The First Indications That You May Be Suffering From A Whiplash Injury

If you have been involved in a minor road traffic accident and, at first glance, you seem to have walked away from the accident having escaped injury, you may be feeling relieved and 'lucky' not to have sustained any serious injury. Minor car accidents can cause interference with your day to day activities – i.e. you may have to take a few hours off work to call your insurance company or to arrange for the use of a hire car while any damage to your own vehicle is being repaired. With all of this going on, it can be easy to ignore any niggling symptoms that start to appear over the hours and days following the accident. This article looks at how a whiplash injury is actually caused, what the first indications that you are suffering from a whiplash may be, common symptoms of a whiplash injury, what you should do if you think you may be suffering from a whiplash injury and why you should not ignore your symptoms.

A whiplash injury is caused when the head and neck of the driver (or passengers) in the vehicle are suddenly and forcefully thrown forwards and backwards causing the soft-tissue and ligaments in the neck to be stretched beyond their normal range of movement. This can often happen as a result of one vehicle colliding with the rear of another vehicle, commonly where the vehicle that has been hit was stationary or in a queue of slow moving traffic.

Following the collision, you may not be immediately aware that you are suffering from a whiplash injury as symptoms often take several hours, or even several days, to appear. The first indications that you may be suffering from a whiplash injury may be that you start to experience pain and stiffness in your neck, shoulders and upper back. Other common symptoms of a whiplash injury include restricted movement of the neck, lethargy, headaches, nausea, dizziness and pins and needles.

If you think you may be suffering from a whiplash injury you should visit your GP or local A&E department as soon as possible to seek medical advice. The medical practitioner treating you will assess your injuries and advise you on the appropriate course of treatment. This could range from gentle mobility exercises to a course of physiotherapy.

It is important that you never ignore your symptoms as, although whiplash injuries do not usually cause any major complications, if you do not undertake the appropriate treatment for your injury your symptoms may get worse, you may develop complications and you may take a longer time to recover from your injuries.

If you are experiencing the first indications that you may be suffering from a whiplash injury you should visit your GP or local A&E department as soon as possible, before contacting an expert whiplash injury claim solicitors to discuss pursuing a claim for compensation.

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