4 Questions You May Have About Whiplash After A Car Accident

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Whiplash is a common injury caused by car accidents, especially when a person is hit from behind. The motion of being pushed forward and pulled backwards is what causes whiplash, and the symptoms can be minor or major. In some cases, people that experience whiplash end up with long-term effects they must deal with for many years or for the rest of their life. It can be hard to know how long the effects will last, which is why you may want to ask for long-term compensation for this issue.

What Are The Symptoms Of Whiplash?

While whiplash can occur with any car accident, the chances of getting it are greater if you are rear ended and if there was a great deal of impact. The problem with whiplash is knowing whether or not you have it, because the symptoms of whiplash do not always set in right away It often takes a few days for them to appear after an accident occurs. Some of the symptoms you may have include:

  • Pain in your neck
  • Stiffness and loss of mobility in your neck
  • Dizziness
  • Nausea
  • Blurred vision
  • Headaches
  • Pain in your arm, shoulder, or back

If you have these symptoms after your accident, you should visit a doctor. A doctor may be able to diagnose the condition as whiplash, and this diagnosis will be necessary if you plan on seeking compensation for your injuries.

How Is It Treated?

When a person gets whiplash from an accident, a doctor will commonly treat it with pain medication. Pain medication can help by reducing the inflammation in this area and blocking the chemicals that are released when your body senses pain. Pain pills do help, but they are not a long-term solution for whiplash.

Some people prefer using natural methods to treat this, and this can include acupuncture, chiropractic adjustments, and massage therapy. Each of these methods offer a way to treat the pain without experiencing any harmful side effects.

Does It Go Away?

According to WebMD, most people that experience whiplash from a car accident fully recover within one month, but there are others that are still not the same even after one year. It appears that if a person has a great deal of mobility loss in their neck after an accident, the whiplash has a greater chance of being a long-term condition.

If you are not only diagnosed with whiplash but also are diagnosed with a fracture in this area of your body, you are also more likely to suffer from long-term effects of whiplash. This is one reason doctors will typically take x-rays of a person's neck after he or she is in a car accident.

Can You Receive Compensation For It?

If the other party's insurance company is trying to settle with you for the accident, they may not be willing to give you a large amount for your whiplash. This is why you may need to hire a car accident attorney. Your attorney will help you receive compensation that covers all your medical bills relating to the accident and for treatment of the whiplash, and your lawyer will also ask for compensation to cover:

  • Future medical bills for treating the whiplash – If your whiplash is a long-term condition, you may incur thousands of dollars of bills over the years for treatment of the condition.
  • Pain and suffering – You can also ask for money to cover your pain and suffering caused by the accident.

Whiplash can be a serious condition, and you will most likely be entitled to compensation for it. If you would like to learn more about your rights after an accident, contact a car accident attorney


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