If you suffer from bad posture you probably already know the negative effects that it can have on your life. Not only does it make sitting or standing for long periods of time uncomfortable, but also it completely damages the neck, back, and spine over an extended period of time. Eventually, this condition can lead to some major negative health consequences. While you can train the body to develop good posture, the process is never easy, but there is where physiotherapy can come in handy. If you have done any research on bad posture you have probably come across something called physiotherapy and now you are wondering what all the hype is about. That is what you are going to learn below.
Understanding What Physiotherapy Is
Physiotherapy is a science-based practice that takes a whole new approach to healing injuries, illnesses, and disabilities. The process usually involves movements, exercise, manual therapy, and education. In fact, it takes all of these things, combines them to facilitate recovery and help individuals overcome a variety of conditions, including bad posture. Not only can physiotherapy help you remain in the workplace, but also it can help you remain independent for as long as possible.
Knowing How Poor Posture Can Affect Your Life
If you speak with any Vancouver physiotherapist, he or she will tell you that poor posture can eventually lead to a variety of different serious ailments. At first the condition might seem like nothing more than minor aches and pains, but the truth of the matter is, if left untreated the condition can become severe and lead to lower back pain, neck problems, back problems, arm problems, pain in the lower and upper limbs, and knee or ankle pain. Bad posture has also been associated with muscle fatigue and headaches. When tension builds in the upper back, neck, and shoulder areas, it can eventually lead to some of the most painful headaches that you will ever experience.
Can You Really Change Bad Posture?
In most cases, bad posture develops because individuals have bad habits when standing or sitting, which they have developed over a long period of time. These bad sitting and standing habits will lead to tightening of the joints and restricted spinal movement, which eventually throws the posture off. Unfortunately, when the condition gets this far it can be incredibly hard to treat it because the right standing and sitting practices often times feel awkward and unnatural. However, you should know that it is possible to change the bad habits with a lot of practice and knowledge, but the process will not be easy.
You will have to catch yourself when you are slouching or leaning over and remind yourself that this is not natural and make the correct adjustments.
How Exactly Can Physiotherapy Help?
There are a variety of different ways that physiotherapy can improve your posture. First off, a trained individual will assess and evaluate your posture, while figuring out just exactly where you are making your mistakes. Whether you are slouching our leaning over in the wrong manner, a trained physiotherapist can identify the problem and show you how to correct it. In addition to this, they can manually massage the soft tissue and utilize electrotherapy to minimize or reduce pain in the affected areas.