Bad posture isn't just a cosmetic issue. There is an intimate relationship between your posture and the function of your body.
Posture has gotten so bad that there is now a diagnosis code of "Text Neck" because of what it is causing in our body. The posture of our kids is getting worse and worse. I hear it everyday that people say they are shrinking, that "hump" is starting to form on the upper part of their back. Posture isn't a hereditary issues, it is a progressive issues. Mom was right when she was telling us to sit up straight. Unfortunately, there is more to it than that.
Posture is a window to the spine. If we have bad posture, that is the effect, but what is the cause? It is likely from a spinal misalignment called a "Subluxation." When we have long standing, uncorrected subluxations, this leads to muscle imbalances, and that is the start of the snowball down the hill. These can't just correct themselves on their own. It took work to get your posture to where it is, so it will take some work to correct it.
But like I said, it isn't just a cosmetic issue. Why is bad posture such a big deal? Bad posture, according to Harvard Medical, can cause depression to worsen, poor self image, poor digestion (acid reflux and constipation), breathing issues, poor circulation and even increased stress.
Don't believe me? Do a little experiment with me. This will be a bit of an exaggeration, but not by much. Stand up... Seriously, stand up. Throw your head as far forward as you can, round your shoulders forward and take a deep breath in. Notice what you feel. Now, stand up nice and tall, shoulders back, and take a deep breath in. Any difference? I have never had a patient that said the 1st breath was easier than the second.
How do you know what good and bad posture looks like. When looking at yourself in the mirror from the front your knees should be level and over your ankles. Hips should be level and directly over your knees, shoulders level and finally eyes level. When I say level, that is parallel to the ground. From the side, your ear canal should be directly over your shoulder, which should be directly over your hips, over your knees and ankles. With so much sitting, computer and telephone usage, we are seeing so many people having rounded shoulders and ears out in front of your shoulders. This posture sounds very similar to the second part of the experiment. The further out your head is from your shoulders the more stress that puts on your entire spine to try to keep it from going further ahead.
You can do this in a mirror or you can schedule an appointment in our office and we can perform a computerized posture assessment that will tell us very objective numbers so we can set up a plan for you to correct this.
In health,
Dr. Cody Senkyr
