Neck Problems - Duel monitor setups / proper posture

slipsius

Hey guys,

So, I messed up my next 2 nights ago while sleeping. I went to roll over and got a shooting pain in the left back side of my neck. It's pretty bad. So bad, I ended up skipping work and going to a Chiro, where I found out all the little tiny muscles that attach to my 5th / 6th vertebrae froze up. Can't turn my head in any direction without a lot of pain. But I've also had back issues for a while, so I got him to look into that and basically, my back and neck are fucked right now. But, going to the chiro is a good first step. Got some mobility back in my neck, but not too much more.

Anyways, back to work today, and I realized pretty quickly that duel monitors sucks when you have neck problems. But it made me wonder. Does anyone here have their monitors set up vertically? It seems like it would be a lot better as its easier to just look down without moving your neck too much. Much easier than looking to your right or left without moving your neck.

As for posture. I know mine sucks right now. My chair is too low and has no support. And my monitors are too low as well. But I've already asked the boss to better this situation.

I dunno, anyone have any insight or feedback?

PaulP

I had back & neck problems a couple years back after I lifted something at work badly, and that was me stiff and sore from my lower back to my neck. I changed around my work station to compensate, and made a few small but significant changes which really helped me out.

I used dual monitors and they were proving a problem in the same way as you. All I did was set them further back, about 1meter away from me, so I could see both of them and focus on either with my eyes without having to turn my head. I then raised the monitors to a comfortable eye level. I also disabled to 'lean' lever on my chair so it was always upright, which improved my posture and made a huge difference to my back pains.

The two biggest things which got me back to normal were fixing my posture (look straight ahead while walking, don't slouch or lie down anywhere apart from on your bed, etc), and start walking and exercising more. Swimming would be a great one for this, as it puts less pressure on your body then running and other sports.

Oh and one other thing, chiros are ok and stuff, they'll give you good advice and give you a quick fix on your spine alignment, but what I found out (after spending SOO much money on them) is that you can fix yourself quite easily without their help. There is so much useful health info online that is FREE, and most of it is common sense.

Anyway I hope you feel better soon.

skankerzero

I use my vertical monitor for modeling characters in.



Now that I also do environment modeling, I have to switch between the vertical and horizontal for modeling.

If you plan on putting any monitor vertical, make sure they're ips monitors so the viewing angle is good on them and won't hurt your eyes.

slipsius

Thanks for the responses, guys.

Ya, I definitely need to work on my posture, and I know this. Ive been trying to do it better recently. I think Im going to switch to sitting on a medicine ball. You can still slouch, but now that im aware of it, and i know it causes me pain, I think ill be conscious about it and sit up right.

Ya, I definitely don't plan on going to a chiro for a long term thing. But, I need to fix what I've messed up over the past years. readjust and what not.

Jesse, I didn't mean turning my monitor sideways. I meant more like your right two screens. so, two screens, one on top of the other, instead of 2 monitors, side by side. like this



I just think it would be easier to look down than to the side.

skankerzero

ah ok.
two of my monitors are set up like that. I like it but i wish my top monitor was an ips panel because the view angle isn't quite right and I can tell.

the important thing to do is elevate your lowest monitor to be in line with your eyes when you're seated straight up. That should help some.

Daelus

Not to drag hate into this, but chiro is basically pseudo-science. If you're having debilitating pain, seek medical help. If your spine was really "out of alignment" you wouldn't be able to move, not just the joint, but anything, period. Most of the time, the pain is muscular, getting a massage will likely be the best help. For those of you who've got help at a chiropractor, you'll probably remember that they usually follow their bone crackling with some sort of a massage. But hey, if they fix your problem go for it, just know what you're in for.

Aaaanyway, stacked monitors does sound like a solid idea. At the moment, I have a desk that elevates the monitors to a proper position for the eyes, but if it was just flat with the keyboard with a second stacked the top one would likely be in a good position to be your main monitor. Having it set where your main monitor is on the bottom would likely be a bad idea though.

Putting them further back is probably almost always a good piece of advice. As monitors get bigger it only makes sense.

Dataday

I have used anywhere from 2-3 monitors over the years, and the only times I have noticed stress on the back and or neck is when either a) Screen is too small or two far away, b) hunching over...dont do it, its not a monitor problem but a posture problem, c) chair type and quality, d) over all desk set up.

Hunching over can result when screens are too far away or too small.

Looking left and right is normal for us as humans, up and down might actually make it worse if you are sitting close to the screens.

My advice would be to get bigger screens and keep them close to eachother. My current set up is a 20 inch widescreen cintiq and a 40" Sony 3d tv. The bigger screen allows me to see more without really leaning forward, but rather leaning back into a back supportive computer chair. The only time I find myself leaning forward and getting a lil tension in back and neck is when working with the cintiq and not just using it as a monitor.

