If you spend your days at a computer, on your phone, or behind a steering wheel, you may have noticed your posture gradually changing.
Your head sits farther forward. Your shoulders round. Your upper back feels stiff. By the end of the day, your neck and shoulders may ache, and you may find yourself constantly trying to “sit up straight.”
This is often called tech neck.
But here’s something many people don’t realize: the neck is often not where the problem begins.
Your neck is responding to what’s happening below it
Your body doesn’t organize itself one joint at a time. The position of your head and neck is influenced by what’s happening through your entire spine, rib cage, shoulders, and pelvis.
When the lower and mid-back become stiff or poorly supported, your upper back may lose some of its ability to extend and rotate. Tightness through the chest can pull the shoulders forward.
Your neck then has to adapt.
Over time, you may develop a familiar pattern:
Stiff back → rounded shoulders → forward head position → overworked neck muscles → neck pain.
That’s why endlessly stretching your neck or repeatedly trying to “pull your shoulders back” often provides only temporary relief.
You’re trying to correct the final link in the chain rather than addressing what is driving it.
Posture can change faster than you think
One of the most encouraging things about postural changes is that they don’t necessarily require months of effort.
When the tissues and joints contributing to the restriction are properly assessed and treated, people can sometimes notice a meaningful change in how they stand and move within a relatively short period of time.
This doesn’t mean one massage permanently fixes your posture.
It means your body may have considerably more capacity to move into a better position than you realize.
The first step is often not strengthening. It’s creating enough mobility and support that your body can actually access a different position.
Start with the back and chest
For many people with tech neck, treatment needs to extend beyond the neck itself.
We may look at:
- The mid and lower back
- The rib cage
- The chest and front of the shoulders
- Shoulder mobility
- The way the spine moves as a whole
- How you use your body throughout the day
Once these areas are moving more freely, the neck often has less work to do.
That can make the change in posture feel surprisingly natural.
Instead of constantly reminding yourself to “sit up straight,” you may simply find that a more upright position is easier to maintain.
Then we build strength
Once mobility has improved, the next question is: can your body support this new position?
This is where strengthening becomes important.
The goal isn’t to force yourself into perfect posture all day. It’s to develop enough strength and endurance that your body can comfortably move between positions and tolerate the demands of your daily life.
Your neck shouldn’t have to do the work of your entire upper body.
Strengthening the muscles around your spine, shoulders and upper back can help your body maintain the improvements you’ve gained through treatment.
And this is where supportive care becomes particularly useful: treatment helps create the conditions for change; strengthening helps you keep it.
You don’t need perfect posture
There is no single “perfect” posture that you need to maintain from morning until night.
Bodies are designed to move.
The problem is often not that you have poor posture. It’s that you have limited options.
If your upper back is stiff, your chest is restricted, and your shoulders don’t move well, your body may repeatedly return to the same position because it’s the position it can manage most easily.
Improving mobility gives you more options.
Improving strength gives you more capacity.
And together, they can make better posture feel less like something you have to consciously hold—and more like something your body can naturally access.
Experiencing tech neck or persistent neck pain?
If you’re dealing with neck and shoulder pain from computer work, driving, phone use, or long hours sitting, the answer may not be more stretching or another ergonomic gadget.
Most of my clients will experience some degree of relief after the first treatment. This is usually short-lived, because the body is eager to revert to the old pattern—but it does provide encouragement to know that the pain your are experiencing is not permanent, and that we have located the source.
Most people require 2–4 treatments before they can confidently manage their symptoms at home with the exercises prescribed. However, every case is different.
Because the back contains many layers of deep postural muscle, it often requires consistent attention to restore its strength and normal function. Throughout your treatment plan, we’ll reassess your progress and adjust your treatment and exercises as your body improves.
You’ll also receive recommendations for postural supports and simple modifications to your daily activities to help reduce strain on the back and neck, relieve pain more quickly, and maintain the progress we’ve made between treatments.
Less than 10 minutes/day.
No—but I do recommend continuing the exercises for several weeks to months after your pain has resolved. This allows your body to build the strength needed to maintain a pain-free state.
This type of pain can return if the underlying weakness isn’t fully addressed, so staying consistent—even after the pain is gone—is key.