Body Magazine – Online Advertising in Windsor-Essex
Windsor's Only Health & Fitness Publication
By Kirsten Kreibich B.H.K.
Physician Referral Liaison for Windsor & Essex County Locations of Kinetic Konnection
For many people, what they thought would be a temporary work-from-home arrangement has become the norm. And with many schools, universities and colleges offering remote learning, screen time has exploded! Now more than ever, health care professionals are seeing a surge in patient neck and back complaints. “Hunchback”, “vulture neck”, “text neck” and “selfie elbow” are becoming one of the top reasons to call and book an appointment with your healthcare professional.
I believe our school aged children are most at risk. Teenagers are already prone to being on their screens a lot. And everything that is good for them in terms of movement has been taken away — sport teams, gym facilities, pools and most youth groups are all closed. “It’s abnormal for my youngest daughter – who is only 12, complain to me that her neck hurts,” says Kirsten Kreibich. “In my opinion the younger school aged children are an overlooked population from a physical activity perspective.”
Looking down or the “forward head position”, whether it be you to your laptop, tablet or mindlessly scrolling TikToc for hours on your smart phone wreaks havoc on your spine. This chronic state of looking down not only puts tremendous load on the discs and joints of the spine, it also can cause muscle imbalance in the neck vertebrae.
Amplifying our back and neck pain is the lack of movement we would typically get if we were heading out to go to work or to school. Our body joints and muscles are much healthier and we become much happier as a result when the body gets regular movement during our waking hours. It is now more important than ever to move. Our bodies are designed to move, and even the smallest change in positions throughout the day will be beneficial.
And let’s be honest, our office space and classroom desks have more than likely been replaced with our beds, couches, and kitchen tables.
If your discomfort or pain becomes more consistent and at times unbearable, you should call your health care professional for help. After your evaluation, your healthcare professional may suggest you go to Kinetic Konnection to be fit for a back and/or postural brace. Kinetic Konnection has three convenient locations near you in Windsor, LaSalle and Tecumseh.
While you agree to try a brace, you may be wondering – “how will that help?,” “what kinds of bracing options are there?,”and “how long will I have to wear it?”
Fortunately, back bracing is easy to wear and can often be worn under your clothes so no one will ever know you are even wearing a brace. There are many different bracing options, and styles for our staff to choose for you to try on. All of our staff are Human Kinetic graduates. They have superior knowledge of the human body and how it is designed to work. And when your body is not functioning optimally, they can help. They’ll choose the right brace for YOU – every time.
Our core is the center of our body. Therefore, our core should be the area that is supporting the body and not our backs. But many people have a weak core forcing their back to compensate for the lack of support. You may wonder, “how do I know if I have a weak core?” If you feel you have poor balance, poor posture and if you often feel out of breath easily, these are strong indications that your core may be weak. If your lower back tends to ache after standing or even sitting for a long time, it may be time to look further into the issue.
These types of braces help to keep your body in perfect
alignment, maintaining the spine’s natural curvature,
with your neck straight and shoulders parallel with the hips.
Disk herniation and disk degeneration (which is wear and tear of the spine) is caused by prolonged poor posture, sudden or quick twisting movements of the spine, or excess load put on the spine. A rigid or semi-rigid back brace is commonly prescribed for this condition. The brace helps stabilize the spine and helps limit bending and twisting movements. Also, the brace assists in bearing some of the additional weight the discs normally could withstand without injury.
Along with back bracing, postural bracing has helped many people. They quickly become aware of their poor posture. These types of braces help to keep your body in perfect alignment, maintaining the spine’s natural curvature, with your neck straight and shoulders parallel with the hips.
Wearing a postural brace helps get your muscles back on track by forcing them into the correct position and making you aware of how you’re sitting.
For over 25 years, Kinetic Konnection has been helping people as the area’s leading bracing and compression experts. Bracing can help reduce your pain and get you back to your daily activities faster.
The locations are staffed with a friendly and willing group of educated experts. They are trained to help with an array of different injuries and diagnosis. Sticking to the spine, the three most common back diagnosis we see are spinal stenosis, facet joint syndrome or (osteoarthritis of the spine), and degenerative disc disease or (herniated lumbar disc).
Did you know your spine is not straight? In normal, healthy individuals, the spine curves in a very specific way. Each curve in the spine works to distribute weight evenly throughout the area, where different muscle groups can bear the burden of balance and stability.
This is why when you have a spine injury, immobilization of the spine is beneficial for healing. You never want to over stretch the spine. That’s why back bracing is commonly prescribed by health care professionals. Not only is bracing safe and easy, but you can experience the benefits almost instantly, if you’re ready to brace it. Do more! Make an appointment with us today!