Job Satisfaction and Low Back Pain

Backaches and sciatica image.

Low back pain, more commonly associated with jobs involving physical labor, is now striking an increasing number of white-collar workers. Usually associated with heavy lifting, turning, bending and repetitive motions, back pain is becoming a plague among those who lift nothing heavier than a stapler.

While workplace design and employee fitness are factors in office workers developing neck and back injuries, an overlooked element is the psychosocial factor -- how positive a person's mental outlook is, and especially how much they like their career.

Instead of taking drugs to reduce the symptoms, more and more recommendations involve reducing the amount of stress and taking steps to increase job satisfaction.

Experts say that up to 80 percent of adults will seek treatment for work-related neck or back pain at some point in their career.

 Dr. Fred Asks some important questions of interest to Woodland Hills residents - Chiropractor Woodland Hills Dr. Fred Asks...

What is the purpose of pain?
Pain prompts many Woodland Hills folks to begin chiropractic care. But pain isn't the problem! Pain is just how your body alerts you that a limit has been reached (or exceeded), that something isn't working right and that some type of change is needed. As a chiropractor, my job is finding the underlying cause and recommending the changes needed to bring your body back into balance.
Is a muscle spasm a cause or an effect?
With the knee-jerk use of muscle relaxers, you'd think it was a cause. But it's an effect. Chiropractors know that bones don't move unless muscles move them. And muscles don't contract unless commanded by the nervous system. That's why your nervous system is the focus of our Woodland Hills chiropractic practice.