Remote work and back pain — what's actually happening
Seven, eight, sometimes ten hours a day in the same position. Laptop on the kitchen counter, an office chair bought in a hurry during lockdown, monitor set too low. Sound familiar?
Neck pain, shoulder tension, that "concrete" feeling in your lower back — these aren't things that will "go away on their own." They're signals that your musculoskeletal system is overloaded and needs attention.
As a physiotherapist, I see this every day. Office workers are my largest patient group — and there are a few things that almost always connect them.
Three main causes of pain in desk workers
1. Head forward posture
For every centimetre your head is forward of your shoulder line, your cervical spine carries an extra 4–5 kg of load. With a typical laptop posture, that's 20–25 kg of force instead of the natural 5–6 kg.
Your neck muscles work continuously to hold that head up. After a few hours — and after a few months, almost permanently — this leads to overload, pain, and restricted movement.
2. Frozen hips, overloaded back
Sitting blocks the function of your glute and hip muscles. Your body finds stability elsewhere — usually in the lower spine, which isn't built for that job. Result: chronic low back pain with nothing showing on the MRI.
3. No movement variety
The human body isn't designed for a single position for hours at a time. It's not even about a "bad" position — any position becomes bad if you hold it long enough.
What you can do right now
A few simple changes that actually help:
Set your monitor at eye level. If you use a laptop — get a stand and an external keyboard. It's one of the best health investments available for under €25.
Stand up every 45–50 minutes. Set an alarm. Even 2 minutes of standing and a few gentle movements will reset the tension in your spine.
Chin tuck exercise for neck pain. Sitting upright, gently pull your chin back (as if making a double chin). Hold 5 seconds, repeat 10 times. It does exactly what sitting at a computer doesn't — activates the deep stabilising muscles of the cervical spine.
Stretch the upper trapezius. Right ear to right shoulder, let the left arm hang down. 30 seconds, switch sides. Works immediately.
When this isn't enough
Self-management has its limits. If the pain has lasted more than a few weeks, radiates into your arm or hand, wakes you at night, or persists despite ergonomic improvements — it's time for an appointment.
Manual therapy, dry needling, and targeted exercise can address what self-help can't reach. Not because you're a hopeless case — but because certain structures require direct physiotherapy work.
Most of my desk-worker patients return to full comfort within 4–6 sessions.
Paweł Grajewski — Physiotherapist, GraMedica Poznań ul. Bednarska 8, Poznań | [email protected]