06/23/2025
June is Professional Wellness Month and we want to highlight workplace injuries!
Unfortunately, injuries can happen anywhereāincluding at work.
Did you know that if you have a job where you sit for 50% of an 8-hour day, your risk of developing low back pain is about the same as someone who lifts heavy objects all day? Sitting is brutal.
Why? The moment your butt hits the chairāeven if you're sitting with perfect posture (because we all sit in perfect posture, right?)āthe pressure on your spinal discs doubles, pushing things in the wrong direction. And the second your hips break and you begin to slouch, that disc pressure increases by an additional 80 pounds. Think about that: if I slapped an 80-pound backpack on you, you might be able to carry it for a while, but eventually you'd wear down. That's exactly what happens to the discs in our backāconstant, increased pressure over time wears them out.
Then, one day, you do something completely benignāa simple movement that becomes the "straw that breaks the camelās back." Suddenly, we "throw our back out" and blame that one movement. But the truth is, a healthy spine can handle occasional strain, lifting, or awkward movements. A spine that has been under chronic stress, however, can be triggered by something as simple as sneezing, bending to tie your shoes, or brushing your teeth.
Studies show we sit and bend forward anywhere from 3,000 to 5,000 times a day, yet we rarely ever move in the opposite directionābackward. Itās not just about what we do at work. The time we spend sitting and bending outside of work adds up and contributes to the same wear and tear.
Thatās where we come in. We educate people on the real causes of back pain and teach strategies to keep the spine healthy. Itās not that someoneās spine is just āmessed upāāitās our daily positions, movements, and habits that continuously put our tissues in compromised positions or break them down over time.
The good news? Once we understand how weāre unintentionally sabotaging our own spine and joints, we can learn to take care of themājust like we brush our teeth every day. Daily maintenance matters.