Also you could look into Arm Mounting...these can be found for reasonable prices online. Basically your screens and or cintiq is on an adjustable arm which you can raise, lower, move closer or farther back. This lets you adjust the screen space to work best with your workflow.

slipsius

Daelus, if you have debilitating pain, and you go to your family doctor, they send you to a chiro, physio, or for a massage. Depending on the pain. Yes, a massage probably helps a lot of stuff. But, I feel chiro's get more into the reason behind your pain, and give you steps on how to fix it outside of just getting a massage. They usually give you proper stretches and let you know what you need to change. *shrug*

Is it better to have the lowest monitor at eye level, or the highest monitor at eye level? Basically, is it better to look down a lot, or look up a lot. Hmmmm. Eyes naturally look down, so I would think it would be better to have your highest monitor at eye level.

skankerzero

slipsius wrote: »

Daelus, if you have debilitating pain, and you go to your family doctor, they send you to a chiro, physio, or for a massage. Depending on the pain. Yes, a massage probably helps a lot of stuff. But, I feel chiro's get more into the reason behind your pain, and give you steps on how to fix it outside of just getting a massage. They usually give you proper stretches and let you know what you need to change. *shrug*

Is it better to have the lowest monitor at eye level, or the highest monitor at eye level? Basically, is it better to look down a lot, or look up a lot. Hmmmm. Eyes naturally look down, so I would think it would be better to have your highest monitor at eye level.

it's best to have your main monitor at eye level. Placement of the other one doesn't matter as much.

WarrenM

slipsius wrote: »

Daelus, if you have debilitating pain, and you go to your family doctor, they send you to a chiro, physio, or for a massage. Depending on the pain. Yes, a massage probably helps a lot of stuff. But, I feel chiro's get more into the reason behind your pain, and give you steps on how to fix it outside of just getting a massage. They usually give you proper stretches and let you know what you need to change. *shrug*.

Not to belabor this too much but there's a difference between a massage and a MASSAGE. What I mean is, I get a monthly deep tissue/trigger point massage and it really helps me to be able to continue doing what I do. It's not a pleasure cruise - most of the massage is actually pretty painful but it's definitely helpful.

haiddasalami

Yeah I have my Dell U2410 in portrait mode while coding and my other monitor is on an ergotron arm. These things are really helpful especially with me not having enough desk space for another stand mount. Also something to see along with having the monitor at eye level is the height of a chair and back support.

Joseph Silverman

Not to sound like an asshole, but while chiropractors are GOOD at massages and neck and back pain, go to an ACTUAL DOCTOR if you have shooting pain anywhere around your neck or spine. That is not shit you play with, and some of the injuries which can cause it can easily turn into a chronic/life long issue without actual real doctor attention.

I'm not some expert, but neither is your chiropractor. Doctor first, chiro second.

Lamont

I keep all of my monitors eye level so I don't have to crane my neck up and down.

gray

a few years ago i started to get some lower back pain. it was not to bad but i knew it would get worse so i changed around a few things and have no problems at all anymore. in fact my back and posture are probably in much better shape now then they have ever been. here is a few things you can do that will really help you out.

1)
in the morning before your out of the house do some stretching. bend down and touch your toes and stretch your arms and body as high as you can. do that about 5 or 6 times until you can feel your abs and lower back start to wake up.

you can also do some more simple stretching, i do that why i make coffee.

2)
get a good adjustable stand for your monitors so you you can adjust them to eye level. this is super important, if they are not at the right level your going to have problems


3)
get a nice drafting chair. this is probably the single most important thing you can do. get one with no arm rests and a small adjustable back support that can go up and down, back and forward. the base also needs to go up and down as most drafting chairs do it needs foot rests. like the pic.

what you need to do is adjust your drafting chair so your sitting high enough at your desk that your forearms can rest on the desk and your back is straight. then adjust your monitors to eye level from there. once you do that adjust your drafting chair back to fit exactly at your lower back so when you want to rest your back the support is in the right place and you still have correct posture.

it might take you a few months to really adjust your posture but once you get use to a drafting chair it really make a huge difference. the back support is much better then normal chairs and you will start to feel very comfortable working with good posture.

also work on you abs if you can just simple stretching and maybe a few situps will really help.

Ace-Angel

Just make sure your Chiro is a licensed Physician/Therapist, also ask them a simple question, if they practice Chiro on young children or not, a licensed Chiro who knows their medical weight will never EVER perform any type of Chiro on children until they're in late teens...good way to sniff out crooks in my case.

As for the monitors, it honestly would be easier, but it comes a little more in the side of expense since you need the screen support and make sure it doesn't have that nasty fresnel effect becoming darker or brighter, or even negative colors if you look at it from a glancing angles, hence why many peeps avoid that setup.

You could give it a slight 'bend' downwards, so you only have to move your eyes up, and still get a straight look at the screen, but I'm not sure if you would feel save with a monitor being titled ontop of your keybaord, a few centi's from your nose.

Overall, good luck mate!