car seat slowing progress

Body: 

Hi all--

I'll have to say things were really moving in the right direction until I started doing a lot of driving. I noticed the back pain returned, for one. I would love some advice about what works for everyone in the car.

When I roll up a pillow and put it behind my lower back my torso falls forward or back & I end up holding myself up via the steering wheel. It is pretty tiring trying to balance myself esp. while accelerating.

What's the best way to handle this? If I lay back against the seat I feel like I'm out of alignment. It seems easier to sit in a roomy SUV than a sedan. Which types of cars seem to support the posture (if any)b/c I'm shopping around for one.

I had come so far!! :P

Christi

posturevolution.com. I haven't gotten around to getting one, but it's come highly recommended from a bodyworker I trust. The wide seat version.

I don't use the back of my car seat. I sit gently in posture, trying to keep shoulders down and relaxed. It feels much more comfortable than it did when I started. And, yes, it's more comfortable driving my minivan this way than the sedan.

hth.

Marie

Hi Christi

How right you are! I share your frustration, but I have it pretty well licked now.

The first part of the problem is the angle of the seat part which often slopes backwards, so if you try to sit upright you end up in that jack knife position that Christine has suggested that we avoid.

The second problem is ergonomically shaped seats, which seem to be designed for male racing drivers with very small butts, rather than broad-hipped real women, so there is nowhere to put your beautiful buttocks.

The third problem is that many standard sedans are too low in the roof department, so if you sit upright you hit your head on the roof.

The fourth problem is that if you put the seat upright you get the head restraint pushing your head forward.

This is where my backrest comes in. I have one of those high density foam orthopaedic back rests in a grippy fabric zip-off cover; a relic of a ruptured disc many years ago. It is quite firm, and has quite a good lumbar support, and some support at each side round the ribs.

I took off the cover and carved some bits off the bottom so that there was more room for my buttocks at the bottom. Do it bit by bit, and test for comfort. On with the cover again when you have taken just enough off.

My new car has a seat adjustment that allows me to lift the rear of the seat part to level so there is no jack knife position.

My car is a little Toyota Echo (1500cc, very small commuter car, big on internal room). It is very compact in length but quite tall so I don't hit my head on the roof.

Get in the car with the backrest behind you, move it up the back of the seat a bit, pushing your buttocks hard against the back of the seat, then push it down again until it feels comfy. The back of the seat will need to be back a little from upright, so the head restraint is not banging on the back of your head. The top part of my back is not resting against anything, so it doesn't really matter how high up the back of the seat the back rest is, as long as your buttocks are hard up against the back of the seat, and you feel like your breastbone is over your pubis, just like when you are standing. Adjust the seat forwards/backwards until you can reach the pedals comfortably.

I take this backrest with me all over the place. It was great on a recent four hour flight to Melbourne and back, and is really good on the six hour drive in our industrial strength utility when we tow the boat to the beach for holidays.

My little car is amazing. We managed to get me, my husband and big strapping son (with his luggage from three months away including three boxes of wine and his acoustic guitar), and DH's and my luggage into the car for our trip back from the Airport after the Melbourne trip. All sedans are not the same. Shop around.

Hope you can glean some ideas from my experiences.

Cheers

Louise

ps www.posturevolution.com didn't exist. Could you try again, Marie?

it's postureeducation.com. try that.

Marie