The normalization of work from home culture has made life easier for all of us. However, they’re two sides to every coin. With this norm comes back problems. And work from home is not to be blamed entirely for this. Even before COVID-19, Statista confirmed with a three-month study in 2019 that 41% of women experienced back pain while 37% of adult men were no different.
After COVID-19, the situation is not very different as the screen time has increased significantly. Kids learn online; employees are on their computers longer than before. Education, entertainment, and work all have shifted online. This results in serious back and neck problems amongst young adults all around the world.
There can be two solutions: consult a doctor or exercise. The latter is quite efficient in mild cases, and one should begin with that. If the problem persists, then you can consult the doctor. Or, you can go the other way round. Consult a doctor first and find out if your pain is severe or not. If not, then try exercises to cure it at home.
But first, let’s understand what causes these problems.
What Are the Causes of Back and Neck Pain?
Neck pain or cervicalgia is a common problem among late teens and young adults. This has the following causes:
- Having poor posture
- Sitting at one place for hours
- Sleeping in an uncomfortable position
- Twisting your neck muscles while exercising
Back pain also has similar causes. Sitting for prolonged hours overstretches the ligaments in your spine and causes strain in your spinal discs. The pain may be experienced only in the back and neck, but it depends on the posture of your arms and legs as well.
This pain is acute or chronic. Acute pain is the result of the factors mentioned above. If this pain continues for 12 weeks or longer, it’s called chronic back pain.
The good thing about this pain is that it generally doesn’t mean any damage, even if it lasts weeks. It can easily be relieved through medical assistance and treatment for back pain. Several exercises are known to cure this pain.
Other than sitting for long hours, these are the factors that can cause back pain:
- Age
- Weight gain
- Genetics
- Mental health
- Smoking
- Other psychological stress
You sure can consult doctors, but it’s much better to try out exercises first to cure them at home.
Exercises to Cure Back and Neck Pain
- Start by lying down on the floor with your knees bent. Now raise your pelvic muscle towards the ceiling slowly and bring it down. Repeat this ten times. Remember, you engage your core muscles. Lift your pelvic muscle to the point where your stomach makes a straight slant line.
- Lie down and fold one of your knees to your chest. Now bring your knees close to your stomach with the help of your hands. You can hold your knees from the top or below. Keep changing positions alternatively and do the same on both sides.
- This one’s easy. Just lie down with your knee bent and twist your knees to left and right while stretching it a bit.
- Stand close to a wall that you can lay your weight on. Touch your hands on the wall at shoulder height. Start bending down and arch your back while pushing your butt out. Your legs should be sturdy and straight with a slight bend at the knee. While you’re pushing your butt out, push your hands towards the wall. If you feel your lower back stretching, it means you’re doing it right. When you’re done with this, you will be left with a wonderful feeling of relaxation.
- Stretch both your hands in opposite directions and bring them closer. Clasp one of your elbows on top of another and do the same with your palms. You will feel the stretch in the upper part of your back. Switch the position with the other on top now. Hold this position for 20 to 30 seconds, and you’ll feel your shoulders opening up.
- Place one of your arms behind your back and slightly pull your head to one side. Don’t overstretch your neck, as you’ll end up in more pain. Repeat the same with another arm.
These six exercises are very easy to do. You can search any of them on YouTube and mimic what they’re doing to be extra sure. When you spend multiple hours on your desk, your back and neck are bound to get sore. If you want to avoid this, you should take multiple breaks between your work. A five-minute break every hour or 45 minutes is enough to relieve the pain.
