Homo Sapiens Erectus! It is the Erectus part of Homo sapiens that is governed by the integrity or misalignment of the human spine. It is accidents and injuries, which tear loose the ligaments and tendons holding those spinal vertebrae together which allows the spine to become twisted or misaligned. The spine as the foundation of the framework of the body and whether it is misaligned determines posture.
Often the injuries causing misalignments are during childhood and the growing years. And many of them go undetected for years.
Ahh posture! Those pesky parents asking their children to “straighten up” and as soon as they think of something else, there they go slumping again. It is more comfortable to slump or to give way to the inability of the spine to hold your child upright. And so it begins! The body adapts to the short leg, the high and low hip and the twisting or distortion of the body leaning to the right or left.
These distortions of posture start relatively small and then progress over time. Years later, the adult has neck or back pain and has developed a number of symptoms related to the nervous system and the nerves passing through the spine. The deviations of posture are still relatively subtle and then you look at those photographs where your head is always tilted to the right side and one of your shoulders appears lower than the other.
Then as you get older it is harder to hold yourself up. The distortions become obvious as your body begins to bend forward and you question why one of your legs is not working like the other one.
What a gift it is to have your spinal misalignment and your posture corrected when you are young. Imagine your ability to stand erect against gravity, the greatest stress in your life, balanced with less effort. Upright posture is easier. It is effortless. It is less tiring.
Oh, it would have been so easy if all I had to do was to listen to my parents when they said: “stand tall, sit straight!”
Now you know about the spine and its relationship to posture. Having great posture is from taking care of your spine. Keeping it in its corrected normal position has many more benefits than “looking good.” It is healthier and makes life better.