When reviewing with patients some of their postural distortion patterns causing or aggravating their existing pain pattern, the triad of anterior head shifting, rounded shoulders, and increase midback kyphosis comes up more often than it does not. And with it the question: why does this happen? The simplest answer is that modern human life involves everything in front of you and below shoulder level, with very few counterbalancing activities. And by far the biggest culprit is sitting, especially sitting at a computer workstation.

The so-called Bruegger's stretch or relief position is a rapid focused counterbalancing posture that emphasizes thoracic lengthening an extension, cervical retraction and extension, external rotation and retraction of the shoulders. I tell patient to do this every 2 hours, for 6 slow breath cycles as a sort of postural reset.