Whiplash is known as a neck strain and is most prominently associated with car accidents. A sudden impact that causes your neck to jolt forward or backward stretches the muscles and tendons in your neck, leading to a strain. Athletes are susceptible to whiplash as well as car accident victims, but the cause is often irrelevant to those suffering from the pain these injuries cause.
Injury victims should be able to recover compensation if another party was responsible for the incident. When you suffer whiplash, you must speak to an Arlington personal injury lawyer from Gatti, Keltner, Bienvenu & Montesi PLC.
Preventing Whiplash
Reckless actions from a negligent driver or another party can lead to a whiplash injury. It is not your responsibility to prevent accidents and whiplash, but you can take some steps to prevent the likelihood and severity of these injuries. If you work in an office, you should take regular breaks to stretch your neck, and if you have a previous neck strain, you should participate in neck strengthening exercises.
Vehicle headrests are meant to prevent whiplash, but the height of headrests only helps some. Position your headrest in a manner that helps you by using various tools like cushions. If you are an athlete, you should wear all protective equipment and ensure you stay safe on the field.
You can take these steps and still suffer a whiplash injury.
Determining Whether You Have Whiplash
After an accident, all victims know is they feel pain right away. However, there are some who do not feel pain until days later. Whiplash symptoms are impossible to ignore.
The symptoms will help determine if you have whiplash or another injury. Diagnosing whiplash often involves ruling out other injuries by reviewing scans and conducting tests. Signs you might have whiplash include:
- Stiffness or pain when moving your neck
- Tenderness
- Pain when rocking your head
- Headaches starting at the base of the skull radiating to your forehead
- Decreased range of motion
Whiplash can also lead to other complications. The same head blow can cause concussions and other trauma. Your medical professional will order tests and diagnose your injury.
If you have headaches that do not get better and cause trouble talking, dizziness, or nausea, you need immediate medical attention. You must also work with a whiplash lawyer in Arlington, TN, to discuss your legal options after these injuries.
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Whiplash Is Treatable
Whiplash injuries can heal with time, but you must follow your doctor’s orders during recovery. The first treatment step is to ice your neck for 15 minutes every three hours for three days. Ice will reduce the pain and swelling in your neck but be sure to wrap the ice in a cloth so you do not get a subsequent injury.
Your doctor may also recommend painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs to help with the pain and swelling. Before taking any medications, get advice from your doctor since they have serious side effects.
You can also use a neck brace or collar for support if your doctor recommends it for a period but never for long-term use. After three days of icing, you must apply heat to your neck for relief. Depending on the severity of your whiplash, you can also have additional treatments like physical therapy, massages, ultrasound, and lidocaine injections.
Severe cases can require spinal surgery, but your medical team will try to prevent that with other treatments.
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Long-Term Impacts of Whiplash
Our whiplash lawyers have seen many different cases of whiplash injuries, each with a different outcome. The severity of your injury will impact when you feel better, but minor whiplash cases resolve within a few days, while others will take weeks or months to heal. Your body will heal differently than someone else’s because everyone has a different body.
Doctors will recommend rehabilitation immediately to reduce your symptoms and prevent long-term complications. Refrain from exercising until your doctor tells you it is ok. Take your time and focus on your healing before beginning a strenuous activity.
While getting treatment, you must also work with our Arlington whiplash attorneys to recover compensation. Pushing yourself before your injury heals can lead to complications like chronic pain or permanent damage. You need a whiplash attorney in Arlington, TN, to work with your doctors to determine your long-term outcome.
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Obtaining Compensation After a Whiplash Injury
The first step is determining whether your whiplash injury claim is viable, which involves investigating the cause and severity of the injury. Your Arlington whiplash lawyer will work with your medical team to determine these and other factors in your claim. We will prove the other driver was at-fault for the accident and they were the cause of your whiplash injury.
We will also compile other losses you suffered from the incident to ensure you get total compensation. Next, we will negotiate with the insurance company for a fair settlement through pre-litigation proceedings. We will continue to conduct discovery and present evidence to sway the insurance company in your direction.
However, if they do not offer you a fair settlement, we will take the claim into litigation and continue taking legal steps to recover compensation.
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How GKBM Can Help After a Whiplash Injury
The Arlington whiplash lawyer from GKBM can conduct an investigation into the accident that caused your whiplash injury. We will review police reports, medical records, and insurance policies to find the best legal strategy for your claim. We will use our entire arsenal of knowledge and experience to work for you.
Gatti, Keltner, Bienvenu & Montesi PLC offers free initial consultations to determine how to move forward. We work on a contingency fee basis for personal injury claims, so you never have to worry about how you will pay for our services. We have a dedicated team working to alleviate your struggles and win big time by securing justice.
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