Working from home? Here's how you can make yourself comfortable

Working from home is not always as relaxing or comfortable as the idea of it may seem. 

Since most of us are no longer working in an office setting — where workstations are designed so that monitors can be placed at eye-level and at a sufficient distance from the user — working remotely can quickly get physically stressful if proper care is not taken.

Many of us have taken work from home to mean working while hunched over laptops on sofas or beds; perched on hard dining room chairs; or just plain lazying around on our beds. 

If proper care is not taken, these bad working habits can cause us serious long term pain and injury. 

A report recently published by theBBC shares some effective ways that can help your body avoid strain by making some small adjustments:

Treat your home like your office

Try to create an 'office environment' at home by placing your computer monitor at or slightly below eye level and an arm’s length away. Find a chair that supports your lower back and always try to use a mouse, which is better for your wrist than using a trackpad.

If you can’t afford extra gadgets, items lying around your house can help. If you use a standalone keyboard, for example, you can use a stack of books to raise your laptop to the right height, with the keyboard below it.

Pay heed to pain and stress management

“You can’t be productive when you’re in pain,” says researcher and President of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Dr Susan Hallbeck. Therefore, if you constantly feel pain while working from home, take that as a signal: something is not working. 

Sometimes, being overloaded with work or being constantly exposed to a monitor screen can leave you with a pressing back or headache. In such circumstances, leave your work station for a while and take a quick walk around the room. This will not only divert your attention but will also help you generate ideas for the rest of your work day.

Posture is key

Another downside to working from home is that many of us take to lounging around in the kitchen or on the dining room table as we take Zoom calls or draft emails.

The problem here? Dining room tables may well be the same height as office desks, but dining room chairs often sit lower than office chairs, and you cannot adjust their height. This is really bad for your forearms, which press against those hard table edges and may develop injuries from the stress.

Read also: Work from home: New routines, unexplored territories, and unexpected shortcomings

You can simply take a small towel or washcloth and double it up under your arms to avoid hurting your forearms.

Don’t forget to take breaks

Sometimes, in order to be extra productive, we tend to skip taking breaks. Since you’re not in an office, there’s no more walking to the printer or over to talk to a colleague, or popping down the street for lunch.

Non-exercise activity thermogenesis (Neat) refers to those tiny ways we expend energy that don’t fall into the categories of sleeping, eating or sports; think things like walking around an office or even fidgeting or tapping your toes. 

Studies show that Neat can play a key part in maintaining our energy levels and body weight. Therefore, do try to keep some kind of physical activity going throughout your work day. This can be as simple as jogging in place for five minutes once every hour or so.