How Do You Treat Whiplash After An Accident?

How Do You Treat Whiplash?

Have you heard the phrase, “Your internet search is not a replacement for my medical degree?” This article is intended to be a starting point for whiplash treatment. The letters after my name above do not qualify me to give medical advice. I am not a medical doctor. I am an attorney. I can give only legal advice. Please consult a medical professional about any and all injuries you may have.

1. Seek medical care after every accident

If you are ever involved in a car accident, see a medical professional the same day as the accident. Go to an emergency room, an urgent care facility, or to your regular doctor. You may feel fine after the accident, but you may have injuries you have not yet identified. Or perhaps, you have injuries that worse than you think they are.
Whiplash is an injury that often appears a couple of days after the accident. It can manifest as muscle pain, tingling, or headaches. Most cases can be treated with home remedies – but a medical opinion will ensure that there no other underlying issues.

2. Home Remedies

The first treatment for any neck or back pain after an auto accident is to take over-the-counter pain medicine like Ibuprofen or acetaminophen. In order to provide additional relief, you may place a cold pack or ice pack on the affected areas. After using ice, heat from a warm bath or heating pad may be beneficial.
In any case, anyone experiencing whiplash after a car crash should rest. Avoid contact sports, and avoid straining the neck any further.

3. Further Care

If your pain, tingling, and headaches have not improved with two or three days after the accident, go back to the doctor for further treatment. What feels like mere whiplash could include torn tissue and nerve damage. Your doctor can prescribe more powerful pain killers and exercises to improve your pain.

4. Physical Therapy and Massage

Your doctor may recommend or you may seek out the help of a physical therapist. Physical therapy can do wonders for treating whiplash by treating the root causes of your pain and all of the affected tissues injured in the accident. A message is another common treatment for pain.
If you would like your insurance company to pay for physical therapy or messages, you will most likely need a prescription or written recommendation from a doctor. I am not devaluing these treatments, it is just that insurance companies do not like to pay for things – especially if they deem them to be unnecessary.

5. Alternative Treatments

Acupuncture and chiropractic care can also be used to treat the pain caused by a whiplash injury after a collision or accident. However, auto insurance companies do not like to pay for such treatment. If you would like to have your insurance company pay for treatment or to receive compensation for such treatment as part of your settlement award, ask for a doctor’s recommendation or prescription.