Hands, Computers and You – An Article on Feldenkrais by Cliff Smyth

We use them almost constantly. A considerable portion of the neurons in the somato-sensory strip of our brains is devoted to them. Yet, as with many aspects of our embodied lives, we often don’t pay much attention to our hands and arms – until we experience some discomfort or pain.

The computer revolution, especially rapid in the Bay Area, means more and more of us spend more of our time sitting (or slumping!) in a chair, making fine movements with our fingers, holding up our arms and hands, and focusing our eyes on characters on a screen.

I remember 30 years ago we used to laugh at the futuristic cartoon character George Jetson who got pain in his finger from his job of pushing a button all day! Today many of us know that pain and discomfort associated with using a keyboard is no joke.

Conventional wisdom says that changing the physical environment through ergonomic improvements or altering the amount of work done (not always an option for many of us) are the best ways to prevent or reduce computer-related injuries.   read more 

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Feldenkrais®, Feldenkrais Method®, Functional Integration®, and Awareness Through Movement®, are Servicemarks of The Feldenkrais Guild®