Are you caring for yourself during long hours of sewing?
With many of us sewing long hours these days to create masks for family and friends, are your shoulders, neck and back starting to hurt?
I myself, already have issues without the long hours and until now, never thought about what I could do to help make the long hours more tolerable. Let me share some of the things I am doing that I’ve found helpful.
First off, don’t sit at your machine for more than an hour.
Even if you feel ok and could continue working. Getting up and taking a couple minute break helps relieve stress on your arms, shoulders, neck and back, not to mention your rump. I get up and walk around a little. Sometimes I will do some ironing at this point if it needs done on the masks and sometimes I will just take a bathroom break.
Remember to stay well hydrated. I usually have a bottled water sitting close by and take sips every so often. My room often gets hot with the iron on and me working so water just helps to keep me going.
Another thing I’ve been trying to do about every half hour is to stop and stretch me neck.
I start by sitting straight in my chair, dangling by my sides and leaning my head to the left. I then start counting to 10. Once I reach 10 I shift my head and lean backwards counting to 10 and trying to relax my muscles all over. I repeat this on my right and then frontwards. This exercise seems to be helping me feel better in the evening since I started doing it regularly.
Other things you can do to help during long hours of sewing is to make sure you are sitting in a comfortable chair.
Sit on a pillow if you are using a hard surface chair. Put a pillow behind you if your back needs more support. I know most of us need a foot to run the sewing machine pedal but if you can put your other foot up on a short stool every so often this seems to help as well.
Now a nice massage after a long week of sewing would be nice, most of us are social distancing and can’t schedule an appointment. However, I use tennis balls and a wall to put pressure on my tense muscles. Honest, it helps if you don’t have someone that can massage that tense spot out. Plus, I know how much pressure I need and can tolerate. Also, a nice warm bath can be very relaxing after a long day of sewing or even a shower.
And last but not least, if you need to take a day off, then do so.
I know I want to make as many masks right now as I possibly can because I want to help people be able to be safe when they start going out in public again. However, sometimes we just need a break and can return the next day ready to sew up a storm!
Do you have some helpful tips that you would like to share? Please be sure to leave them in the comments. Thanks for stopping by my blog today.
Blessings,
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