Text neck is one of the latest modern day injuries that we are susceptible to through lifestyle choices and the way we use and abuse modern technology.

Due to the increased amounts of time we spend on our phones, because of their capacities to make our lives easier (supposedly) and also their addictive side-effects, we are now on our phones more than ever. This issue is a massively growing problem within such populations as teenagers and early twenty year olds, but it can affect anyone of any age.

Dr DL Fishman, a US chiropractor defined the injury as a “repeated stress injury in the neck resulting from excessive watching or texting on hand held devices over a sustained period of time.”

So, text neck is an overuse injury that causes pain and discomfort in the neck and can result in postural issues through the cervical aspect of the vertebral column, sometimes it can affect the upper thoracic as well, but this depends upon where the individual hinges.

Over time this creates a forward head posture, or “nerd neck” as its been called and gives the appearance of hunched shoulders and a drop in head position, making you look shorter than you actually are. You get a tight chest, rounded shoulders and your head feels heavier because it’s out of alignment.

There are many exercises that can be utilised to reduce the symptoms over time and correct the posture issue, but none of these will be effective if you don’t take responsibility for what you do and use your phone correctly, or even better, use it less!

Chin tucks and chest stretches can help reduce this issue and realign your head over your spinal column, instead of it being in front of it. These simple exercises, plus a correct setup or use of your phone where you have your phone parallel to your head, not below when using it over time will reduce this issue.

Stay well, Dave