Whiplash is a serious and debilitating condition that often occurs due to trauma.
If you’ve never suffered from whiplash, consider yourself lucky. This issue causes many different symptoms which can often take months or even years to fully heal.
In this article, we will investigate whiplash and demonstrate how chiropractic care can be a good treatment option for individuals who suffer from this condition.
What Is Whiplash?
Whiplash is a medical issue that usually happens when one has been in a car crash or another high-energy accident.
Whiplash is extremely complicated. However, we can discuss the basic steps that happen during a whiplash injury by using a car crash as an example. In order to understand what is happening during the phases of whiplash, imagine you are driving or traveling in a car or similar vehicle.
Forward Motion
When traveling forward in a car, the driver (and any passengers) are moving at the same speed as the car itself. You can confirm this fact by feeling a sensation of continuing to move forward slightly when you have to quickly press on the breaks.
A Quick Stop Due to a Collision
To further demonstrate whiplash, imagine that you now encounter a solid, immovable object (such as a wall) as you are traveling forward.
The wall will immediately stop your car’s forward momentum, but you will continue to move forward until the seat belt pulls you back.
Rapid Backward Motion
Once the seat belt engages, it will yank your body backward. As this all happens, your head is forced into a very fast forward and backward motion, much like a whip.
Because of this series of events, your neck experiences high levels of strain. As a result, whiplash often causes extreme neck pain.
At the same time, your brain can literally move forward and backward in your skull. This can lead to varying levels of brain injury. In some cases, you could even develop permanent brain damage during a whiplash injury.
Initial Care for Whiplash
After you’ve suffered from whiplash, you’ll likely need to visit the hospital emergency room for assessment.
At this point, the emergency team will evaluate you for both bony and soft tissue injuries. Specifically, they’ll want to make certain that you haven’t fractured any bones in your neck. Just to be safe, they may send you home with a neck brace or other protective measures to ensure that you are not at risk for further injuring the area in question.
Long-Term Care for Whiplash
Once your initial injuries have been addressed, you’ll then want to focus on some of your less-emergent symptoms. For example, you will likely suffer from neck pain, headaches, and many other issues after a whiplash injury.
You have a number of treatment options that may be viable solutions for your needs. For example, participating in some progressive exercise including stretching and strengthening can help many people who suffer from whiplash. However, we recommend that you seek out a qualified chiropractor to further help with your whiplash issues.
Chiropractors work to improve the health of the central nervous system. They do so by ensuring optimal spinal alignment through the use of spinal adjustments. These treatments are quick, effective, and pose almost no risk to the patient.
Have you been in a car accident or developed whiplash due to another traumatic injury? If so, the team at At Last Chiropractic is available to help you get better today! We are the best chiropractors in Lithia, FL, and we know you’ll agree once you stop in to see us. Book your first visit today!
