Auto accidents involve the stretching and straining of nerves, muscles, and ligaments. The impact from even a seemingly minor collision can cause significant damage do to forces involved. The muscles are just not strong enough to resist the impact. Whiplash types of injuries initially produce blood flow, or inflammation, to the traumatized area to aid in repair to the damaged tissues. In this initial phase of injury an individual will experience severe pain and discomfort with any kind of movement to the head and neck. Understandably the patient becomes overly cautious and will protect themselves from any movement. This is unfortunate because overtime from lack of proper rehabilitation the neck musculature becomes chronically weak, and scar tissue develops. The combination of both weak muscles and damaged ligaments sets in. Strength and support for the neck are severely diminished, and without proper care you will be very vulnerable to future injury and disc degeneration.

Another important thing to remember is that right after an auto accident you may not experience immediate pain. In fact, having instant severe pain is a good indication that you have suffered a severe trauma. But, most low impact collisions do not produce immediate pain. Often the individual will feel disorientated, and any stiffness or pain will occur over the next few days. Unfortunately many patients think little of this stiffness and write it off as insignificant and not worth seeking medical or chiropractic attention. It can take up to two weeks to feel the effects of a whiplash injury, and without any kind of treatment will result in permanent damage to cervical spine. This is why it’s important to see a doctor of chiropractic immediately to see if things are ok following an accident.

Whiplash causes the neck bones to displace from the stretched ligaments and discs. Over time the bones gradually move further into the direction of the damaged ligaments. Since gravity is working all of the time, the tendency over time is for the misalignments to get worse. Once a critical threshold is reached, the nerves become irritated and pain develops.
An initial slight discomfort has now become much worse because the neck has healed in this abnormal position. The scar tissue that occurs after injury is now holding the neck in an abnormal position.

When injury occurs we may adapt or compensate to the abnormal position. But over time the limits to this compensation are passed, producing pain. Because of the scar formation that develops after injury, the joints of the spine may not move normally. To compensate for this limited motion at some joints, others have to take up the slack. These joints then become hyper mobile, producing irritation to the nerves and spinal cord. The hyper mobility is produced by stretched-out ligaments. As months and even years pass, the stretched ligaments become even more stretched out due to the effects of gravity and the movements of our head in every day life. The athlete may notice these changes right away because their physical performance is something they are very accustomed to. In someone with a more sedentary life-style, the neck pain, stiffness, or headaches may come on months or even years after the injury.

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