My Shoulder Hurts

Just recently my shoulders have started hurting. Not all the time, not both at the same time, but it will come on during the day, and then when I go to bed I can't lie in any position where it isn't agony. I'm not sure what's wrong with it, but it's probably muscular, caused by poor posture when I'm working. I'm now very concious of how I'm sitting, but I don't know if I'm sitting right.

The RSI in my wrists seems to have gone away since I changed tables and invested in some nice comfortable wrist-wrests, but if I've swapped that for the shoulder thing it's a pretty poor deal. The wrists just hurt while I was typing, but the shoulders hurt all day, all night and some of the next day too. Last night I couldn't get to sleep for about 4 hours - it took 4 ibuprofen and 2 paracetamol to dull the pain enough to sleep.

I think I should get a new chair, maybe that would help. I've got an Ikea leather one at the moment, but it's a bit low, and it doesn't support my back at all. What are you sitting on at the moment? How are you sitting? And does anyone have any suggestions for where to get a good chair from?

Comments

The Other Andrew

Most of my sitting down and typing is done at the office, and we're all provided with rather comfy ergonomic chairs, and everyone has to do this ergonomic assessment thing.

Except me!

Back in the old office, I blagged this rather nice leather chair, which probably breaks all the rules of sitting properly, but I got to take it to the new office. Then they threatened to take it away, but didn't. So I've still got it.

The moral here is: Steal stuff.

Michael Stubbs

If you have RSI, as I do, you have to:

1. Invest in a proper chair, table etc. Check out www.posturite.co.uk for special solutions to RSI, such as oversized mice. You need to be sat straight, back supported, monitor at the right level, mouse near at hand so you're not stretching etc etc.

2. Cut back on PC use. If it's your job, then don't use it in your free time, too. Watch DVDs or leave the house and drink beer.

If you push too far, you'll get a specialist telling you to quit using the PC altogether for weeks or months and then to only use it a tiny bit. Ignore it, and you'll get permanent injuries.

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