Many people spend long hours in a desk chair without thinking about where their head sits. After a knock to the head, that daily setup can become something worth writing down, because it is one of the few parts of your routine you can see and describe clearly. This article is educational and does not diagnose anything. It is a way to keep notes you can bring to a clinician.
What to note about the chair
Start with the chair itself. Write down the seat height, whether your feet rest flat on the floor, and whether the chair back supports the lower part of your back. Note whether your shoulders drop when you rest your arms or rise toward your ears. If your chair tilts, record the setting you use most.
Write down the desk height too. If you type with your elbows below the desk surface, or reach upward to a keyboard, record that. A simple line such as "keyboard above elbow level, mostly afternoons" is enough. You do not need measurements unless you already have them.
Noting your daily pattern
The chair matters less than the hours you spend in it. Keep a short log with the time you sat down, the time you stood up, and any longer stretch when you stayed in one position. If your desk has a standing setting, note whether you used it and for how long.
Also note how the day felt. Did head pressure build by late morning, or after lunch? Did it ease when you stood? Plain words work best, such as "eased after a walk" or "worse at the end of a long call." These notes help you and your clinician see whether a pattern lines up with your work hours.
Breaks and movement
Breaks are often the easiest thing to track. Write down how often you got up, how long each break lasted, and what you did during it. A walk to the water cooler, a few steps down a hallway, or turning your chair away from the screen all count. Record them without judging them. The goal is an honest picture, not a perfect one.
If you travel for work or sit through long meetings, add a line for those days too. Note the room, the length of the meeting, and whether you had a chance to move. Small details tend to fade from memory, so writing them down the same day is useful.
Things to leave out of the log
Do not guess at numbers you did not measure. If you do not know the chair's height, write "unknown" and move on. Do not copy a diagnosis from a website into your notes as if it were your own. Keep the log to what you saw, felt and did.
Keep the log private unless you choose to share it. Work-related notes can include details about your employer, so it helps to store the log on paper or in a file you control.
When to bring the log to a clinician
A log of your chair, breaks and headache timing is most useful when you bring it to an appointment. People in the St. Louis metro can book with a primary care office, a neurologist, or another clinician they already trust. Bring the log, a list of any medicines you take, and a short note about when the knock happened. Let the clinician decide what the notes mean.
Some symptoms need prompt attention rather than a scheduled visit. If a headache suddenly becomes much stronger, or if you notice confusion, weakness, trouble speaking, repeated vomiting or unusual drowsiness, do not wait for a desk-side fix. Seek urgent care right away.
Keeping it simple
A plain log beats a complicated one. Use one page per week. Put the date at the top, then three columns: where you sat, when you moved, and how your head felt. Review it once at the end of the week. If the chair never changes but the headaches shift from day to day, that is worth noting too.
Adjusting a chair or desk may not change how you feel, and no single change replaces a clinical check. The aim here is simply to notice. Noticing gives you something concrete to talk about when you decide what comes next.