How to Avoid Continuous Pain After a Car Accident with Chiropractic Care

Car accidents are extremely common, and most people will be involved in a fender bender at some point during their lifetime. Unfortunately, even a fairly minor car accident can result in injury. Whiplash is one of the most common injuries associated with car accidents and occurs when the force of the collision causes the neck to whip back and forth suddenly. This hyperextends the muscles and other connective tissues in the neck, causing countless micro-tears that then need to heal. 

Unsurprisingly, many people who are involved in a car accident experience discomfort or pain. The severity of this pain can vary, as can how long you experience it. In many instances, the pain isn’t even obvious right away, and this is usually a result of adrenaline that pumps around the body after a traumatic event masking it. Unless you receive treatment to help your body heal and recover, the pain that you experience could go on for weeks, months, or even years.

Fortunately, this doesn’t have to be the case. It is possible to avoid living with continuous pain after a car accident if you take advantage of chiropractic care.

Benefits of chiropractic care following a car accident

There are a variety of reasons why many people seek and are advised to seek chiropractic care following a car accident.

Minimize pain

Pain medications can help to get your discomfort under control, but many people are reluctant to take strong drugs. Fortunately, chiropractic care provides a natural and drug-free alternative. Chiropractic adjustments have been shown to release natural pain-relieving hormones including oxytocin, neurotensin, and cortisol, minimizing your pain without taking man-made medications.

Reduce inflammation

Inflammation is an unavoidable consequence of physical injury and is the body’s way of protecting itself from further damage while it heals. Unfortunately, too much inflammation can actually be harmful and cause severe discomfort. Chiropractic treatment helps to reduce inflammation as when the spine is realigned, the body automatically reduces cytokine production which slows down your natural inflammatory response. Reducing inflammation improves your flexibility and mobility, as well as reducing your pain.

Stop scar tissue

It’s very normal for scar tissue to develop after any sort of injury, including those sustained in car accidents. For example, when muscles and tendons are damaged, the body creates extra collagen at the injury site to try and heal them. This excess collagen causes scar tissue – which is thicker, raised tissue – to form. However, the nature of scar tissue means that it can cause stiffness and mobility problems, and this in turn can cause long-term pain. Chiropractic treatment has been found to be beneficial in minimizing the formation of scar tissue, by helping the body to heal more quickly using extra blood flow and nutrients to the area before scar tissue has a chance to form.

Restore mobility

If you are in pain, you’ll naturally find it harder to move around. Much of this discomfort stems from stiffness and loss of flexibility. As we know, stiffness is usually the result of inflammation, but the loss of flexibility is often down to misalignment of the spine. Your chiropractor can identify areas of your body where your range of motion has become limited and use chiropractic techniques to help realign your spine and balance your musculoskeletal system. Alongside corrective exercises, these techniques can also strengthen weakened areas of your body and restore your mobility, enabling you to move around without pain.

If you have been involved in a car accident and are concerned about the discomfort that you are experiencing, please contact our expert chiropractic team for advice and support. Call Brookdale Health at our office in Minneapolis, MN at 763-561-4045 to schedule an appointment.