Posture and Mood: Implications and Applications to Therapy
Slouched posture is very common and tends to increase access to helpless, hopeless, powerless, and depressive thoughts as well as increased head, neck, and shoulder pain. Described are six educational and clinical strategies that therapists can incorporate in their practice to encourage an upright/erect posture. These include practices to experience the negative effects of a collapsed posture as compared to an erect posture, watching YouTube video to enhance motivation, electromyography to demonstrate the effect of posture on muscle activity, ergonomic suggestions to optimize posture, the use of a wearable posture biofeedback device, and strategies to keep looking upward. When clients implement these changes, they report a more positive outlook and reduced neck and shoulder discomfort.
(A). Employee working on his laptop. (B). Boy with ADHD being trained with neurofeedback in a clinic. (C). Student looking at cell phone. When people slouch and look at the screen, they tend to slouch and scrunch their neck.
The more the head tilts forward, the more stress is placed on the cervical spine. From “Assessment of Stresses in the Cervical Spine Caused by Posture and Position of the Head,” by K. K. Hansraj, 2014, Surgical Technology International, 25, 277–279. Copyright 2014 by K. K. Hansraj. Reprinted with permission.
Electromyographic recording of the muscle under the chin while alternating between bringing the head forward or holding it back, feeling erect and tall.
An example of how posture can be affected covertly when one sits on a seat insert that rotates the pelvis anteriorly. (The insert shown in the diagram and used in research referenced is BackJoyTM.)
An example of how a small pillow, placed between the back of the chair and the lower back, changes posture from collapsed to erect.
Posture is collapsed when working on a laptop and can be improved by using an external keyboard and monitor. From “Office Employees Are Like Professional Athletes!” by Bakker Elkhuizen. (n.d.). Copyright 2017 by Bakker Elkhuizen. Reprinted with permission.
Illustration of a posture feedback device, UpRightTM. It provides vibratory feedback to wearers to indicate that they are beginning to slouch.
Contributor Notes