Tips and Hints: Dealing with Tech Neck

Good posture is essential but lets face it - none of us do it all of the time. (Photo credit Devin Zuba)

Let's face it between staring at our phones and working on computers all day we're more prone to bad posture and the injuries or stiffness which are the result of staring at screens. Stiff necks, sore eyes, stiff knees from sitting are all part of our daily reality. The good news is there are simple ways to combat these, and yes having good posture is one way to deal with it, but let's face it, none of us remember to sit properly until it really hurts. That's why we spoke with some professionals to get the best info on how to deal with Tech Neck.

Kim Ward, RN is not just your average Registered Nurse, Kim is also a certified integrated wellness coach with a background in Aromatherapy. We reached out to her to go over some of the ways you can apply some simple strategies to easing or avoiding tech neck.

Stay Hydrated

"Well, number one, stay hydrated." Kim says that dehydration is the number one issue with most of the stress injuries. "When you're dehydrated it causes more tension in the muscles which causes the stiffness. There's lots of reasons you're dehydrated from drinking lots of coffee or energy drinks, to just not drinking enough water. So up your water consumption to avoid muscle aches and pains."

Kim didn't stop at upping the H20 however, she also suggests using an aromatherapy rollon made with peppermint and lavender, "First of all you want to apply these lotions before you get super stressed at work for the best effect. Peppermint helps increase circulation once it's absorbed through the skin, which means it helps reduce inflammation. Inflammation is what's causing the pain. Those sore necks and tension headaches can be eased with the combo of peppermint and lavender because the peppermint address the circulation (and helps get you breathing) and the lavender calms the nervous system and eases of busy minds." You can check out Kim's own remedy here - but if you choose to use other essential oils remember don't use straight oil on your skin because it can cause irritation.

Take Micro-breaks

All of the experts we spoke to insist that people take more microbreaks. When you work hyper focused, time can slip by and sitting in one position for an hour or more you're training your muscles to stay tense. Set your phone alarm to take a microbreak every 45 mins. Stretching your body, even at your desk can help stop triggering tech neck, though getting up and moving your body will help get the circulation flowing. Remember good circulation helps reduce inflammation!

Prevent Stress Before It Gets Bad

Kim didn't stop at upping the H20 however, she also suggests using an aromatherapy roll-on made with peppermint and lavender, "First of all you want to apply these lotions before you get super stressed at work for the best effect. Peppermint helps increase circulation once it's absorbed through the skin, which means it helps reduce inflammation. Inflammation is what's causing the pain. Those sore necks and tension headaches can be eased with the combo of peppermint and lavender because the peppermint address the circulation (and helps get you breathing) and the lavender calms the nervous system and eases of busy minds." You can check out Kim's own remedy

Practice Self-Care Routines

Massage therapist Aiden Douglass works with a lot of tech companies in the San Francisco Bay Area and she advises some simple exercises using a tennis ball to help loosen up the muscles and micro-tissue in the neck and even the upper back. "Absolutely get a massage on the weekend, or take advantage of at work perks, but seriously if you're suffering from pain you need to do self care at home too. It's why I've started creating videos for my clients to help do essential self care at home in between appointments with me." Aiden was kind enough to grant us permission to share her video on how to ease up tech neck here on the blog. You can watch it below:

Look, we want you to use our laptops and we want you to stay healthy even more! Stay tuned for more articles on how to avoid injuries and take care of yourself when using tech from the GIGABYTE Notebooks Team.

(Psst…. Did you know we have weekly deals on the GIGABYTE Notebooks USA store? Check out the weekly deal so you can grab your new AERO or Aorus laptop. Click Here )