Can whiplash affect other areas of the body?

Whiplash is one of the most common injuries that people can suffer from after experiencing an accident. This injury can often go unnoticed. There may be a time where you believe that there has been no injury at all, but hours or days later you start to feel symptoms that you haven’t felt up to that point.

No matter how you feel after your accident, it is always important to seek medical attention from your top Charlotte chiropractor. Your endorphins and adrenaline levels, after the accident, can stop you from feeling any immediate pain. This can cause any serious injuries to go undetected until your body has had a chance to go back to a normal state.

The majority of people believe that whiplash will only affect the neck. They are right to think that it does affect the neck, however, it can affect you in multiple ways.

What is whiplash?

The term whiplash is commonly used to describe a neck strain or sprain. It occurs when your head quickly moves back and forth like a whip, usually after being rear-ended in a car. This injury can damage the soft tissues within the neck such as tendons, ligaments, and discs. Recovery from whiplash can take days, months, or even years.

Whiplash is a two-part injury. First, hyperextension, a motion that opens a joint, is created from the jerking movement in the neck. After that, there is a too-far, too-fast reversal of that motion, known as a hyperflexion. Either one of these situations can cause an injury to the tissues in your neck. Together, they are more dangerous.

How a whiplash can affect the rest of your body

There are many symptoms, along with neck pain, that can be developed from a whiplash injury.

Symptoms can start to develop a few days after an accident in other areas throughout your body. The most common symptoms include:

  • Blurred vision
  • Dizziness
  • Constant weariness
  • Ringing in the ears
  • Concentration and memory issues
  • Loss of sleep
  • Headaches
  • Irritability

Some symptoms can be more serious than others and all require you to visit your doctor.

Whiplash in Charlotte NC: next steps

Whiplash symptoms can be relieved through the care of an experienced chiropractor. Your chiropractor can use various techniques that may include stretching and manipulating the spine to improve your range of motion. Other areas of your body that have been affected by the overstretching of your neck during an accident can also feel some relief from this treatment.

ChiroCarolina®, one of Charlotte’s premier chiropractic clinics, is known throughout the Southeast for providing the best chiropractic care in the Uptown Charlotte, NoDa, and UNCC college areas, conveniently located on North Tryon Street. Trust ChiroCarolina® in Charlotte: visited by patients throughout the south: North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Virginia, and Texas.