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How to Treat Car Accident Pain Without Medicine

Dealing with pain following a car accident? You don’t have to resort to medicine—even over-the-counter options—to achieve long-lasting relief from your symptoms. There are several effective pain-relief remedies, some that you can even do at home, depending on the nature of your injury. Here’s how you can treat car accident pain without medicine.

Use the RICE Method

It’s only natural for the body to react to injury with an inflammatory response, which in turn causes pain and swelling. After a car accident injury, follow the RICE method: rest, ice, compression, and elevation. This technique can help reduce swelling and relieve some acute pain you’re feeling following an injury.

Try Joint Injections

If your car accident injury includes damage to joints, the associated inflammation can last for a long time. In many cases, joint injections can calm the inflammation and relieve your pain, all while promoting healing. Joint injections contain an anesthetic to relieve pain right away, along with a steroid with anti-inflammatory properties. Once the anesthetic wears off, you may experience pain for a few days. Then, the steroid will take effect, often working for several months to give the injury time to heal completely. Injections can be repeated if pain persists.

Pursue Physical Therapy

While it’s important to rest and change your activity habits following a car accident injury, disuse of the affected body part can cause muscle atrophy. This can lead to muscle weakness, putting many people at risk of further injury. Physical therapy helps many car accident victims restore their strength and regain flexibility, and there are also techniques that aid in pain relief. Working with a professional physical therapist and following a customized treatment plan can not only relieve your pain symptoms in the short- and long-term, but it can also restore your mobility.

Seek Chiropractic Care

Chiropractic treatments are often helpful in helping patients experience pain relief following a car accident injury. They offer non-invasive treatments that are targeted for chronic pain relief, promoting natural healing in the body. It’s often also helpful to undergo manual therapy in conjunction with chiropractic care. The two treatments complement one another and can lead to speedier healing and reduced pain symptoms following an accident.

Experience Long-Lasting Pain Relief Following an Accident with the Help of Impact Medical Group

If you’re feeling pain—whether acute or chronic—following an accident, it can have a significant impact on your everyday life. The team at Impact Medical Group of Lutz is ready to help you achieve long-lasting pain relief, improve your mobility, and help you heal from an injury after a car accident. We offer a wide variety of effective treatments, including joint injections, physical therapy, chiropractic care, and manual therapy, and we’ll develop a personalized treatment plan to treat your symptoms and concerns. Call us today at (813) 536-0373 to schedule your free consultation!

Recommended Safe Driving Tips for The Holidays

The holiday season means more of everything – treats, family time, and…traffic. Driving during a Florida winter may not seem all that different from other seasons but it’s still important to drive safely. Because frustrated drivers can often lead to accidents, Impact Medical Rejuvenation of Tampa shares four safe driving tips to take note of during the holidays.

• Take your time

That may seem impossible with tight holiday timelines, but it is critical. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates that over 50 million people will travel during the holiday season. From problems with traction to having a cold engine that needs extra time to warm up (hey, it’s been a while since we needed heat!), it is always a good idea to add additional time to your departure. Driving slow and steady can give you extra time to react should an issue arise.

• Watch the weather

The weather in Florida is ever-changing and plays a critical role in a vehicle’s performance. Plan your outings by watching weather forecasts ahead of time, prepare by confirming windshield wipers are working and the car is fully heated before driving.

• Engine ready

Before you head out on a holiday trip, ensure your vehicle has been serviced and is ready to drive. If you anticipate inclement weather, pack additional safety items like flashlights, a first aid kit, and jumper cables.

• Safety first

Holiday parties are always a mix of fun, food, family, and friends. Generally, these get-togethers also feature alcohol. If you have plans for party pit stops, play it smart by designating a safe driver. The safety of passengers is serious business. And you don’t want to be on the naughty list.

Celebrating with loved ones and making memories is what the holiday season is all about. Impact Medical Rejuvenation of Tampa wants to make sure that you start 2023 off safely with these driving tips. Call us at (813) 283-1910 or visit us online to learn more.

Why Does My Body Ache So Bad After a Car Accident?

With more than 650 muscles in the human body, it’s no wonder why muscle pain is so common after a car accident. Trauma from a car accident can severely damage the soft tissues of the body. After an accident, muscle pain is often caused by soft tissue injuries like sprains, strains, and whiplash.

Learn more about muscle aches after an accident from our pain management team at Impact Medical Wesley Chapel.

Pain After an Accident

Your body’s hundreds of muscles are necessary to keep you mobile. After an accident, these muscles become stretched, torn, and inflamed. Without proper medical treatment, damage to your muscles can permanently impact your mobility and your livelihood.

If you think you have suffered a muscle injury from a car crash, now is the time to seek medical attention. A medical professional can create a treatment plan to get you back on your feet.

