Are you sitting comfortably?....

[Springsong]

I remember hearing that phrase often as a child 'Are you sitting comfortably?' before an assembly, story time, at the start of class....yet these days I find myself being chastised by Drs for 'sitting comfortably' as opposed to 'sitting sensibly'.

I guess what I'm getting at is positions we 'bendys' often find 'comfortable' are usually frowned upon by healthcare professionals as being unsuitable for our joints/circulation/muscles & that we should pay more attention to sitting in correct posture for our wellbeing. It isn't unusual to refer to the 'hypermobility w' where we often sit with our legs curled up beside us to form a 'w' position but supposedly in doing this we are not only decreasing our circulation but potentially damaging our hips/pelvis too. We should ideally be sitting up straight with our legs straight or crossed if seated upon the floor, if upon a chair we should sit with our legs together not crossed, our feet flat upon the floor & our knees at right angles...

I have often just sat down without thinking about things & heard 'you're doing it again, you shouldn't sit like that' yet it is the most comfortable position hence why I end up sitting in it. My problem is that I now have 2 daughters who are also hypermobile & I guess I really ought to pass on my learned wisdoms so trying to recall how to sit 'properly' is becoming more important (if less comfortable) to my lifestyle.

So on that note I ask - How many of you sit 'comfortably' & how many of you sit 'properly'

[ClassicalGirl Administrator]

I rarely sit in the W shape, but I have done quite comfortably. I have not (that I remember anyway) ever been told by a medical professional not to sit in certain positions, although I do remember being told by my mum not to do party tricks with my hands because doing them would increase my chances of getting arthritis. I'm not sure whether a doctor told her this.

I am of the opinion that your body will tell you if what you are doing is bad for it. So for example, when I seriously injured my back, I did not have to consciously decide how to sit - I physically could only sit in certain positions and my body told me exactly what they were! Sitting in any other position was excruciatingly painful!!

However, as a hypermobile person, I think it is probably better for us to try to adopt good posture and to use our bodies 'correctly' i.e. in the same way that other people do. The problem we have though is that we may not be aware of what a normal position is and what a normal range of movement is. I have been told in dance classes and pilates classes that I was hyperextending and I really had no idea until I was told!

I would note however that sometimes I am too tired to sit or hold myself properly and so sitting comfortably is the only option.

[missteal]

sitting comfortably?? whats that?? lol!! I'm only every comfortable in the bath or laying flat on my back in bed with my heated underblanket on full blast. I'm always being told I slouch but it takes so much energy to just sit properly. I sit correctly on a yoga ball but then if I didn't I'd end up on the floor lol. xxxx

[Hidden]

Sitting comfortably is a thing of the past, lying in bed is good but a hot bath is better. Sometimes if I wonder if it is bad to sit sensibly if you are hypermobile, cos I end up very fidgety. I try very hard not to slouch as that does strain back and neck.