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Whilst not a condition, preventative care consists of measures you can take to avoid developing musculoskeletal disorders or repetitive strain injuries. For improved musculoskeletal health, take note of the following preventative care tips. If something doesn’t feel right, please book an appointment at our Ashfield clinic and we can further examine the problem area.
Although preventative care is simple, it can be easy to neglect. For this reason, you may wish to remind yourself to undertake preventative care via a phone notification or even by writing a sticky note. However you wish to structure it, it’s important to find a way to work preventative care into your life.
A top preventative care tip is to warm up and stretch before undertaking repetitive, static, or prolonged activities. Any gym will remind you of this rule! On the other hand, if you’re having to sustain a posture for a prolonged period, it’s important to break the posture every 20–30 minutes and stretch stiff muscles. If you’re feeling pain at any point, that’s likely telling you that something’s wrong. Change up your position or stop the pain-causing activity altogether.
If, despite your best efforts, you’ve still sustained some inflammation, be sure to recognise the early signs. This is when we would advise booking an appointment at our Ashfield clinic so that we can intervene early. Should you feel the need for splints or wrist supports, please discuss it with one of our chiropractors and wear them only with our (or your GP’s) approval.
Oftentimes, a good posture is key to being free of musculoskeletal disorders. Whilst you should hold an erect posture, you should also relax the neck and back. Twisting and bending are not ideal for the posture, either, and you should minimise these actions where possible. Whether you’re operating machinery or working at a desk, it’s important to align work equipment with your body. Ergonomics at work form part of any good occupational health and safety plan.
Whilst performing any activity, you should position yourself correctly. This involves keeping your arms close, elbows bent at 100 degrees, forearms neutral (thumb pointing upwards), and wrists straight. When sitting, ergonomics dictate that you should place your feet flat on the floor in a correctly adjusted chair. If you can’t achieve this, you should use a footrest.
If there’s any part of your skeleton to keep neutral, it’s your wrists. You should avoid moving them to any extreme angle and keep them within the ‘safe zone’, which is 15 degrees in all directions. While we’re on the topic of skeletal strain, you should avoid bending your neck forward for prolonged periods. When typing from a manuscript, it’s important to prop it up using a document holder.
