Avoiding whiplash and how to treat it

October 26, 2010 By

Last week I almost hit three deer on two different occasions while driving to work. I have also driven through torrential rain and witnessed a van hitting and cracking a telephone pole.

Accidents happen all the time and while modern cars can often withstand quite a bit of “injury”, the human body often can not.

Your head weighs 8 to 10 pounds; if your seat belt is fastened, the force of a collision can cause your head to whip forward and back or side to side. Accidents are at times unavoidable, but there are things you can do to decrease the chance of sustaining a whiplash injury.

  • Always fasten your seat belt.
  • Position your head rest to “catch” your head, which means it should be right in the center of your head. Positioning it too high or too low can actually cause or worsen a whiplash injury.
  • Position your seat properly. You should be sitting up straight and the seat should be as close to your head as possible to lessen the distance between your head and the seat upon impact.
  • Be aware of your surroundings — which means no calling, texting, eating, putting on makeup, etc.

If you do sustain a whiplash injury, get checked out by a medical professional. Some of the symptoms of whiplash: blurred vision, dizziness, jaw, shoulder or neck pain, headaches, vertigo, memory loss, irritability, sleeplessness, fatigue.

Most pain associated with whiplash is caused by tense muscles. When the neck is forced back and forth in a jarring motion, such as the type caused by a car accident, muscles and ligaments in the area are stretched beyond their normal limits. In severe instances, the supportive muscles of the spine are torn. Muscles in the surrounding area then tighten to try and support the injured tissues. This limits range of motion and causes strain on those muscles which are not being used to bearing the extra load. This causes more pain.

Muscle pain is your chiropractor’s specialty, so get checked out. And be careful out there.

Monica S. Nowak, DC
The Chiropractic Center of Canaan
176 Ashley Falls Road
Canaan, CT 06018
860-824-0748

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No pain, better game

August 17, 2010 By

My father has become an avid golfer. He plays every Tuesday — and then comes to see me, suffering from back and joint pain.

When I ask him if he warmed up before playing, he demonstrates his stretching routine by whipping his upper body back and forth. Clearly, this routine isn’t working.

Golfers exert a huge amount of effort, repetitively pounding on specific joints (usually on one side of the body). Among other ailments, this can lead to “golfer’s elbow.”

Warming up your joints is essential. Slow stretching lubricates the joints and warms the muscles surrounding them, to prevent tearing of ligaments, tendons, and other soft tissues.

To prevent injury, golfers should do exercises to strengthen the muscles supporting the joints used in golfing. That means they should do exercises to strengthen their shoulders, arms, wrists, legs, knees, ankles, abdominals and low back.

Many of our clients are golfers who compete in weekend tournaments without any preparation — and then wonder why, at the end of two grueling days, they are so sore they can barely move.

Golfers should straighten up, too. Good posture is key to achieving a great golf swing, and it is important to spinal health.

Golf also requires spinal flexibility, so try some yoga. You might be surprised at the improvements they bring to your game.

And if you still have pain after you play, visit a chiropractor. Chiropractors have extensive training in the biomechanics of human movement, so if after playing you feel pain in specific joints or muscles, you probably need those joints adjusted.

People don’t normally think of chiropractic for elbows and knees, but chiropractic is very effective in mobilizing smaller joints and relieving pain.

Your chiropractor can not only treat those repetitive stress injuries but can possibly redirect your swing pattern, improving your game while getting you out of pain.

Monica S. Nowak, DC
The Chiropractic Center of Canaan
Monica Nowak, DC and Peter Markowicz, DC
176 Ashley Falls Road
Canaan, CT 06018
860-824-0748

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Reader offers help to other readers

August 8, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: I enjoy reading your columns and have comments on two of them. The first one is concerning the writer who felt dizzy constantly. I had a similar situation a couple of years ago. I went to a chiropractor (for the first time), where I was adjusted several times over a two-week period. The dizziness disappeared.

The second article was from a mother about her son’s cluster headaches. I have been using essential oils for years now. Peppermint oil on the temples has been effective for migraines and cluster headaches, and also helps to relieve nasal congestion. Anyone who uses this remedy must be careful when using full-strength oils. Many people choose to dilute the oil in half with pure vegetable oil. Petroleum-based oils shouldn’t be used to dilute the essential oils because they can inhibit the effectiveness.
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