As you're driving or perhaps waiting at a red light, you unexpectedly get hit from behind. Wow, what a surprise! You quickly assess yourself for any visible injuries, then step out to check on the other driver and inspect your car. Later that day, you might start to feel some pain in your neck.
Whiplash is a neck injury that happens when the head is suddenly thrown forward and then backward, like in a car crash or sports accident. This quick movement can stretch or hurt the muscles and tissues in the neck.
People with whiplash may feel pain and stiffness in their neck, have headaches, feel dizzy, or have trouble moving their head. Some might also feel pain in their shoulders or upper back, tingling in their arms, or feel extra tired. These problems can start right away or take a few days to show up, and they can last for a short time or even a few months
Many people recover on their own with rest and time. However, some experience symptoms that weeks or months after the injury. If that sounds like you, it's time to seek care from a physical therapist.
We start by calming down those, rightfully so, irritated tissues. After a full examination to rule out any red flags, they will perform gentle manual therapy techniques to soothe the neck. There is likely a fair amount of muscle guarding going on in order to protect the spine. We need to remind the muscles it's safe now and they can go ahead and relax.
Gentle stretching. The neck just went through a fair amount of trauma, we don't need to crank hard into a stretch. Light, mild, comfortable stretching is where it's at.
There is conflicting information on whether to ice or to heat a muscle injury. Generally speaking, we recommend icing during the first 3-5 days of an injury to reduce excessive inflammation and swelling. After that time frame, we recommend heat to increase blood flow to the muscles of your neck to prevent the sensation of tightness.
Once your acute injury has calmed down your physical therapist will guide you through appropriate postural and deep neck muscle strengthening.
If you have neck pain related to whiplash reach out to our office today!