts enormous pressure on your lumbar spine. This leads to:
- Overworked back muscles
- Risk of early-onset spinal arthritis
- Persistent low back pain
Explore our holistic Posture Support services to protect your spine and improve your sitting and standing alignment.
Hips and legs
With sitting for prolonged periods, the hip joints lose range of motion and the muscles in the front of the hips stiffen. These tightened muscles then pull on the low back, causing low back pain. Our expert Manual Therapy and Therapeutic Yoga help restore flexibility and mobility.
Walking
Your center of gravity changes with bad posture, causing your balance to decline. In addition, weakness to the hip muscles with prolonged sitting causes problems with walking. All these changes can have a serious impact on your mobility and ability to walk safely.
Without good posture, your overall health and total efficiency may be compromised. Because the long-term effects of poor posture can affect bodily systems (such as digestion, elimination, breathing, muscles, joints and ligaments), a person who has poor posture may often be tired or unable to work efficiently or move properly.
Even for younger people, how you carry yourself when working, relaxing or playing can have big effects. Did you know that just fifteen minutes reading or typing when using the wrong positions exhausts the muscles of your neck, shoulders and upper back?
The good news is that with the right physical therapy treatments, a lot can be done to help you regain proper posture and quickly relieve back and neck pain. Call us today to learn how we can help you live a pain-free life!
“Lumbar spinal stenosis, or the narrowing of the open spaces in your spine, can be treated just as successfully with physical therapy as with surgery – and with 15 percent fewer complications.” – Annals of Internal Medicine, April 2015
Call Today & Reclaim a Pain-Free Life
The right treatment can reverse years of postural damage. Don’t wait for the pain to worsen—start healing today. Reach out through our contact page or learn more about our full range of services on our website.
