If you ask, most Floridians will tell you that Florida drivers are the worst. It turns out, they’re not wrong. The insurance site Autowise.com has ranked Florida as the “official home of the horrible driver.” It’s not surprising that Florida also has the most car accidents annually.
If you live or work in Stuart, Florida, chances are you or someone you know will be involved in a car accident.
Being in a car crash can be frightening. Right after the crash, your body releases an adrenaline rush. This decreases your ability to feel pain, increases your strength, and sharpens your mental focus. Because of this adrenaline rush, you may refuse treatment at the scene only to wake up the next morning feeling intense pain.
It’s a common misconception that the vehicle crash damage is in direct correlation to the degree of occupant injury. A study published in the Society of Automotive Engineers, Lack of Relationship Between Vehicle Damage and Occupant Injury, dispels this widely held myth with mathematical equations and models.
In other words, even a seemingly minor fender bender can result in injuries that need treatment for the driver and/or passengers.
Chiropractic care after a car accident
Following a car accident, you should be seen if you feel any level of discomfort. It’s a good idea to get checked out after a car accident even if you feel fine. Many serious injuries can take days – even weeks or months – to appear. Your chiropractor can determine whether you sustained any serious injuries in the accident. Your chiropractor can also give you advice on monitoring symptoms of potential injuries, including red flags that may indicate traumatic brain injury or a concussion.
Chiropractors specialize in treating the musculoskeletal injuries common in car accidents. You don’t need to retain a lawyer in order to see a chiropractor after your car accident.
If you schedule an appointment with Advanced Wellness Solutions after an auto accident, Dr. Danielle will perform a comprehensive examination. Dr. Danielle has the ability to order advanced imagining such as MRI’s and CT scans based upon her examination results. This imaging can help to determine and document the extent of your injuries. It’s important to note that medical imaging can’t capture and identify the micro-tears that occur in your ligaments and muscles after even minor car accidents. These micro-tears can not only cause pain, but they also result in scarring. Unlike a surface scar on your skin, scar tissue and adhesions are often the culprit of musculoskeletal pain. Chiropractic care can help break up scar tissue and adhesions, relieving stiffness, pain and discomfort it causes.
Scheduling an appointment with a medical professional (including a chiropractor) within 14 days of your accident will “activate” your Florida PIP insurance benefits. For most injuries, you’ll know within this 2 week window whether or not you’re injured. However, some injuries – like concussions and other traumatic brain injuries – may not show symptoms for weeks or even months after the accident. That’s why it’s so important to get checked out within 2 weeks after your car accident.
Of course, the best case scenario is you don’t get injured in your car accident. However, here are just three of the most serious injuries you can sustain in a car crash.
Serious Car Accident Injury #1 Whiplash:
Whiplash is a soft tissue neck injury that occurs when the neck snaps back and forth in a rapid motion. The pain of a whiplash injury can start immediately or develop days, weeks, or sometimes even months later. 1 Symptoms can vary widely among individuals. Symptoms of whiplash include but are no limited to:
- neck pain
- headaches
- stiffness
- numbness or tingling in the arms
- blurred vision
- sleep disturbances
- memory problems
- ringing in the ears
Soft-tissue injuries like whiplash can take a long time to heal. One study found that more than 70 percent of people who visited the emergency room after a car accident were still in pain six weeks later. Other researchers have noted that nearly half of whiplash sufferers continue to experience symptoms three months later, while 25 percent remain symptomatic for six months.1
Without proper treatment, some injuries can continue to cause pain for years.
Serious Car Accident Injury # 2 Traumatic Brain Injury:
Head injuries should always be taken seriously. What may seem like a mild injury – literally a “bump to the head” – can be lethal if there is undetected bleeding in the brain. If you’re in a car wreck and have struck your head, even if you feel fine, you should definitely get checked.
The symptoms of a traumatic brain injury may appear immediately after the crash. However, it’s possible that the symptoms of a traumatic brain injury may not be noticeable for days or even months after your accident. Some signs of a traumatic brain injury include
- headaches
- irritability
- trouble concentrating
- dizziness
- fatigue
- anxiety
- depression
- sleep disturbances
- repeated vomiting
- slurred speech
- decreased coordination
If you’ve suffered a traumatic brain injury, you may not realize you have these symptoms. It may be your family, friends and co-workers who notice these symptoms. While others may notice that you’re irritable or having trouble concentrating, they may not realize this is a sign of a traumatic brain injury.
A concussion is a mild traumatic brain injury. According to Brainline, accidents that cause a concussion can be so minor that neither doctor nor patient makes the connection.
This is why, even if you feel fine, you should still be checked by a medical professional after even minor car accidents.
Serious Car Accident Injury #3 Spinal Cord Injury:
In the most severe cases, spinal cord injuries can lead to paraplegia, triplegia or quadriplegia. However, just because you’re able to move your arms and legs after a car accident doesn’t mean your spinal cord wasn’t injured. Some of the most common signs of a spinal cord injury include
- breathing problems
- loss of bladder or bowel function
- loss of feeling in the arms or legs
- muscle weakness or paralysis in the trunk
- heart rate problems
- blood pressure problems
- or sexual dysfunction.
Of course, there are other injuries that can occur during a car accident, including:
- broken bones
- fractured ribs
- internal bleeding
- herniated disc
- knee trauma
- shoulder trauma
The moments during a car crash are often violent. Your body is subjected to extreme forces that can affect the body in unexpected ways.
It’s important to seek medical care after a car accident.
After a car accident, it’s important to see a medical professional who is experienced working with the severe trauma that can result from even low impact car crashes. Should you need surgery or other medical care outside of the scope of chiropractic, Dr. Danielle will refer you to the right medical professional for your needs.
When you visit Advanced Wellness Solutions after you car accident, Dr. Danielle will not manually adjust you until she determines the extent of your injuries. While she won’t be manually adjusting you, she will provide treatment modalities that will help ease your pain and discomfort. These treatments help your body release IL-6, an important anti-inflammatory substance the body produces to help with acute injuries.
For car accident victims, who are often left in debilitating pain, a doctor of chiropractic can be a beacon of hope.
Dr. Danielle Hurd specializes in treating people who are in pain. She is a sought after chiropractic physician who frequently treats the severe injuries caused by car accidents. Whether it’s a recent injury or the lingering effects of a past injury, Dr. Danielle has helped hundreds of patients achieve drug free relief from chronic and persistent pain.
Her office is located in the VIP America Home Health building at 2500 S Kanner Hwy Suite 3, Stuart, FL 34994
If you’ve been in a car accident, call 855-509-5400 to schedule your appointment.
