A more confident, stronger you!
Imagine someone walking into a room. They are standing tall with their shoulders back and their head held up. What is your impression of that person’s mental state? Do they look happy and confident? Now imagine the next person walks into the room. They are shuffling along with rounded shoulders while looking at the ground. What might be your impression about them? Would you think they appear to be lacking self-confidence or portraying a sense of sadness?
Research shows our body language tells the story. Over the past 15 years more research has been undertaken to fully understand the link between posture and an individual’s mental state. A 2004 study by Mark Coulson determined there is an almost universal recognition of the “sadness posture” where an individual’s head is bent forward and their shoulders are round. It was also found “happiness” and “surprise” were also instantly recognisable. The study pointed to “stooped posture” being a feature of the diagnostic criteria for major depressive disorder in many psychological classification systems.
A 2015 study concluded “upright posture” in the face of stress can maintain self-esteem, reduce negative mood and increase positive mood compared to the “slumped posture”. A finding further expanded upon this in a 2017 study by Wilks et al. It found that adopting an “upright posture” may increase positive affect, reduce fatigue, and decrease self-focus in people with mild to moderate depression.
Poor posture has also been associated with a number of other physical and emotional phenomena including:
- Increased risk of stroke and cardiovascular disease
- Decreased certainty in decision making
- Decreased pulmonary capacity
- Increased incidence of mechanical body pain
- Increased use of medication in the elderly
- Increased risk of falls in the elderly
So let’s start getting our posture more upright and start portraying a more confident, stronger you. To learn more about how the Total Balance Chiropractic team can help you improve your posture give us a call on 02 4969 2886 today.
newcastlechiropractor.com.au
‘Change your posture, change your life!’
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