Whiplash

Even a minor fender bender can produce a whiplash injury.

You’re waiting at a stoplight. The sound of screeching tires is followed by the harsh sound of metal hitting metal. Your car is suddenly being pushed forward!

You’ve been rear-ended!

Your head is snapped backwards! You can’t stop it. Then, because every action has an equal and opposite reaction, another scenario occurs; your head suddenly and forcefully snaps forward. This is serious because sudden forced hyperflexion can stretch or tear the muscle fibers in the back of our necks. This happens because our rear neck muscles are not nearly as strong as our front neck muscles are. What also happens in this type of injury is; we lose the natural curve in our neck. That curve, once a foundation for strength, stability and flexibility is now gone and it will take quite some time to recover it.

What most people don’t realize is that even a minor fender bender can produce a whiplash injury to our necks. Did you know that it can take symptoms of a whiplash days, weeks months and even years to appear! Yes, I said years!!! Now what?

Get to our practice for an examination!

Specific Chiropractic spinal adjustments and healing therapies will help your neck recover. Over time, proper motion and position of individual spinal bones return, which help  promote proper healing.

However, the longer you wait, the more unseen damage there is and the longer it seems to take to recover.

Frequently Asked Questions:

• Why do I have pain in my arms and hands?
  Because the nerves to the arms and hands exit the spine through the injured area of the neck, numbness and tingling are common. Even lower back pain can result directly from the trauma, or as a reaction to the loss of proper spinal curves.
• Why did my headaches start more than a week after my accident?
  Whether you’ve been in an accident, stressed at work, or over-exerted yourself in the garden, your body is constantly adapting to the environment. When your capacity to adapt is exhausted, symptoms can appear. This can take days, weeks, months or years to occur.
• Why do minor collisions cause so much trauma to the spine?
  Without getting into the laws of physics, the simple explanation is that in a more forceful automobile accident, the car itself absorbs much of the energy. In the more common parking lot “fender benders”, the energy is more directly transferred to the driver and passengers.
• Can I prevent a whiplash injury?
  Since car accidents are the major cause of whiplash injuries, defensive driving skills can help. Be sure your taillights and turn signals are properly working. Allow enough stopping distance in front of you. When you slow down or stop, always check your rear view mirror to see if the driver behind you is paying attention.