A purse is an essential item that many women won’t leave the house without. Most purses contain money, phones, IDs, and many other important items.
Even though it might not seem like it, purses can become heavy enough to put strain on our bodies, leading to various painful conditions. Surprisingly, many people have suffered from overuse injuries, simply from carrying their purses around throughout the day. So, in this article, we’ll take a look at how purses can cause pain and how you can ensure yours doesn’t!
Pain and Purses
There are many ways in which purses can contribute to orthopedic pain. Let’s take a look at some of the top causes of pain with regard to purse usage.
Poor Posture from Purse Wearing
Because purses can become quite heavy, wearing one over a shoulder can lead to bad posture and subsequent pain. Specifically, the “single shoulder purse posture” can cause one side of the back and/or abdomen to work harder than the other.
This will often lead to an imbalance of muscle strength across the back. When the muscles aren’t uniformly strong in the back, one can suffer from back spasms, chronic pain, and other postural issues of the spine.
Plus, using only one shoulder for your purse can lead to upper extremity problems on the side of the purse. Who knew that such a little bag could cause so many issues?
Hand Pain from Holding a Purse
Again, it may seem crazy that a purse weighing a pound or less can lead to an overuse injury. However, this sort of thing happens all the time. Holding a handbag in one hand for many hours, many days, many weeks, and many months can cause hand dysfunction and pain.
Neck Pain from Purse Wearing
The shoulders and neck are intimately connected. Therefore, wearing a purse across the shoulders can lead to neck pain. Putting constant strain on this region is a surefire way to suffer a debilitating neck injury.
Purse and Posture Fixes
After reading through some of the common issues caused by purse-wearing, you may be wondering what the solution to the problem is. Should you just ditch your purse altogether?
While going purseless isn’t a bad option, there are ways to still use a purse while putting less stress through your body.
Alternating Sides
One of the easiest ways to overcome the issue caused by purse wearing is to simply ensure that you wear the bag on both sides equally.
You may switch sides on a daily basis, an hourly basis, or use a different time increment. Whatever you do, just be sure that you’re wearing your purse on both sides equally!
Subbing in a Different Kind of Bag
Some purses can be worn in different ways, which can lead to fewer problems. For example, there are popular purses nowadays that operate much like a backpack: with two straps. In this way, both of your shoulders share the stress of the bag and you avoid creating muscle imbalances throughout your body.
Performing Regular Postural Exercise
If you find that you just can’t seem to switch up your purse routine, you may simply elect to strengthen and stretch out your at-risk tissues more frequently.
By improving your mobility and strength in these areas, you can lessen the chances of suffering from an injury due to your purse wearing.
Additionally, you may find that chiropractic care is just what you need to reduce your purse-related pain. Your Parker chiropractors at Awaken Chiropractic are here for you. We will assess your issue and design a treatment plan suited to your needs. Book your first session now!
