Low Back Pain and COVID-19

By Dr. Lisa Simon

Is there a correlation between low back pain and COVID-19? I would say there definitely is! We’ve been having more and more patients coming into the ProActive clinics saying that they've never really experience back pain until they started working at home during the pandemic. Most of them can tell that it's coming from sitting long hours in front of their computers, but they wonder why they didn't have this pain before when they were doing the same thing in the office. What’s the difference? 

Well, many of you are likely working harder and with fewer breaks -- no one sees you working, and so you feel the need to really prove that you are! Am I right? Some of you don't have proper desks or desk chairs, and many of you resort to working in the bed where you can hide from noisy family members. Ring a bell? 

Sitting for prolonged periods of time and without the proper mechanics can certainly yield itself to low back pain. However, I’m here to tell you that even making small changes can help reduce this pain and get you feeling back to normal!

1) Sit in a chair with a firm back and cushioned seat.

2) When possible, use a lumbar roll to support your aching back — it deserves some love and support too, don’t you think?

3) Make an effort to get up every hour to get a glass of water, go to the bathroom -- the same way you would when working at the office.

4) Make sure you stretch your hamstrings! There is a strong relationship between low back pain and tight hamstrings. They pull on your pelvis and place the lumbar spine in a more susceptible position. And can you guess how hamstrings get tight? Yep, from sitting in a chair all day.

Just using these simple techniques can help resolve your pain and get you feeling like your productive self again!