Men are very particular about their wallets, and when it comes down to it, size matters. If you are lucky enough to carry wads of cash in your back pocket, then read on because it’s actually terrible for your back.
Whether it’s your phone, your wallet or your keys, sitting on anything other than a level surface can put your spine out of kilt. It messes with the natural alignment of your body, asymmetrically distorting your pelvis and hips. This lop-sidedness can cause ‘pinched nerves’. It may even cause the compression of the longest nerve in your body: the sciatic nerve. We’ve covered sciatica extensively in previous blogs, and if you missed it, make sure to head over there for an in-depth guide. Sciatica is usually the result of an underlying condition, causing a cocktail of pains; these can be sharp, numbing, tingling or even dull and sporadic. Typically sciatica affects one side of your body and the pain shoots from your lower back down your leg. Basically, it’s a pain in your backside you can happily live without!
Sciatica is only one side of the coin!
Sitting with something in your back pocket can also really affect your posture, propagating back pain. As one hip sits higher than the other, various parts of your body, such as your back and neck, tend to compensate from this imbalance. This can easily lead to musculoskeletal back pain, as various muscles contract in order to help you sit upright and keep your spine aligned. Over time, the uneven weight distributed on your spinal joints, muscles and discs could lead to degenerative damage.
This seems dramatic! But men especially, seem to be brought up to carry their wallets in their back pocket. It’s almost like a secret, unspoken law. You may have experienced stiffness, sciatica or other types of back pains in your life. This might be the result of years sitting on your wallet, or other items in your back pocket. Spinal health is extremely complex, and damage may take place over time in the same way that it can happen almost instantly.
At Spinal Care Clinics in Brentwood we offer a holistic approach to sciatica treatment. A combination of stretches, deep tissue massage therapy and chiropractic care provide real sciatica pain relief.
We’re not recommending you switch styles to an uber-trendy, but ever-so-impractical cardholder, because we know wallet choice is personal. We’re also not suggesting you use your front pocket, as this could cause some serious discomfort when you’re sitting down. What we are hoping for is that you get into the simple habit of taking your wallet out of your pocket when you sit. This could really save your back and prevent sciatica from knocking on your backdoor!