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Health & Fitness

Is it better to relax before IMPACT?

Is it better to relax before the impact of a car accident or try to brace beforehand?  If you knew or were aware that an accident was about to happen does that actually help you or hurt you?

I can almost guarantee when you ask someone that question even if it’s a perfect stranger they would say, “It’s better to be relaxed”.  Even now when you first read the question above I bet you thought to yourself of course it’s better to be relaxed.  I believe one reason why so many people believe this are the horrific news stories of someone killed by a drunk driver and the drunken person lives.    

Maybe we should ask if you knew or were aware that an accident was about to happen to you does that actually help or hurt you? 

This topic and question of whether it’s better to be relaxed or braced before a car accident plays a significant part in my life.  I was involved in two major car accidents when I was younger.  Both accidents were front-end collisions.  The first accident I was fully aware that I was about to crash.  The second accident felt like I hit an invisible concrete wall!  In the second accident the other vehicle was cutting through traffic and when he approached my lane we collided.  The biggest difference between the two was that I was completely caught by surprise with the second accident.  Subsequently I had severe neck and low back whiplash, had to have two root canals on my front teeth and eventually started having daily migraine headaches.  All that pain and suffering led me to find a Chiropractor that saved my LIFE!  Once my headaches along with the other injuries cleared up I knew what I was meant to do! 

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 From the research I have read and the car accident’s I have experienced I will say that it is better to know and brace accordingly before an accident is about to happen.  Now the reality is that accidents happen so fast we don’t usually have time to brace.  And now that just about everyone owns a smartphone, driving with distractions makes it even harder to pay attention and prepare for an accident.   

     Five facts you need to know if you’re involved in a car accident:

Being caught by surprise or being unaware prior to impact worsens the prognosis.[1]
 

Damage to the spine and other soft tissues begin within 2 weeks of having a car accident.  The injury to the spine causes a cycle of degeneration that leads to nerve damage.[2]


Women are more likely to suffer long-term consequences from an injury.[3]

Arthritic or degenerative disc disease at one or more level can appear on x-rays 7 years after a rear end collision.[4]

If your head is turned at the moment of impact this can produce more severe damage.[5] 

Tell me your story.  Have you ever had a front or rear end collision?  And if so what happened?  Did you start having symptoms of whiplash, which can range from neck pain/stiffness to numbness/tingling, dizziness, headaches, blurred vision, difficulty swallowing or even loss of memory.  TDid you see it coming or was it a surprise?  Did you get checked or are you still having issues because of the accident? 

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Bryan Wright, D.C.

The Specific Chiropractic Center
http://www.thespecific.com/

http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-specific-chiropractic-center-elk-grove
3117 Dwight Rd. #200, ELk Grove, CA
916.427.HOPE(4673)

[1]  Ryan, Neck Strain in Car Occupants:  Injury Status after 6 Months and Crash-Related Factors, P. 536., McCain, Clinical Spectrum and Management of Whiplash Injuries, P. 316., Sturzenegger, The Effect of Accident Mechanisms and Initial Findings on the Long-Term Course of Whiplash Injury, P. 446-447.  

[2]  Wound Healing:  Alternatives in Management p 18-19.

[3] Accident Analysis & Prevention.  How crash severity in react impacts/influences short and long-             term consequences to the neck.  Vol. 32, Issue 2; March 2000; p. 187-195.

[4] Deans, Neck Sprain – A Major Cause of Disability Following Car Accidents, P. 10.  Holm, in The Cervical Spine, Lippincott, 1989, P. 440.

[5] Webb, Whiplash:  Mechanisms and Patterns of Tissue Injury, Journal of Australian Chiropractors’ Association, June, 1985.  McCain, Clinical Spectrum and Management of Whiplash Injuries, P. 316.





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