Common Symptoms of Muscle Injuries

Car accident victims primarily suffer skeletal muscle injuries or damage to the muscles that attach to bones and help move limbs.

These muscles are found from head to toe, so the symptoms of muscle injuries after a car accident will vary depending on where the injury occurred.

Some of the most common symptoms of muscle injuries include: 

• Stiffness
• Fatigue
• Headaches
• Muscle Spasms
• Upper back pain
• Lower back pain
• Burning or tingling
• Severe muscle aches
• Swelling and inflammation
• Bruising or discoloration
• Sore muscles when not moving
• Numbness in the toes and fingers

The skin above a muscle injury may feel warm to the touch so you may experience a heating sensation as blood rushes to protect and heal the injured muscles.

What Causes Body Aches After an Accident?

Muscles are the most common body parts damaged in a car accident. This is even more true for car accident victims who grip their steering wheel or throw their arms out to shield their faces before impact.

When muscles are in motion or extended during a crash, the energy of the collision can severely damage muscle fibers in the soft tissue. The blunt force trauma caused by an accident can also cause muscle pain and soreness.

Common Accident Muscle Injuries

If you are experiencing muscle aches after an accident, medical treatment is necessary to diagnose and treat your injury accurately.

Common injuries that cause muscle aches include:

• Muscle and Tendon Strains: Both tendons and muscles can stretch or tear during a car accident-causing strain.
• Ligament Sprains: Ligaments are a type of connective tissue that attaches one bone to another. A ligament sprain occurs when this tissue is stretched or torn.
• Whiplash: Whiplash occurs when the soft tissue in the head and neck are overstretched or ripped due to a rapid back-and-forth motion.
• Facet Joint Injuries: Facet joints connect the bones in the spine. A facet joint injury happens when the spinal bones are shifted out of place.
• Herniated discs: A herniated disc occurs when a spinal disc is torn or punctured due to trauma.
• Pinched Nerves: The spinal column has 31 spinal nerves, all of which can become compressed or pinched due to inflammation or an injury in the neck or back.
• Seat belt or airbag injuries: Though seatbelts and airbags are lifesavers, they can compress and damage internal organs and muscles during a car crash.

Any of the above injuries can present symptoms at the time of the accident, but many also create delayed pain and symptoms in the following days.

After an accident, err on the side of caution and visit a doctor.

How Long Will I Be Sore?

After a collision, most patients wonder how long the pain and soreness will last. Though every situation is different and depends on the severity of the damage, it is common to be sore for up to six weeks.

More severe injuries can take several months to heal.

What Kind of Doctor Should I See for Muscle Pain?

If you are in pain after a car accident, you should visit the emergency room, your primary care doctor, or our accident clinic at Impact Medical Wesley Chapel.

Once you have received a diagnosis for your muscle pain, your doctor may refer you to a specialist who is knowledgeable about your specific injury.

These specialists may include:

• Physical therapists for strains, sprains, or whiplash.
• Chiropractors for whiplash, facet joint injuries, or herniated discs.
• Neurologists for pinched nerves or tingling.

Get Pain Relief Today

If you have been in a car accident and are suffering from muscle aches and pain, don’t hesitate to reach out to our team at Impact Medical Wesley Chapel. We will design a treatment plan to relieve your pain and get you on the path to healing.

Schedule an appointment with our team today at (813) 953-1002!

4 Ways Physical Therapy Can Improve Your Mobility After An Accident

‘Tis the season for all kinds of accidents. Some symptoms appear immediately but others may not surface right away. If you are wondering whether to see a physical therapist after your accident, Impact Medical Group of Port Richey shares why below. Here are four reasons why we recommend patients seek physical therapy care after an accident. 

1) Long-term injury prevention

A general treatment rule of thumb states that patients should always seek medical attention within the first few days after an accident. Physical therapy can address any immediate injuries while also preventing long-term damage through strength and mobility exercises.

2) Reduce pain through movement

Movement is probably the last thing that you want to do after an accident but it is worth it. Physical activity can help reduce pain and encourage recovery after an accident. Our physical therapy team designs custom treatment plans that will address pain points while improving the range of motion and function.

3) Avoid surgery

Both major and minor accidents may indeed require surgery after an accident. Though for those that seek physical therapy treatment, it may be avoided. Because physical therapy helps strengthen the body (and its tendons, muscles, and ligaments) through repetitive movements, it can also create protection for the various structures that support the body. With less recovery time than surgery, this is a treatment that is more cost-effective and can grow with you (pun intended).

4) Relieve discomfort

Physical therapists may use techniques like manual manual, cold and heat therapies, and electrical stimulation to increase circulation in the affected area. These techniques can also help ease inflammation by encouraging blood and lymph circulation to the injuries.

Recovering from an accident can be daunting. Let our team at Impact Medical Group of Port Richey help with customized treatment plans and experienced professionals. Call us at (727) 848-3377 to make an appointment today!