12.08.2024

Possible Neck and Shoulder Pain Causes at Work

In today’s fast-paced work environment, many of us spend long hours at our desks. Working at screens and engaging in sedentary activity for extended periods can, unfortunately, impact our physical wellbeing, leading to pain in our neck and shoulders specifically. This is a common issue amongst office workers, and it can have a negative effect on our day-to-day life and productivity at work.

It's, therefore, important that we can understand the causes of neck and shoulder pain, recognise the signs, and take the necessary steps to reduce the risk of injury. In this blog, we explore the various contributing factors to neck and shoulder pain at work, and what we can do to avoid it.

What does neck and shoulder pain feel like?

There are different types of neck and shoulder pain, which can have different causes and be symptoms of various injuries and medical conditions. Sometimes, neck and shoulder pain can be acute, meaning it lasts just a few days or weeks, or it can be chronic, meaning you feel pain in your neck and shoulders for longer than three months.

Sometimes neck pain will be focused solely on the neck, with a dull, ongoing ache. Sometimes you may feel shooting or stabbing pains across your shoulders and down into your arms. The former may be due to an injury or inflammation in a muscle, while the latter can be caused by a nerve in the neck being trapped or compressed.

Neck and shoulder pain can cause other symptoms, such as headaches, stiffness in the neck, and restricted movement of the upper body. It can have a severe impact on your daily life, but it can typically be easily managed with the right treatment. You can also help to avoid neck and shoulder pain by identifying the potential causes and taking steps to fix them.

Neck and shoulder pain causes and how to avoid them

Neck and shoulder pain can be caused by a variety of factors, including aging, sports injuries, and even sleeping in the wrong position. A common cause of neck and shoulder pain, though, is working at a desk for long periods. Without the right desk ergonomics or work from home setup, you could find you are more at risk of neck and shoulder pain. Below are some common causes of neck and shoulder pain at work, and how you can use ergonomic design and mindful working to avoid it.

Neck and shoulder pain cause: Looking down to type or view your screen

Looking down puts a lot of strain on the muscles in your neck, upper back and shoulders. Your head can weigh up to 5 kg, and when you look down, more muscles need to be engaged to hold the weight up. If you do this for long periods, you can find you have severe pain in your neck and shoulders.

Looking down can also compress blood vessels and nerves in the neck. This can reduce blood flow, resulting in numbness or tingling, and could also lead to nerves becoming trapped and sending shooting pains through the neck and shoulders.

Solution: Raise your screen and maintain good posture

The top of your computer screen should be level with or just below your eyeline when you’re sitting in a straight, comfortable position. You can use a monitor riser to raise your screen and get it up to the correct height. If you use a laptop, you can use an adjustable laptop riser to set your screen to the optimal viewing height for what you need. When you use a laptop riser, you’ll also need to use a separate keyboard and mouse, to ensure you’re not holding your arms and hands at awkward angles in order to work.

If you find you are looking down to see what you are typing, you should try to be more aware of your posture while you work. You should aim to set up an optimal ergonomic workstation for your needs, with all your equipment positioned in such a way that you don’t need to bend or stoop to see what you’re doing. If you need to look at paper documents while typing on your computer, consider using a document holder to raise your paperwork to a more comfortable level.

Neck and shoulder pain cause: Poor posture while working

Working in a poor posture can put strain on your neck and shoulder muscles. Poor posture can include slouching in your chair, or you might find your upper back and shoulders are rounded forward over your desk. Typically, if you have poor posture while working, your back will be largely unsupported.

Solution: Improve posture with an ergonomic workstation

You can improve your posture while working by incorporating thoughtful ergonomic design for your workstation setup. As we’ve already discussed, this should involve using monitor and laptop risers to lift your screens to a comfortable viewing height. You should also consider where your equipment is on your desk, so you can reach your tools easily without straining or conducting repetitive movements throughout the day.

You should also ensure you have a suitable ergonomic office chair. This should give you adequate lumbar support. When you’re sitting in your chair, you should sit up straight while maintaining the natural curve of your spine. Your feet should be flat on the floor with your knees at a 90-degree angle. If your feet don’t reach the floor when you’re in your chair, you could use a foot rest for added support.

Neck and shoulder pain cause: Not moving enough throughout the day

Sitting in one position for long periods can be a major cause of neck and shoulder pain. Not moving enough will put extra strain on certain muscle groups, especially if you sit with a poor posture. Even if you maintain a good posture, being inactive can cause muscle stiffness and tightness, plus poor circulation, which can result in muscle pain. If you don’t move and stretch your muscles enough, you could find you have knots in your muscles, which can be painful and cause restricted movement.

Solution: Consider ways to incorporate active working

You should aim to take frequent breaks throughout your workday. You should stand up and stretch for at least a few minutes every hour. If you can take phone calls on the move, you could use this as an opportunity to get away from your desk and go for a short walk.

You can also incorporate active working while you’re at your desk. You could use a sit stand desk, so you can alternate between sitting and standing as you work. This can be a great way to keep moving and avoid putting strain on any one set of muscles. The sit stand desk converters from Leitz allow you to easily switch between a sitting or standing setup, with minimal disruption to your day.

Alongside your sit stand desk converter, you could also utilise an ergonomic office stool. This should be used alongside your traditional office chair as an alternate option when you want to incorporate active working. The sit stand stool from Leitz has a rocking base to help engage your core while you work, and can be raised or lowered to provide extra support while you use a standing desk (or to be used while sitting).

Similarly, you could utilise a sitting ball alongside your usual office chair. A sitting ball will help to encourage movement in your back and core, which can help to strengthen muscles and ease strain on the neck and shoulders.

Neck and shoulder pain cause: Talking on the phone while typing

If you regularly use a phone at the same time as you use your computer, you could find you hold the phone to your ear using your shoulder. Over time, this will cause strain on your neck and shoulder muscles and result in pains. Holding your phone in this way is an unnatural position for your body to be in – tilting your head will cause muscle fatigue and could also compress and trap nerves in the neck. It could also lead to tension headaches, as the muscles in the base of the skull become tight.

Solution: Use a hands-free headset

If you find you are regularly having to juggle using a phone while using a computer, you should utilise a hands-free headset. This will allow you to easily use your computer and speak on the phone while maintaining a comfortable posture.

If you don’t have a headset and privacy allows, you could also consider using speakerphone instead of holding the phone to your ear. This will mean you won’t have to hold the phone at all and will be able to work freely.

Leitz has a huge range of ergonomic office equipment to support productive and comfortable working, both at home and in the office.

You can read more about ergonomic working below:

Which is the Best Laptop Stand For My Needs?

Choosing the Best Ergonomic Office Chair: What to Consider

What Are The Benefits of Sit Stand Desks?