Car accidents cause many kinds of injuries. One of the most common is whiplash. The impact of the car crash makes your head make a quick, jerking motion forward and backward. The sudden motion can stretch and tear the muscles and tendons in your neck, which causes neck strain.
Whiplash injuries are dangerous because you might not notice them at first. The initial shock of a car accident can mask the symptoms of your injuries. You might even think you’re perfectly fine and don’t need to see a doctor. But this can make your injuries worse because they’re not being treated.
If you’ve been injured in a car accident that wasn’t your fault, you might feel stressed about recovering, missing work, and paying the medical bills. With a Lexington car accident injury lawyer at your side, you can potentially get compensation for the damages the other party caused. The Law Office of Todd W. Burris will help you protect your rights.
Whiplash Can Affect Different Areas
While whiplash occurs when the head quickly snaps back and forth, you might feel pain in other places besides your neck. Whiplash can affect many areas in your upper body.
Some people might feel the pain immediately, but others might feel the symptoms later. You have to see a doctor to protect your health and your claim. Serious conditions like concussions or feeling extremely sleepy and dizzy need to be treated as soon as possible. If you wait to see a doctor and your injuries get worse, you might not be able to get compensation for those injuries because you waited too long to see a doctor.
Whiplash Symptoms Vary
Because whiplash can affect different parts of your body, the symptoms are varied, too. It can range from pain to tingling sensations, but they’re all serious and need medical treatment to heal.
One common issue most people struggle with is worrying about getting back to work. We have a tendency to minimize our pain in an effort to get back to our regular lives as soon as possible. Some people feel like their coworkers are judging them for missing work to recover. This stress builds and leads them to return to work before they’ve made a full recovery. But going back to work before you’re ready could make your injuries worse and prolong your recovery.
- Headaches. Whiplash can irritate nerves and joints, which can manifest as headaches.
- Neck Pain or Stiffness. Neck pain can be concentrated or move from your neck to your shoulder. The stiffness limits your typical range of motion, and a joint or muscle could be causing the mobility issue.
- Upper Back Pain. Ligaments and tissues can tear when you get whiplash, resulting in pain in your upper back and shoulder areas.
- Numbness. Weakness and tingling also occur in arms, hands, and fingers. This is caused by inflammation of your neck’s nerve roots.
- Dizziness. This can occur from an issue with your neck or your head. This is why it’s so important to get to a doctor, because you might have a traumatic brain injury.
- Issues with Vision. After you get whiplash, you can get blurry vision. This is indicative of an issue with a nerve or also cause dizziness.
- Emotional Changes. Sometimes, whiplash can cause changes to your personality. You might experience anxiousness or depression. Your doctor will help you find out if it’s because of a concussion, PTSD, or dealing with the physical pain from your injuries.
Whiplash manifests in many ways, but with the right medical care, you’ll heal from this injury. The important thing is to give yourself time to heal. This could be financially challenging, but with the right injury lawyer, the other party can be held financially responsible.
