The longer your commute is, the more back pain you experience, reports a Gallup Poll of American workers. When workers commute less than 20 minutes per day, only a quarter of them report having recurrent back pain in the last year. However, among those who spend an hour or more per day in the car, a third report recurrent back and neck pain. If you can’t convince your boss to let you skip the commute and just telecommute, there are a few things that you can try to lessen the pain of the commute.
Adjust Your Driving Posture
Rather than assuming a slouched position in the driver’s seat, try assuming a position that doesn’t stress your lower back. This means keeping a forward head posture, stabilizing your trunk and keeping your pelvis toward the back of the seat, according to YogaBack. Leather seats make it harder to stay in this kind of position as they can cause you to slide around so check out a textured seat cover or a wooden beads seat cushion like one from NewEgg.
Educate Yourself
Constant strain on your back—from your commute, too many hours in an uncomfortable office chair or heavy lifting—can lead to pinched nerves, herniated discs and other back issues. Laser Spine Institute offers minimally invasive procedures to help people get past their pain, and you can find health and wellness videos, testimonials from clients who are back-pain free, and other resources to help you achieve optimal wellness. The more you learn about what causes back pain, the easier it will be for you to find solutions.
Yoga for Back Pain
If you have a yoga studio near your home or office, try attending a few sessions. Many studios even offer classes that are specifically designed to help with back pain reduction. Alternatively, you can strike a pose on your own with the Yoga for Back Pain Relief app. Available for iOS and Android, this app costs $4.99, and it focuses on a handful of moves that are designed to alleviate pain. If you’re too busy for dedicated yoga time, check out the Office Yoga app instead. Full of postures that you can do while sitting in your office chair, this app costs just 99 cents, and it is available for iOS.
Manipulation
Manipulation is one of the most effective forms of treatment for back pain, according to the American Chiropractic Association. Like yoga, you can access manipulation once the pain has started, or you can use it preemptively to keep back pain at bay. Both yoga and manipulation are designed to offset years of slouching and straining, and neither is a quick solution.
You may feel relief immediately after meeting with a chiropractor or a yoga instructor, but in both cases, you will need to invest time in multiple sessions for long term relief. When a chiropractic manipulates your back, he or she utilizes skills learned in school and practice to move the joints and the spine into a healthier position. This increases functioning and decreases pain and discomfort.