Can Your Posture Impact Your Mood?
By Sara Butler
There are many reasons why people have mood swings. It could be related to the weather, the time of day, the stuff they’re eating – and it could also be due to posture! Yes, your poor posture may just be responsible for your poor mood! Here’s how your posture can impact your mood and how your chiropractor may just be able to help you not only with a spinal adjustment, but an attitude adjustment, too!
Forward Head Posture
Whether you spend a lot of time sitting in front of your computer or tooling around on your smartphone, many people have issues with forward head posture. This is when your sit or stand with your shoulders hunched and your head in a down and forward position. It can put a lot of stress and strain on your upper back, neck, and shoulders, leading to a plethora of problems including a bad mood. In fact, this posture has an impact on the health of your brain!
Many studies have found posture to influence mood, memory, behavior and stress levels. When participants in studies with diagnosed depression changed their forward head posture to a better one, they found there was a change in how the participants felt during a depressive episode.
Poor posture has been shown to impact your memory, stress response, self-esteem, depression, body image and even how well your brain functions. So, it’s more than just how you look – it has a direct impact on how you feel both mentally and physically, too!
The Stress Response
Posture can also have an impact on your body’s stress response, which has an impact on mood. When you have better posture the better you are able to deal with your emotions when you’re stressed. Several studies have found improved mood, self-esteem, and even less self-focus when people have better posture. Poor posture can actually cause more physical and emotional stress, potentially leading you to chronic stress and the health problems connected with it.
Improve your Posture
There are things you can do to avoid the fate of a person with poor posture and bad attitude! Aside from seeing your chiropractor regularly for adjustments to help relieve tension and restore function, you can also utilize posture exercises to help correct your posture. A few exercises to try include:
- Pull-ups
- Arm circles
- Arm closes
- Lateral raises
- Rows
If you need suggestions on other exercises to try you can discuss it with your chiropractor during your next adjustment at The Joint Chiropractic.