Your Spine After 9–5: How Desk Jobs Are Wrecking Your Back (And How We Can Help)

Millions of Americans lead predominantly sedentary lives, spending eight hours or more per day at desk jobs, only to spend even more time slouched in front of a computer, phone, or TV when they get home.

While sitting still for hours on end might seem like a great way to rest your back, the opposite is true: Sedentary behavior links to a host of health problems, including acute and chronic back pain.

At Kerinver Chiropractic, Josue Maysonet, DC, and his team provide individualized chiropractic therapies tailored to each person’s symptoms, lifestyles, and other factors for long-term relief and a healthier back overall. In this post, learn how your job might be contributing to your painful back symptoms.

First, a quick anatomy lesson

To understand how a sedentary job can cause back problems, the anatomy of the back needs to be comprehended.

When most people think of the anatomy of their back, they think of the spine, a series of bones (vertebrae) stacked in a natural curved shape. Each vertebra has a small hole in the center, and when lined up, they create the spinal column, a long channel that contains nerves traveling from your brain to every other part of your body. These nerves exit the spine at specific intervals through small openings or joints.

Your spine has three main parts: the cervical spine or neck, the lumbar spine or lower back, and the thoracic spine in between. A spongy disc separates each pair of vertebrae, protecting the spine and nerves, which promotes flexibility.

Finally, the back is surrounded and supported by muscles and ligaments that help stabilize your spine and maintain posture and balance. When all these components are strong and working together, movement is painless — but if any single component is bothered by irritation, inflammation, or strain, you can find yourself dealing with chronic pain, stiffness, and reduced range of motion.

The problem with your 9-5 job

Considering the essential role your back plays in posture and mobility, it’s no surprise that sitting for long hours can lead to a wide array of problems. Sitting for eight hours doesn’t just lead to stiff muscles — it can lead to structural changes, chronic inflammation, and long-term disability.

Problem 1: Postural misalignment

One of the problems with sitting for long periods: Eventually, you’re going to slump and slouch. (You might be doing it right now!) Over time, poor posture puts extra strain on your muscles and ligaments, pulling your spine out of its normal alignment and putting uneven pressure on your discs. 

Problem 2: Disc problems

Spongy discs don’t just provide shock absorption for your spine — they promote normal movement, too. Prolonged sitting puts added pressure on your discs, leading to disc degeneration or herniation, painful conditions associated with chronic and long-term pain.

Problem 3: Joint stiffness

When joints aren’t moving regularly, they can become stiff and lose their full range of motion. For people who sit all day, the spine joints (called facet joints) can stiffen, too, reducing flexibility and causing significant pain during working hours and far beyond. In turn, reduced flexibility increases your risk of spinal arthritis, a common cause of chronic pain and disability.

Problem 4: Increased inflammation

Staying still for a long period slows circulation, decreasing the oxygen and nutrients required by your back muscles and other tissues. Your body may become inflamed and swollen over time, which can cause nerve compression, delayed healing, a decline in muscle function, stiffness, and soreness.

Problem 5: Irritated or compressed nerves

Extended sitting puts pressure on the nerves in your spine, particularly where they exit the spine. Compression is worsened by poor posture or many hours bent over a computer screen or phone. Compressed (or pinched) nerves can cause back pain and discomfort, numbness, and weakness in the part of the body served by that nerve.

Request an appointment online or over the phone with the Kerinver Chiropractic team in Kissimmee and Lake Nona, Orlando, Florida, today.