Wouldn’t it be eye opening if we could peek inside our bodies to see what is going on? To have the ability to look around, assess our joints, our muscles, and see if everything is working right. Well, today technology is getting pretty close- MRI’s, CT Scans, ultrasounds- all give us a “picture” in black and white of what is going on with regards to structure.
One way to assess yourself at home is to look at your posture. How you stand, sit, walk, and present yourself to the world.
To start; what is good posture? If you look at somebody from the front, their shoulders should be aligned, hips should be aligned, ears should be level. If you look at somebody from the side, the ear should be in line with the shoulder, in line with the hip, and the lateral knee and the lateral ankle.
When you stand, do you always lean to one side? When you sit, do you always slouch? When you drive, do you always lean to the right, putting your elbow on the console? When you sleep do you always tilt your head to one side?
All of these habits will cause your spine to shift. Think about it. A mom who always carries her kids on her left hip may find that after six months, that hip is now higher than the other because over the months she was constantly hiking that hip higher to hold her son or daughter. Now, after doing this hour after hour and day after day, her pelvis and spine have gotten used to this position and have shifted permanently.
What bad postures do you find yourself in day after day?
Remember that the same posture over time will cause the spine and/or pelvis to shift. If things shift out of the normal alignment, as described above, then we can get nerve pressure.
Poor posture can increase muscle tension and spasms. It can cause firing of one side of the muscles more than others. If some muscles have to work harder than others, it creates pain and stiffness. One thing you can do is to get your feet checked by the chiropractor. A custom made shoe orthotic can also make a big difference. Differences in the arches of your feet can create imbalance. This plays a big role in the kinetic chain of your body. Problems in the feet lead to more stress in the knees- which in turn can lead to hip problems. The chiropractor can also notice if your feet have excessive flare in one foot more than the other. Normal posture means that the feet should only have a small amount of flare. Finally, are you flat footed? This condition is known as excessive pronation. It can cause a postural imbalance causing one hip to be higher than the other- usually more on one side than the other. It can produce small twisting motions in the hips and knees which may be one reason why you have stiffness in one hip or one knee versus the other.
Having good posture means you can smile and be pain free when you look through the window to see your spine. You’ll have better joint mobility, prevent injuries from taking place, have better balance and overall wellness.
Consult with a chiropractor about your foot pain. Not only can they suggest and fit you for orthotics, they can also look for misalignments in the spine.
Chiropractic offices in the USA and Canada:
Mississauga, ON Canada www.drdev.ca
Glastonbury, CT: www.ctbackdr.com
Bowling Green, KY: CrouchFamilyChiro
Seneca Falls, NY: Rebecca Price D.C.
Email Neck Pain Support if you are looking to get fitted for orthotics or want to get your spine checked
Additional Resources
- Loss of Curvature in the Neck- "Military Neck"
- Can Forward Head Posture Cause Neck Pain?
- Head Retraction Exercises- A Must to Correct Forward Head Posture
- Making Your Workstation Pain Free
- Why Is Slouching So Bad
- Improve your posture and sleep with the right pillow
