Emotions influence our mind and body reactions. Happy emotions make us
smile. Sad emotions produce frowns. These reactions are
the outer reactions we usually observe. What
about other emotional, inside reactions? Researchers are analyzing
these. A recent study regarding emotions and back muscle
reactions captured the eye of Executive Chiropractic of Iowa who
cares for many West Des Moines back pain sufferers. It is a
reminder to look at the whole person - mind and body! – and to
sit upright.
EMOTIONS AFFECT POSTURE
When someone is depressed or just in a down mood,
how can you tell? 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 influence emotional
reactions! In an interesting twist
in this story of the relationship between muscular states and emotions,
researchers found that upright seated postures are beneficial.
Upright seated posture in constrast to a slumped seated
posture was found to raise self-esteem, arousal, and
mood as well as decrease fear. Linguists noted that
slumped posture people used 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 keep self-esteem in check, lessen focus
on self, decrease negative mood and create
a positive mood. Speech rate improved, too. Sitting
upright may be a means to generate
resilience to stress. (2) Executive Chiropractic of Iowa sees firsthand how
emotions impact West Des Moines chiropractic patients, particularly
stressed, sad West Des Moines back pain sufferers.
NEGATIVE EMOTIONS AFFECT BACK MUSCLES
For back pain sufferers – who are surely not
immune to a sad mood! – body responses like slumping
are not unusual. In a study of back muscles using electromyography found that
negative emotions increased differential back muscle activity
while positive emotions didn’t. The muscles were left
alone, not having to respond at all. (3) When healing, the spine of the back pain sufferer doesn’t
need any additional stimuli. Executive Chiropractic of Iowa offers gentle West Des Moines
chiropractic spinal manipulation in the form of Cox®
Technic to relax its muscles and reduce its pain.
CONTACT Executive Chiropractic of Iowa
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 West Des Moines
chiropractic appointment soon. If stress or emotions compel you
to slump and aggravate your back pain,
Executive Chiropractic of Iowa 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!