Whiplash – Its Real and Painful

Involved in a car wreck? Told you have a cervical or thoracic strain? Told you that you have whiplash? What a horrible person you are. “Whiplash” injuries are a myth. They don’t exist and instead its just greedy lawyers trying to hurt that poor innocent insurance company.

Have you ever heard any of the above? Amazingly, this seems to be the prevailing commentary regarding “whiplash” in our corporate media driven world. Insurance companies, solely concerned with minimizing losses have tried to convince the public that “whiplash” injuries are not real. Almost every time they acknowledge a person is suffering from whiplash, they then allege they over-treated. Just today, I was talking with an adjuster who gave the same spill about over-treating. I had one simple question for her. I asked her was my client and his doctor lying? She wouldn’t answer that question.

To set the record straight, Whiplash is caused by the neck and head being thrown suddenly backward then forward upon impact. The impact can be from numerous things including car wrecks and truck crashes. Essentially, the impact forces the neck and head beyond their normal range of movement, causing tissue damage and pain.

So, if you have been in a car wreck, what symptoms should you look at to determine if you are suffering from whiplash? A victim of whiplash may experience any or all of these symptoms:

· Headaches

· Pain in the shoulders

· Pain between the shoulder blades

· Pain in one or both arms

· Fatigue

· Dizziness

· Vision problems

· Ringing in the ears (tinnitus)

· Poor concentration or memory

· Neck pain/stiffness

· Tight and/or sore muscles

· Tenderness in the muscles

· Low back pain

· Sleep disturbance

· Loss of motion in the neck

If you are suffering from these symptoms you should immediately seek medical help. Your injuries are real and serious.