The Best Home Workspace Setup to Stay Pain Free

Since the COVID-19 outbreak, many of us have been advised to work from home, stay at home, and avoid going out as much as possible.

For the last two weeks, however, Ive already had six colleagues telling me that theyve experienced sprained neck or exacerbated lower back pain from lying down too long. Others also reported discomfort from a home office setting where dining tables and/or sofas are used as workspace.

Here are some tips to help prevent muscular pain and injuries when you are highly sedentary and mostly working from home: 

01

Laptop Height 

The top of your laptop monitor should be eye level. You will have to slouch when your work desk is too low. 

If you are using your dining table as the work desk, it is usually too low and Id recommend using a tissue box, or anything that can securely raise your laptop onto a higher surface. 

Once your laptop is raised, your keyboard is too high now. If you type a lot, its better to use another external keyboard. 

Alternatively, you can also connect your laptop onto another monitor or TV screen if you can find spare ones. 

If no extra keyboard or monitor to use, you could also alternate the laptop to a higher or lower surface frequently to prevent repetitive stress injuries. 

Lastly, make sure the laptop is not placed too far away that you dont have to squint your eyes to see the screen. Sit from a comfortable distance, and ideally with the forearms rested on the table. 

02

Dining Chair

Most of our dining chairs (if this is your work chair) are either wooden or plastic. It is too hard, and without back support. 

Youd better use a cushion to prevent pressure sores. The cushion shouldnt be too high, so you wouldnt sit too tall and make the dining table even lower in comparison. 

If a perfect-sized cushion is not available, you can fold up a bath towel, fleece or yoga mat to put under the bottom. 

For your lower back, Id recommend a small rolled up towel placed behind the curve of your lower back to provide some support. A scarf or jumper can also do the trick. 

03

Sofa 

A sofa is always comfortable and welcoming at the end of a long day of work, however it is the worst place to sit for work. It is too soft and provides no support for your lower back. 

Sitting slumped for prolonged periods when using the laptop puts a lot of strain on the whole spine in general. 

Sitting with the legs up and slumped forward will add a lot of tension onto your nerves. It should be avoided for people with pre-existing neural symptoms. 

Thus, all in all, dont work on the sofa. In fact, dont sit on the sofa for too long. If you must, please alternate between chairs and sofa, and try to stand up and walk around frequently to prevent muscle injuries. 

04

Get up and move around 

Last, but the most important piece of advice: Get up and move around frequently! 

If your home office ergonomic setup is suboptimal compared to your work place, your muscles are under more tension. At the same time, your body could also stiffen up due to inactivity. A stiff muscle is less flexible and agile, becoming more prone to injuries. 

The best thing you can do is to set an alarm and remind yourself to get up and move around often. 

Below are some neck exercises that you can do while taking a break. It is recommended to move slowly 10 times in each direction: 

Below are some lower back exercises that you can do:

Personally, I am also using the Nike Training app on the phone and doing a 20-minutes stretching based routine to help with relaxation and muscle flexibility. 

I am usually hesitant to recommend any generic exercise programs or apps, because beginners may progress themselves too quickly and become prone to injury. Flexibility training, however, is a safer and easier way to get started. 

What should I do if I am already experiencing pain?

Muscular pain can be more complicated than you think. For example, sprains and spasms occur due to different mechanisms and need to be treated differently. For any symptoms that are bothering you, it is recommended to get doctors diagnosis first. 

Please be assured that SinoUnited Health is here to help. To save unnecessary trips going out for you, we also offer online consultations via tele-communication if you need.

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 Introduction  

Aoni Xie: Before joining SinoUnited Health, Aoni previously worked as the managing physiotherapist at The Whittington Hospital in London, as well as the senior physiotherapist at Calvary Hospital in Sydney. She is registered with the board of AHPRA in Australia and HCPC in the UK. She is also a member of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy and the Australian Physiotherapy Association. During her time in London, Aoni was in charge of training junior physiotherapists and providing hospital-wide occupational health. Delegated by NHS, she also worked and trained alongside renowned physiotherapists across EU. Aoni specialises in whole system approach to specifically diagnose the root cause of injuries and pain. Through targeted training and management, she is passionate about injury prevention, fixing the core problem to prevent re-injury and to minimise long-term side effects.  

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