Chiropractic and Whiplash

In the late 1800’s there were only two automobiles in the state of Indiana. Wouldn’t you know they would hit each other? That was perhaps the first auto accident in America. Since then there have been literally millions of injury auto accidents.

However, today cars can go 10 times faster than they did 125 years ago and there are millions more cars to run into. Enter the whiplash injury. When one car hits another the force of the impact accelerates not only the car it hits, but the car’s occupants as well. What can happen next is aptly described as a whiplash injury.

During this type of accident, the head (attached to the shoulders by the neck) stays motionless “in space” for just as long as it takes the neck to stretch to maximum extension. Then a violent forward whipping of the head, neck and upper back take place. Seen in slow motion, the injury may remind you of the cartoon character Road Runner. In his speedy departures his body leaves first, then his head is pulled after him by his neck. Road Runner’s neck stretches like a rubber band. However, when hit even at low speeds, we humans may suffer serious head, neck and upper back injury.

What actually happens is muscles, ligaments, discs and nerves, even the bones, can be torn in a whiplash injury. An examination may reveal muscles in spasm; inflamed and sprained joints and occasionally x-rays will show fractures from ligaments tearing parts of bone away.

However, the worst aspect of these injuries can be the long-term irritation and damage done to the delicate nerves at the base of the skull, the neck and upper back. Weakened and misaligned joints and scar tissue put pressure on nerves, cause pain and impair nerve function for a lifetime.

This can cause serious chronic headache and neck pain, plus radiating pain, numbness and or tingling into the shoulders, arms, hands and upper back. Untreated, the misaligned bones wear badly and degenerate.

What should you do if you think you have had a whiplash injury? The best approach is to see your chiropractor. He will take a health and accident history, do a physical examination of your neck and test for muscle and joint damage. When needed, x-rays will be taken to determine the extent of the injuries.

Of all the treatment options available, chiropractic care is both effective and safe. Gentle realignment of the spine, physical therapy and corrective exercises can affect a full symptomatic and structural recovery. But don’t delay treatment. Too many accident victims wait and suffer too long because some well meaning, but misinformed doctor has told them that the symptoms will go away by themselves.

In the mean time, adjust your headrest to the middle of your head, buckle your seatbelt and drive carefully. Dr. Noel Lloyd, Sound Chiropractic Center of Northgate, Seattle, WA

Should You See Sound Chiropractic For Your Tension Headache?

The most common pain in America is headache. Hundreds of millions of dollars are spent on several dozen over the counter remedies, each one promising quick relief. But do they deliver? What actually causes headache pain and is there a cure for the cause? Let’s see why our heads hurt.

Most headaches are separated into one of several categories. For the purposes of this article we will consider the most common and most expensive: tension headache.

You already have a good idea how this one works: it’s a hectic day with too many things to do, deadlines to meet and what may feel like too many unreasonable demands – before you know it, you have a headache. For some it’s a mild ache at the base of the skull or forehead, but for others it can be blinding and debilitating pain. What’s actually gone wrong?

Let’s start with your head: it weighs 10 to 12 pounds and sits on top of a column spinal bones called vertebrae, muscles, ligaments, discs, blood vessels, nerves and other tissues covered with skin that form the neck. So far so good, but when under pressure we can tense up and tighten the muscles at the base of the skull, neck and shoulders. This causes poor biomechanics, restricted movement, the neck vertebrae are squeezed tighter together and pain ensues.

But why does your co-worker, who’s under twice the pressure you are, never get a headache? Tension alone won’t cause headache: the difference lies in what those tense muscles are attached to and cover. If the neck bones, called vertebrae, are even slightly misaligned, muscle tension can create painful nerve pressure.

Now we have emotional tension from the stress, tight muscles that restrict normal fluid motion of the neck bones, impaired movement and nerve pressure. It’s a perfect recipe for a tension headache.

If the vertebrae in the neck are aligned well, you can experience quite a lot of tension and not have it cause you any pain at all. You may be irritated and stressed out, but not in physical pain. Well that’s good for your pain-free co-worker, but how about you. You would like to quit living on what are for many, dangerous over the counter or prescription medication and take care of the cause of your headache. Then see your chiropractor.

Your chiropractor will take a health history, do an examination of the nerves that most commonly cause tension headache and examine your spine to see if those nerves are impinged by misaligned vertebrae. When indicated, spinal x-rays will be taken to see exactly where the spinal bones are misaligned and how to re-align the spine to correct the problem.

Chiropractic adjustments can correct the cause by re-aligning the vertebrae to their normal position with gentle exercises to strengthen to new and proper positioning. If you would like to leave the pain and the drugs behind, chiropractic offers a promising solution by dealing with the cause of tension headache.

Dr. Noel Lloyd, Sound Chiropractic Center of Northgate in Seattle, WA. Visit us at www.soundchiropractic.com for more information.

Now's Not The Time...

It happens mysteriously every year around this time. Good health becomes optional and time and money is now spent on Christmas. While it's perfectly logical that your resources move this time of year, now's not the time to totally neglect your health.

The weather's cold, the stress is high, we drink more, eat more, and have more obligations. Our health is under attack this time of year and it becomes even more critical to take good care of ourselves.

Avoid the trap and don't take a holiday from your health this season. Take some extra vitamins, slip in some extra glasses of water throughout the day, and maintain your chiropractic treatment schedule. These may seem like small things, but your body needs these things right now more than usual.

Now's not the time to stop maintaining your health. Start the new year healthy!