iPad Shoulder

You may have heard of BlackBerry thumb, well how about iPad shoulder?

It sounds painful and it can be, especially if you've been using an iPad or other tablet computer for a while.

These new conditions are a byproduct of our increasingly convenient technologies. BlackBerry thumb refers to the pain someone gets from texting too much. It's a repetitive type of injury. But now doctors are seeing more patients complain of shoulder and neck pain and finding out it's probably related to their tablet computer, or more specifically how they use that tablet.

Most of us hold the tablet either flat on a table or our laps, or vertically up in the air. Both of these positions can force you to use a poor posture and that can put a strain on your neck and shoulders. The longer you use the tablet the more that strain can grow.

Some things you can do to avoid this problem are to switch positions during the day when you're using the tablet. This will allow body areas to get a break every now and then. Also, when using a tablet, put it down every now and then and stretch out your neck and shoulder muscles. And although this might defeat some of the benefits of a tablet, using a keyboard can help as well. The main thing is to make sure your technology is helping you and not hurting you.