3 Useful Ways To Ease Neck Pain For Lash Artists

Do you ever wake up feeling like you've just completed a marathon after a long day of lashing? You're stiff, tired, and unable to move your neck from side to side.

If that's the case, you're not alone. Lashing causes physical pain or stress for many lash artists. You're on your feet for two to three hours at a time, looking down at your clients. You've been in this painful posture for eight or more hours if you've been lashing all day! It's no surprise that you feel uncomfortable later. 

In this article, we’ll address how to ease neck pain as a lash artist. 

Forward head posture (Aka, text neck): What it is and why it’s dangerous

Text neck is a new word that has been circulating in the news recently.

When you spend a lot of time looking down at something like your phone, you have a text neck (also known as forward head posture).

While it may seem to be a joke, text neck is a serious problem that affects people all over the world. It's extremely risky for lash artists because we not only spend time looking down at our phones but also at our clients on a daily basis.

The following are some of the signs of forward head posture:

• Upper back pain: Pain can change from a dull, nagging soreness to sharp pains or spasms.
• Shoulder pain and tightness: Pain can make it difficult for you to use your muscles.
• Tingling in your arm and hand: If you pinch a nerve, you can experience neurological symptoms like tingling and numbness down your arm and hand.

How to avoid a sore neck: Lash artist correct posture

These three options can help you avoid neck pain and make lashing more comfortable for your body.

Solution 1: Increase visibility

Raise your hand if you've ever squinted and/or strained forward when creating a fan to see those teeny tiny lashes.  You're not the only one who feels this way!

Lashes are extremely tiny and difficult to notice with the naked eye. This can force us to strain our heads forward in an attempt to see them more clearly.

Here are some ways to improve lash visibility: 

1: Get proper lighting 

You'll have to strain even more if your workspace is dark. Invest in a powerful, adjustable light that covers the entire illumination spectrum and can be used at any time of day. 

2: Turn your light brighter 

When you buy an adjustable light, make sure to turn it up when you start to feel tired. Throughout the day, the light changes. It's possible that your studio is light in the morning and dark in the afternoon. Rather than fighting through that change, turn your light up!

3: Get some magnifying glass

Again, lashes are tiny! Magnifying glasses might help you see things more clearly without straining. Your client's eyes will be closed, so they won't notice how great you look in your scientific outfit!

Buy Lash Mirror at Eyesy Lash!

Solution 2: Stretch

When you own a business, it can be tempting to schedule appointments back-to-back in order to maximize your earnings. Regrettably, this is the most harmful thing you can do to your health (both mental and physical).

To stay in the best lashing form, you'll need to take pauses. Allow at least 30 minutes between each appointment so you can eat, sanitize your equipment, and stretch.

Stretching can help relieve pain and stiffness, reduce joint wear and tear, and even lower the tension you have from dealing with clients all day.

Solution 3: Improve your ergonomic setup

By rearranging your workspace and your client's position, you can avoid forward head posture.

To begin, ensure that your customer is as close to the bed's head as feasible. You won't have to go out of your way to find them, and you won't have to switch back and forth between your workstation and the client.

You can also raise your client's head higher and closer to your eyes by adding a pillow or yoga block to your bed.

Take care of your neck pain: Your lashing career depends on it

Personal care and safety is often the last thing on our mind as lash artists. But if we don’t look after ourselves, we’ll really limit our ability to continue lashing for a long time.

Try out the steps in this article to help avoid neck pain and use lash artist correct posture. Follow us @eyesylash for more interesting tips and tricks!