Potsdam Fibromyalgia Support group

Newsletter

September, 2003

Posture and Pain

Posture is important for keeping the balance in your body. When your posture is bad, it is like having a car that is out of alignment: there is more strain on your body and your muscles and joints wear out faster than they need to. Some muscles get stretched out; eventually they develop muscle spasm or trigger points because they are too weak to do their job. Other muscles become shortened, and tend to go into spasm because they never get stretched out.

      Poor posture also puts extra strain on your joints, because they are not aligned properly to support your weight. The joint capsules may become strained, or the joints may wear out faster because the forces on them are not what the joints were designed for.

      Looking from the side, your ears should be over your shoulders, which should be over your hips, knees and ankles. (see picture from the American Physical Therapy Association web site: www.apta.org/Consumer/ptandyourbody/posture)

      Common posture problems include:

Forward head: ears are forward of the shoulder. This puts stress on the neck and upper back and can cause or aggravate headaches, neck or upper back pain as well as aggravate arm pain.

Thoracic kyphosis: upper back has too much forward curve. This puts stress on your upper back muscles, and can interfere with proper breathing and contribute to compression fractures of the vertebrae. People with excessive kyphosis often also have a forward head.

Excessive lumbar lordosis: too much backward arch to the low back. This puts stress on the angle of the arch, which absorbs much of the impact of your body weight. This may lead to muscle spasm or nerve compression in the low back.

Flat lumbar spine: not enough of the normal arch in the lower back. This also puts stress on the muscles of the low back, as well as the lumbar discs.

      From the front or back, your body should be symmetric, although it is normal for the shoulder of your dominant hand to be slightly lower than the other shoulder. You should not be twisted or tilted. See the self-check grid on the back of this sheet.

      What can you do about your posture? First, being aware of it helps you to correct it. Often, our posture is bad because we are fatigued and we ‘give in’ to gravity. When we remember to, we can sit or stand upright. Get your family and friends to remind you to sit and stand upright. You will have to work at it for a while, but eventually it will come more naturally.

      Stretch muscles that are tight and strengthen muscles that are weak. If you have had bad posture for a long time, some muscles may have become tight, and you may need to stretch those muscles. Other muscles may have become stretched out and weak; you need to strengthen those muscles. The best way to know if you have tight or weak muscles is to have a physical therapist evaluate you and test those specific muscles. A general exercise program often helps posture, as well.

Posture self-check grid

 

 

Your score

Front/back view:

Head

Head straight                                                      10 pt

Slight tilt/twist                                                    5 pt

Marked tilt/twist                                                  0 pt

 

Front/back view:

Shoulders

Shoulders level or One slightly elevated                    5 pt

One very elevated                                                0 pt

 

Front/back view:

Hips

Hips level                                                            10 pt

One slightly higher                                                5 pt

One much higher                                                  0 pt

 

Side view:

Head

Head straight, ear over shoulder                             10 pt

Head slightly forward                                            5 pt

Head very forward, chin forward                             0 pt

 

Side view:

Shoulders

Shoulders over hips                                              10 pt

Shoulders slightly forward of hips or way back           5 pt

Shoulders very forward of hips                                0 pt

 

Side view:

Upper back

Slight forward curve                                             10 pt

Moderate forward curve or reversed curve                5 pt

Severe forward curve                                            0 pt

 

Side view:

Lower back

Slight backward curve                                           10 pt

Moderate backward curve                                      5 pt

Severe backward curve or reversed curve                 0 pt

 

Side view:

Knees

Knees straight                                                     5 pt

Knees bent forward or backward                             0 pt

 

Side view:

Feet

Slight arch                                                          5 pt

High arch or no arch                                             0 pt

 

 

80=best score                                                     Total Score:

 

 

 

Massena Support Group Meeting

The group meets at 6:30 in the Community Meeting Room. The October 14th meeting will be The Relationship Between Diet and Fibromyalgia. For more information, contact facilitator Maxine Dodge, at email maxinesbeach@wmconnect.com or 769-5778.

 

Potsdam Support Group Meeting

The Potsdam Fibromyalgia Support Group will meet on Thursday, September 25th at 6 pm. This will be a Posture Workshop – find out whether you have any posture problems and what you can do about them. DO YOU WANT FUTURE POTSDAM MEETINGS AT 6, 6:30 OR 7 PM? LET US KNOW!

 

If you would prefer to receive these newsletters electronically (and save a few trees), please send your email address to gilberta@clarkson.edu.

 

Heuvelton Health Fair 10/4 8-2 pm

The Potsdam and Massena Fibromyalgia Support Groups are sponsoring an information table at the Heuvelton Health Fair from 8-2 on Saturday, October 4th. If you can help out by setting up or staffing the table for a couple of hours, please contact Debbie at 384-4582 or by email at klw1@localnet.com (that is k-ell-w-one).

 

Fibromyalgia Research Continues

Profs. Leslie Russek and George Fulk will continue to collect balance and walking data in October. See previous newsletters or contact Leslie for more information or to sign up: 268-3761 or email at Lnrussek@clarkson.edu.

 

This newsletter is a joint effort of Clarkson University and Canton-Potsdam Hospital. If you would like to be removed from the FMSG mailing list, please contact us at the above email or by phone at 268-3786.