Dr. Eve Choe - Toronto Chiropractor + Posture Expert
info@drevechoe.com l 416.297.8599
1730 Bloor Street West, Toronto, ON M6P 1B3 
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Essential Self-Care Tips for Busy Entrepreneurs

2/14/2022

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Guest Author: Jennifer McGregor of PublicHealthLibrary.org
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Entrepreneurship is exciting, but it's also stressful. When the burden of success rests entirely on your shoulders, it's easy to sacrifice your personal needs in service of your professional goals. That's why it's so important to be intentional about self-care - by taking steps to stay healthy and whole, you can avoid burnout and steer the business with a clear head.

Create an Ergonomic Workspace

Whether you work from home or in an office, ergonomics matters. A well-designed workspace is essential for neck, back, and wrist health.
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Ways to adjust your work area:

  • Raise the computer screen. The top edge should be even with your eye level. Place the screen 20-24 inches from your face.
  • Select a supportive chair. The backrest should fit the curve of your spine. Adjust the seat until your thighs run parallel to the floor. If you're short, you may need a footrest.
  • Watch your wrists. Configure your desk and chair so your wrists are parallel to the desk. This neutral position reduces strain.

Move Your Body

Entrepreneurs tend to spend hours sitting in front of the computer. Exercise is one way to ward off back pain and neck strain; it also reduces stress and keeps your heart and lungs in shape. You don't need to spend hours at the gym — the American Heart Association recommends just 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week.

Some activities include:
• Fitness videos or classes
• Jogging or brisk walking
• Fitness-oriented yoga
• Swimming
• Tennis
• Biking

Take Time to Relax

When you have a business to run, it can be hard to fathom taking the time to do nothing. If you can step away, however, you'll find that a 15-minute relaxation session has big benefits; it can ease stress, reduce anxiety, and improve your sleep quality. You'll return to work feeling fresh and focused. 

Try these relaxation techniques:
• Meditation
• Gentle yoga
• Technology-free walks
• Deep breathing
• Acupuncture
• Calming visualization

Streamline Your Business

If you're feeling stressed about work, the right business activities can be a form of self-care. Improving your operations can also improve your life. 

Ways to save time and make your company more efficient include:
• Creating standard operating procedures
• Outsourcing or delegating noncritical tasks
• Automating wherever you can

Are you worried about finances? Grants can provide peace of mind and get your company back on the right path. Here in Toronto, Canada, opportunities include Toronto Arts Council grants and University of Toronto grants. Stand out from the competition by tightening your business plan and spending time creating a riveting application. It's also helpful to understand grant requirements and search for industry-targeted awards.

Cultivate Healthy Work-From-Home Habits

If you're running a business from home, it's hard to take a break — there's always something to do, and your laptop is never far away. Don't worry about finding a perfect work-life balance. Instead, take small steps to make time for both personal and professional activities:
• Respond to emails and calls during work hours only
• Put your computer in another room during family time
• Schedule gatherings with friends in advance
• Separate your workspace from your living space

Consistent self-care can help you stay calm and focused at work. If neck and back pain is affecting your productivity, book an appointment today for gentle, stress-relieving chiropractic and acupuncture care.


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Sleeping Posture

5/5/2020

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I often find poor sleeping habits contribute to chronic neck or back issues. A question I commonly get asked is: what is the best way to sleep for good posture? Read on to find out.

✅Sleeping on your back or side keeps your spine in the most neutral position, If you choose to sleep on your side, make sure to support your pelvis with a pillow between your knees.

✅Take a look at the type of pillow that you use. If you sleep on your back, you need a lower pillow. Remember that the neck is what really needs to be supported vs. your head. If you sleep on your side. there’s a bigger negative space between your head and shoulder, so you need a firmer and higher pillow.


✅Tuck the bottom of the pillow above the shoulders. The pillow should support your neck, not your shoulders. 

✅Medium-firm mattress is best. A mattress that is too soft will cause the heaviest parts of your body to sink, while a too firm mattress will not support the curves of the spine. 

A good sleeping posture will improve the quality of your sleep, improving your overall energy and mood. Sweet dreams! 


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When Bad Posture Happens to Good People

3/6/2020

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​How to fix the habits causing your bad posture so it doesn't ruin your look — or your back

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Written by: Andrea Kerr for The Werk
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If you work from a couch, or even from a desk, you've probably made peace with hunched shoulders and a mildly achy neck — but did you know that slouched posture has serious consequences for your image and your health? “If you have bad posture, people assume that you’re not confident,” says Eve Choe, a Toronto-based chiropractor who offers a 12-week posture workshop at her clinic. “You appear shorter and people assume you’re tired.” Poor posture also has negative health consequences like “chronic fatigue, muscle fatigue, headaches and back pain. You can have sleep and digestive problems, difficulty concentrating. It causes so many issues,” Choe says.
 
But contrary to popular belief, super-straight military posture is not the ultimate goal. Instead, “good posture maintains three natural curves in the spine at the neck, mid-back, and low back,” says Choe. When you look in the mirror, your eyes should be level, as should your shoulders, hips, knees, and ankles. From the side, your ears, shoulders, hips, knees, and ankles should create a straight line that, again, maintains the natural curves in the spine.
 
