Laptops Cause A Major Pain In The Neck

Image courtesy of luigi diamanti at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Where She Been?
I've been M.I.A for a few weeks now and not because I wasn't eager to get back to blogging. I was under doctor's orders to stay off the computer and get plenty of rest. I was in the most back breaking neck pain since the Friday before last last few weeks. 

The Reason
I have a musculoskeletal injury, which plainly is an injury to my nerves and muscles in my neck. Go figure it's due to my excessive laptop usage lol and shaking my head in disbelief. I mean one of the things that I love to do is making me cripple, literally. I felt like I would never move my neck with ease again. You know those collapsible bendy straws, well I felt like someone squeezed and collapsed my neck as tight as it would go. I was literally crying in pain, before I got my drugs and treatment. Let's be real here, I can't blame it on the laptop. I should have known better and not have made my laptop my primary computer for everything. I started using my desktop after all of this, but it was too soon and my neck relapsed.

Mama Used to Say, "Sit Up Straight!"
I actually pride myself on good posture. I stand up straight as if I have someone pulling a string on the top of my head, it's from my modeling days and I let it get away from me when it came to sitting down and blogging. I have a home office that I never use because I rather be on my couch or on the bed, table or anywhere else but my desk. It makes me feel like I'm really going to work for some reason and this is supposed to be fun. At least that's how I look at it.   


Doctor, Doctor!
So, I had to go to my primary care doctor. He checked to make sure I wasn't infected with meningitis. You know you're getting older when your doctor  checks to make sure you didn't have a stroke. So, he refers me to a chiropractor and prescribes me some medication. I go to the chiropractor and he "tenderized" my muscle with a chiropractic medical tool that looks like a scraper of sorts. He also did the head turn and crack thing and it was sooo loud. I was kinda scared for a moment and I joked with him about knowing what he was doing. He made me feel like a new woman though and that's no lie. I then started my 7, yes 7 weeks of rehab to treat my injury. I started using my desktop after all of this, but it was too soon and my neck relapsed.

And The Ranking Is...
Neck pain has been on the rise during the past several years. It's the most common musculoskeletal problem and ranking right behind lower back pain as the most common musculoskeletal disorder. The neck pain problem is quite common in college students, millions of people are suffering and the incidence is increasing in younger ages.
This Overview from the University of Illinois was such an eye opener. I was amazed by the stats, but it makes perfect sense. Of course females tend to suffer from neck pain proportionality more.

Give Me a Break
My advise and the consensus is, if possible use a desk top as your primary computer, boo. If the laptop is your primary computer or you just prefer your laptop like I do, be sure to take plenty of breaks. I know it's hard once you get started and you're on a roll. I suggest only using the laptop for 60 to 90 minute intervals and taking at least an hour or more break. Of course I'm no medical professional but, look up some neck strengthening exercises online like these (scroll down to view them) and preform them during your break.

So don't set yourself up for neck pain down the line and only use your laptop for short periods of time. Pain is such a good motivator to get off the laptop, trust me. I was able to catch up on a ton of things around the house since I was told not to use any computers for a couple of weeks.