Thoracic spine support for your office or sewing chair

I had an interesting facetime call with my Dad last night, specifically about his middle upper back strain and needing to continue working from home from his computer. While I definitely remember helping him set up his office space ergonomically years ago, spaces change and people forget. Now, he is working with an L-shaped desk with three monitors, instead of one of each. He calls, asking for stretching and pain relief advice, but I can't help but notice a few things on video that I feel is much more important. Firstly, the mound of laundry sitting on the back of his work chair. Secondly, he states he doesn't think he is healing well with all the "slumping forward to reach his keyboard". Thirdly, his chair reclines very far backwards when he does try to take a rest talking to me. 

I know it is not just my dad in this position. It is many of us. Sometimes it is me, and I have to have a mindful moment and fix my environment.  So let's talk about the very first thing we need to change here.

Our chair and supporting the muscles that are needing to rest and heal. 

A quick lit search told me that, via a survey of 300 people ages 22-64, "uncomfortable seating" was a disrtuptive factor for 60% of people, in a mix of working from home, work, or other premises. (M. Janneck et. al.)

I sent my dad this Cushion Lab Back Support to change his seat set up.

I myself own the Cushion Lab Seat and will be purchasing more for the rest of our dining room (heh, gaming table!) soon.

I had him move all of the clothes off his chair, change the setting so that it sat more upright and did not allow as much reclining, and brought the key board closer on the desk so that he could utilize the arm rests.

Go look at your chair that you use the most. Can you relax your lower and upper back muscles and still reach your keyboard / sewing machine / quilting frame? Are your back muscles on tonically for hours a day, holding you up? Do they ever get a break? Make a point of resting back into the chair when you can, and try to bridge that gap of the chair and a comfortable position for you with supports. Supports can be as easy as buying something premade, or as extra as making it yourself out of that green foam  (Airtex high density) from Joanne's and covering it in fabric. Buying a whole new chair isn't always an option, so I like to include diy options for everyone.

If you are looking for a quick assist for your studio or craft room set up, contact us for an appointment. We can chat on video, or I can travel to you and do a full ergonomic assessment of your creative space. Call me at 1-952-213-8598 to ask questions and get on my schedule! 

Can't wait to hear from you!

Ashley of Sartorial Physical Therapy & Wellness

I started an Amazon Affiliate program link to post about products that I own, but know that I will receive a small percentage of your order if you order anything clicking my links.

Ref: Monique Janneck, Sophie Jent, Philip Weber & Helge Nissen (2018) Ergonomics To Go: Designing The Mobile Workspace, International Journal of Human–Computer Interaction, 34:11, 1052-1062, DOI: 10.1080/10447318.2017.1413057