Emotions influence our mind and body reactions. Happy emotions produce smiles. Sad emotions produce frowns. These reactions are the outer reactions we usually observe. What about other emotional, inside reactions? Researchers are examining these. A recent study about emotions and back muscle reactions captured the attention of New Hampshire Spine and Sport who cares for many Southern New Hampshire back pain sufferers. It is a reminder to consider the whole person - mind and body! – and to sit upright.
EMOTIONS AFFECT POSTURE
When someone is depressed or just in a down mood, what does their body usually look like? Slumped forward, eyes to the ground, tired? We have all seen this. Upright posture does so much to improve positivity and decrease fatigue and anxiety. (1) Body posture may well impact emotional reactions! An interesting development regarding the the relationship between muscular states and emotions, researchers discovered that upright seated postures are advantageous. Upright seated posture in constrast to a slumped seated posture was found to improve self-esteem, arousal, and mood as well as decrease fear. Linguists found that slumped posture people spoke with more negative emotion words and fewer words than upright posture people. They therefore recommended in their study to sit upright when facing a stressful situation as it can maintain self-esteem, decrease focus on self, lower negative mood and produce a positive mood. Speech rate increased, too. Sitting upright may be just the way to generate resilience to stress. (2) New Hampshire Spine and Sport notices firsthand how emotions affect Southern New Hampshire chiropractic patients, particularly stressed, sad Southern New Hampshire back pain patients.
NEGATIVE EMOTIONS AFFECT BACK MUSCLES
For back pain sufferers – who are surely not immune to a sad mood! – body responses like slumping are not uncommon. In an electromyographic study of back muscles, it was found that negative emotions raised differential back muscle activity while positive emotions did not. The muscles were left alone, not having to react at all. (3) When healing, the spine of the back pain sufferer doesn’t need any additional stimuli. New Hampshire Spine and Sport offers gentle Southern New Hampshire chiropractic spinal manipulation via Cox® Technic to calm its muscles and reduce its pain.
CONTACT New Hampshire Spine and Sport
Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. James Cox on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he shares the benefits of the Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management benefits aback pain patient’s spine, muscle, and system.
Set up your Southern New Hampshire chiropractic appointment soon. If stress or emotions compel you to slump and worsen your back pain, New Hampshire Spine and Sport is here to ease the pain, remind you to sit up straight (like your parents used to tell you!), and find a way to make you smile!