The stress of a car accident can keep you from realizing you have been injured right away. In fact, with the adrenaline flowing through your body after something traumatic, it is possible to not feel an injury or recognize the severity. When it comes to car accident injuries, many are considered ‘hidden injuries’, which means their signs and symptoms might take longer to show up than you might expect. Between the stress and the adrenaline, you might not start noticing any signs or symptoms of an injury for hours or even days after the accident. It is helpful to find a chiropractor in Lithia Springs who specializes in car accident injuries that can help evaluate you after a wreck. If you don’t have any obvious or visible injuries, like scrapes and bruises or a broken bone, then you might think you haven’t suffered any injury. However, with car accident injuries often having delayed symptoms, it is important to get checked out as soon as in.
Here are 3 examples of headaches you might experience after a car accident.
Concussion Headaches
You can suffer a concussion from a car accident but not realize it right away. In all the hustle and bustle after a car accident, you might not fully realize how bumping your head on the steering wheel or window has led to a more serious injury like a concussion. However, concussions are not uncommon in car accidents because your head is not restrained during the wreck and can get shaken up or jostled around. When this happens, your head can make contact with part of the car and the blow can lead to a concussion. Your brain is typically protected by a special fluid inside the skull, but a violent jolt or strong force may cause the brain to collide with the walls of your skull, which may cause bruising. This can lead to painful headaches as well as dizziness, sensitivity to light and sound, nausea, vomiting, and even memory loss. Even what seemed like a small bump on the head could lead to a concussion when it occurs with a strong enough force from something like a car accident.
Whiplash Headaches
Whiplash is an unfortunate but common injury in car accident victims because of how the head and neck are more susceptible to the force of impact and getting jostled around. While your seatbelt holds your upper body in place, your head and neck can strain forward and fling backward with the force of the car accident. Whiplash can cause muscle strain in your neck, where your neck muscles will become sore, stiff, and you may find it difficult to turn your head certain ways. You can also suffer spinal damage in your neck due to a whiplash injury suffered in a car accident. Whiplash is an example of one of those hidden injuries that can take a while for symptoms to appear. One of the first symptoms you might experience after whiplash is a headache. It may start low in the base of your neck and radiate into the rest of your head.
Tension Headaches
Tension headaches can occur after a car accident due to the stress and strain of the accident on your muscles and other soft tissues. The force of another vehicle colliding with yours can cause your body to get jostled around and shaken up, causing your body to stretch in uncomfortable and unusual ways. This can lead to soreness and even overstretched or torn muscles. If you were able to brace for the impact, your body was likely tensed up and this can also cause painful headaches called tension headaches. Any strain to your muscles or soft tissues in the body can lead to a headache after a car accident as one of your main symptoms. Sometimes tension headaches occur in response to an injury, while other times they can be a sign of an area of strain that has not been treated yet.
Chiropractic Treatment for Headaches
Visit a chiropractor in Lithia Springs to learn more about what type of headaches you are experiencing after a car accident and how chiropractic care can help. At AICA Orthopedics in Lithia Springs, our team of car accident doctors and chiropractors work with these symptoms and complex injuries and develop individualized treatment plans so you can get the care you deserve.