Auto accidents are unfortunate events that can leave you with debilitating injuries on top of your car’s damage. Such a situation is also demanding as you need to do several things, including filing a police report, following up on your insurance, and even seeking a lawyer’s services. However, the most important thing to do is get immediate medical attention from an auto accident doctor. Your health is essential, and even if you walk out of an accident without any apparent injury or pain, medical attention is paramount. There are different types of specialists when it comes to auto injury doctors. You have your traditional, Western medicine pain doctors like orthopedic that can do surgeries if that is required. There are also pain medicine specialists, osteopathic, rheumatologists, and physiatrists. Then you have your alternative health pain doctors like acupuncturists. Even though acupuncturists don’t have an MD or OD next to their names, they can treat very similar symptoms as their Western counterpart like sciatica, back, knee, and other bodily pain.
One of the specialists you need to see is a chiropractor. Accidents often forcefully jostle and toss your body in unnatural ways affecting several places in your musculoskeletal system, and this is where an auto injury chiropractor can be of significant help.
What does a chiropractor do?
A chiropractor is a specialist who treats conditions affecting the body structure and other neuromuscular disorders. Their treatment is non-invasive and focuses on the manual adjustment of the spine and other affected body parts. Such treatment is effective in case of an auto injury, considering even minor injuries affect your soft tissues. There is plenty of tension, contortion, and misalignment of the body tissues, muscles, and bones in severe injury cases.
Some of the auto injuries a chiropractor help treat include;
- Whiplash
- Headaches and migraines
- Herniated discs
- Sciatica
- Muscle and ligament damage in the back and the neck
- Arm pain
- Hand and foot injury
- Hip pain
- Pain management
- Rotator cuff injury
When should you see an auto injury chiropractor?
An auto injury chiropractor is more well versed with dealing with patients that have been through automobile accidents or boating accidents. They take on more of these types of cases versus sports or work related injuries. Whether you have pain or not, the advice from specialists is that you should seek an auto injury chiropractor’s attention within 3-7 days of the accident. Usually, you have the first aid you receive from the accident scene and the general medical attention. After this, you need to seek a further examination from a chiropractor. In case of severe pain, it is advisable to get chiropractic care within 72 hours after the accident.
Accidents often affect the body structure, and thus chiropractors are the specialists best placed to conduct a thorough and effective examination. You may likely have internal injuries you are not aware of, or you think they are small, which could later result in complications.
Why it is essential to see an auto injury chiropractor urgently
There are three main reasons why your search for a chiropractor should be urgent.
First, you want to get a proper examination of your injuries to know the extent of damage to your body the accident has caused. This information allows you to seek the proper medical care, and you do not overlook any injury.
Secondly, a proper examination gives you a more accurate estimate of the kind, length, and cost of the treatment you will need. You will need this information when suing for personal injury to ensure you get the fitting compensation. Delaying to get chiropractic attention can easily leave you paying for the later costs even when the accident is a result of a third party’s negligence.
Finally, with a proper diagnosis, you get the right treatment which speeds up your recovery. Extended suffering and the reduced quality of life affects your mental health too, and it can have long-term effects on your income. Chiropractors provide a personalized treatment that uses various approaches and methods, guaranteeing you fast recovery times.
Benefits of using chiropractic services
Besides faster recovery, seeing a chiropractor after an auto accident offer the following benefits;
- You can detect any hidden injuries and thus receive full and proper treatment.
- Chiropractic treatment is non-invasive and, in several cases, may help you avoid the use of non-invasive treatment if you are a chiropractor first.
- Chiropractic treatment helps you restore your range of motion injuries to your muscle, spine, and other bones. A limited range of motion affects most of your daily activities, from brushing to standing up and even walking. It is also uncomfortable and may be accompanied by pain.
- Accident injuries often come with pain in the affected tissues. The conventional treatment involves use of painkillers. However, such drugs often address the symptoms only and not the real issue. Chiropractic treatment helps alleviate pain and inflammation by addressing the issue at the core. Proper alignment helps treat micro-tears which even an X-ray may miss, and they later cause you pain.
- Chiropractic treatment also helps prevent long treatment for the injuries and any future complications. Because the treatment plans aid in fast recovery, you do not depend on drugs for extended periods. Ignoring injuries or not having a comprehensive examination carries the risk of future complications arising later. It could leave you financially broke and with complicated injuries and conditions.
- Finally, a chiropractor will help you reduce scar tissue by accelerating the recovery process. Scar tissues can cause discomfort and stiffness in the body.
Can a medical Lien help pay for chiropractor costs?
The fear most patients have with getting specialized treatment is the lack of funds at that moment to get treatment. While the personal injury suit will factor in your treatment cost, they often come later after you have covered them on your own. At times your insurance company may not cover all costs, and you do not have the money. You can ask your attorney to negotiate with the medical provider for a medical lien in such cases.
In such a case, you will receive the treatment you need at the hospital’s cost, but the hospital will file a medical lien on your personal injury claim. Thus, when you receive payment, part of it will go directly to the hospital. Since a lien affects the final amount you will receive, ensure you get an excellent personal injury lawyer that can negotiate a good settlement and a good treatment deal with the hospital.
While it may not be the first thing in your mind, an auto injury chiropractor can help you heal your injuries faster. You will get an accurate diagnosis and be treated with non-invasive techniques, and recover fully to go on with your life. Do not let an accident cause you future complications or limit your work and social life because you didn’t see a chiropractor.