How Can a Chiropractor Help After a Car Accident?

Being in a car accident can be scary, overwhelming, and stressful. If you're lucky enough to avoid serious life altering injuries, you may be tempted to simply take some over the counter medication and rest until you feel a bit better.

But what if your pain doesn't go away? What if other secondary conditions (symptoms) pop up?

If you have neck pain or back pain after being involved in a car accident, you could have a spinal ligament, or disc injury. These are the soft tissues that are commonly the source of pain in a whiplash. If you don't get the right type of care, those injuries could have serious negative impacts on your health.

Research shows that during a cervical spine (neck) acceleration deceleration injury (whiplash). The posterior and anterior longitudinal ligaments are rapidly stretched. These ligaments support and stabilize the front and back of the cervical spine. They are very important because they keep the vertebra stacked and aligned on top of one another.

Stretching a ligament slowly isn't a big problem however when it is stretched rapidly, the ligament can tear or rupture. Think of it this way, if you take silly putty, yeah that stuff you played with as a kid, and pull it apart slowly. The putty will stretch, however if you pull the silly putty apart quickly it will just tear into two pieces. This is what happens to a ligament in a car accident. In the most extreme case, a ligament pulls apart or ruptures, most of the time the ligament is damaged on the cellular level where the collagen fibers are torn. This injury starts a cascade effect that leads to hypermobility and early arthritis and degeneration.

Types of Injuries Due to Car Crashes

Every car accident is different, and there are many types of injuries that can result depending on the type of crash you're in. The severity of the crash will have a big impact on your potential injuries, but even a minor accident or fender bender can cause trauma to your body.

Other potential injuries that can occur after an accident are:

• Bruises
• Lacerations
• Broken bones or fractures
• Ligament sprains
• Concussions
• Disc herniations
• Traumatic brain injuries
• Soft-tissue injuries

How does Specific Structural Chiropractic Care Help?

Specific structural chiropractic care doesn't just treat the symptoms of your pain, but the underlying injury or injuries causing your pain. Over the counter medications and rest offer temporary relief, but not long-term relief, which could last years if you don't treat your car accident-related injuries properly.

Even if you were wearing a seat belt or driving at a low speed during your accident, you could still sustain serious injuries.

No two accident injuries are the same, some respond well with only chiropractic care, while some are more complex and in addition to chiropractic need other healthcare specialists. Just like the old saying it takes a village to raise a child, in some cases it takes a circle of different healthcare specialists to treat a patient.

When to Call a Specific Structural Chiropractic Doctor for Help

How do you know when you need to see a physical therapist or a pain management doctor? When should you see a neurologist versus a neurosurgeon? If you have a disc herniation do you need to have surgery? These are many questions that come up and you need help navigating these ruff waters. That's where a specific structural chiropractor comes into play.

Additionally, if you plan on pursuing a lawsuit against a careless driver, you'll need sufficient documentation and a solid diagnosis before taking on a personal injury case. As a specific structural chiropractor I work with many healthcare specialists in the area to get the patient the care and treatment they need.

Listen to one of our happy patients who came to Dr. Gessert after an accident:

"I was in a car accident and had whiplash about a year ago. I was unsure of exactly how to treat it and how/if insurance would cover treatment. Dr. Andrew examined my neck and spine to create specific treatment for myself and injury. He then also worked directly with my insurance company and claim adjuster to complete payment.
Of course, there were issues with the insurance company (they never make anything easy) but Dr. Andrew was patient and helpful while it continued to get resolved.

If you've been in accident and are dealing with any lingering pain, I'd recommend visiting Dr. Andrew. He'll tailor your appointments specifically to your needs and is an expert at handling claims with insurance companies. I've also have visited Dr. Andrew to maintain my spinal health and will continue to do so."

— Stephanie S.

See Dr. Gessert for Relief Following a Car Accident

Our goal at Pivotal Chiropractic is to restore normal structural integrity to your spine. Most chiropractors practicing in the Ann Arbor area are of the conventional variety. A conventional chiropractor has the following goals in mind when it comes to patient care. They focus on reducing pain, inflammation, muscle spasms and increasing range of motion. This is what most chiropractors offer in the way of care, and we believe that most of them do a great job at it.

Unlike conventional chiropractors, at Pivotal Chiropractic, we focus on "Specific Structural Correction." A specific structural correction chiropractor's goal is to correct the structural problem that was caused by your accident and then show you how to keep it corrected. To do this we will create a plan of care that is specifically customized for you and your condition.

Dr. Gessert has assembled an excellent team of healthcare professionals in the community. If during your consultation we find that Pivotal Chiropractic isn't the right fit for you then we will refer you to the best health practitioner to help with your concern.

Contact us today for a complimentary consultation by calling 734-221-0362 or filling out the contact form!