If you frequently notice that you appear slouched in photos or videos — or that your grandma’s always bugging you to sit up straight — try these tips for correcting the habits that cause bad posture in the first place.

1. Check your smartphone.
Lately, the most common form of bad posture that Choe sees at her clinic is the forward head tilt — and one of the main causes is smartphone use. Many people spend hours on their phones each day texting, answering emails, and posting on social media, and they hold their phones in their laps, which causes neck strain. The correction? “Bring your smartphone to eye level instead of bringing your head down to it,” says Choe.

2. Adapt your workspace.
“Laptops are built for portability,” Choe notes. “They’re not built for our bodies. Often, we will hunch forward so we can have our eyes level with the monitor of the laptop.” To correct this posture, consider purchasing an external keyboard or monitor so that you can space them to work for your body when your posture is at its best. Also, try to avoid sitting on soft couches or armchairs to work because they will likely raise your knees above your hips, which then rounds out your lower back. Instead, choose a chair that allows you to sit directly on your sit bones (not on your tailbone) with your knees at 90 degrees to your hips.

3. Take frequent breaks.
It’s time to curb your habit of staring at your computer screen for three, four or five hours straight — even if you have the perfect office set-up. “A good tip is 20-20-20,” says Choe. “So every 20 minutes, try to get up for 20 seconds and look 20 feet away. It also gives your eyes a break.” If you can’t break every 20 minutes, aim for every hour.

4. Think long.
Don’t think “straight” when you’re trying to correct your posture, because a healthy spine isn’t straight. Instead, imagine a string attached to the top of your head and pulling you upwards. Your shoulders should be back, yet relaxed, and you should maintain the natural curves in your spine.

5. Work it out.
When working to correct bad posture, Choe gives her clients plenty of exercises to do at home. She loves head retraction and scapula retraction exercises, in particular. “For head retractions, you bring your head in toward the body with your chin tucked,” she says. “You don’t look down. You don’t look up. You bring your head straight back. With a scapula retraction, you squeeze your shoulder blades together.” Choe also likes to strengthen the muscles that stabilize her clients’ shoulder blades by recommending wall angels, which are snow angels performed up against a wall.

6. Change your sleep habits.
How you sleep each night can have an effect on your posture throughout the day. “Sleeping on your back keeps your spine in the most neutral position, but side sleeping is also good,” says Choe. If you choose to sleep on your side, make sure you support your pelvis with a pillow between your knees. Also, take a look at the type of pillow that you use to support your head. If you sleep on your back, you need a low pillow. If you sleep on your side, “there’s a bigger negative space between your head and shoulder, so you need a firmer and higher pillow.”

7. Book an appointment with a chiropractor.
A chiropractor can make adjustments that “restore mobility and movement back into the joints in the spine,” says Choe. These adjustments can also relieve stress that’s placed on the body when there’s a locked or restricted joint. After your adjustments, ask your chiropractor for additional at-home exercises to correct your specific posture concerns.
 
Bad posture is a habit that you’ve developed over several years. Give yourself the time to correct it (Choe says it will likely take at least 12 weeks) and you’ll see improvements in your health and the image that you project to your colleagues, employers and future clients.
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Posture Tip - Correct posture ergonomics for Handbags

6/5/2017

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​Some women carry the whole world in their handbag, but a heavy bag or purse can cause pain and injury to your back, neck and shoulders. Overstuffed bags also cause poor posture by encouraging the carrier to lean to one side. The good news is pain and injury can be easily avoided by following a few simple tips. Here are some provided by the Ontario Chiropractic Association:

​Choosing a handbag
1. Choose a handbag that is proportionate to your body size and no larger than what is needed. Your handbag should not weigh more than 10 per cent of your body weight.
2. Choose a handbag that has several individual pockets, instead of one large compartment. This will help to distribute the weight of the contents more evenly and keep them from shifting.

Packing a handbag
1. Change the size and weight of your wallet once in a while. You may also consider one wallet for your work and a different one for when you go out, as you may need different objects for both.
2. Ensure the weight is evenly distributed in the purse by using all the pockets.

Carrying a handbag
1. Use both hands to check the weight of the handbag.
2. Instead of always carrying your handbag on the same shoulder, switch sides often so each shoulder gets a rest.
3. Square your shoulders — many women have a habit of lifting the shoulder on which the purse is carried to keep the straps from slipping.

More tips
1. Try to maintain good posture. When standing, your head, shoulders, hips and ankles should line-up, one comfortably above the other.
​2. If you can walk to lunch or a meeting, lock your purse in your desk or locker and carry only your cash and/ or credit cards in a pocket. By following these simple strategies, it’s easy to lighten your load.

If you have any questions about posture and ergonomics, please contact Dr. Eve.
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    Dr. Eve Choe is a Toronto-based chiropractor, and certified posture expert, acupuncture & orthotics provider. 

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​​COPYRIGHT DR. EVE CHOE 2023 l ecdesigns l 1730 Bloor Street West Unit 3, Toronto, ON, M6P 1B3 l 416.297.8599 l info@drevechoe.com
Chiropractor, Acupuncture, Massage, Orthotics, Posture Correction, Cosmetic Acupuncture, Pregnancy & Webster Technique, 
MVA, WSIB