The $80 ergonomic chair pad that gave me a literal pain in the butt

I was having lower back issues at my desk job, so I dropped 80 bucks on this fancy memory foam chair pad everyone was raving about. First week felt like a dream, I was telling all my coworkers to get one. By week three my tailbone was screaming at me every afternoon. Turns out the pad was too thick and throwing off my posture, making me sit crooked on the seat. My boss kept making jokes about me squirming in meetings like I had ants in my pants. I finally ditched it and went back to the regular office chair, and the pain vanished after a few days. Anyone else fall for one of those overhyped ergonomic fixes that just made things worse?

3 comments

3 Comments

parker_park821d ago

Did you try any other wedge cushions or just give up completely?

iris_davis9014d ago

You mentioned your hips ended up tilted forward with the memory foam pads - was that the main reason you ditched the wedge idea entirely? I'm wondering if you ever tried a firmer wedge that's more like a solid foam block rather than the squishy memory foam stuff. Seems like there's a big difference between a cushion that lets you sink in versus one that actually supports your angle.

taylor66821d ago

parker_park8 brings up a good point about wedge cushions. I actually read a review from a physical therapist that said most of those thick memory foam pads mess with your pelvic alignment, which is exactly what happened to me. The problem is your hips end up tilted forward or something, and your tailbone takes all the weight. I never tried a wedge because I was too burned on wasting eighty bucks. Honestly, my regular office chair is fine once I fixed my seat height and added a small lumbar roll. Sometimes the simple fix is the real fix, not the fancy gimmick.