Dishawn Witherspoon has a busy schedule with work and classes as a junior at UNC Charlotte. Like many millenials, he sends lots of text messages, saying “probably three or four hundred texts a day."
All that texting can cause problems physically though. "Sometimes in the middle of a text, I’ll have to step back and kind of stretch my thumbs a bit. Probably like a couple times a day. I have to take a step back and kind of stretch my hands and then my hands get real tight."
Doctors are even seeing an increase in patients with injuries related to texting. Physical therapist, Dr. Molly Capella of Novant Health says 15% percent of her patients have injuries as result of bad posture and an increase in texting and computer time. "We've seen a lot of neck pain, low back pain, shoulder issues, carpal tunnel syndrome, thumb tendonitis. This slumped down posture has become our new normal. For me, sitting really has become the new smoking."
Dr. Capella says posture and stretching are key. Johnson adds take a break sometimes. "I would say try to take a step back sometimes, like talk to people. Sometimes, I'll call people a lot, instead of texting."
A call a day instead might also help keep the doctor away.