Dealing with Low Back Pain After a Car Accident

Did you know low back pain is one of the most common complaints following a car accident? Suffering from low back can be a frustrating occurrence because of the diffuse symptoms it presents. Low back pain tends to have a negative effect on the entire body that affects your quality of life. If you are ever in a car accident, your first step should be finding a medical care provider that will help minimize and prevent any long lasting symptoms, such as back pain, due to the impact and trauma.

Chronic low back pain can lead to trouble completing normal daily activities and disability. Getting the right care immediately after a motor vehicle accident can make a huge difference. Consider finding an expert in spine care today- such as the chiropractic team at North Alabama Spine and Rehab in Huntsville or Decatur.

Symptoms associated with low back pain

The way back pain is experienced for each person is unique. However, there are some common signs and symptoms to watch out for. They are listed below from most common to least common.

• Moderate to severe back pain- it can range from intermittent, dull, and achy to sharp and constant
• Stiffness and/or swelling in the low back and pelvis
• Uncoordinated movement and a weak core
• Neural symptoms such as tingling, numbness and shooting pain in the low back or legs
• Weakness in the leg along the affected nerve root

What is causing my low back to hurt?

You’ve been in an accident. Now, whether the pain was immediate or delayed a few days, your low back is feeling stiff and sore. The low back is a complex system, so it can be hard to pinpoint what exactly is causing your pain. This is also why low back pain can be difficult to treat without the help of a professional too. While many of these issues overlap, some of the potential problem areas include the following:

• Muscle strain
• Disc injury
• Nerve irritation
• Narrowing space for the spinal cord and nerve roots- leading to neural tissue damage
• Abnormal spine curvatures, such as lordosis, kyphosis, or scoliosis
• Overactive pain receptors
• Localized or generalized inflammation in the trunk
• Anxiety associated with the trauma of the car accident
• Poor movement patterns and biomechanics with daily activities

It’s important to note that all of these issues can either be initiated by a car accident injury or cause aggravation of an underlying condition.

Spine alignment and low back pain

No matter which tissues are affected, there is often one major issue that is causing an imbalance in the body and resulting in unnecessary suffering. That problem is spine alignment. The spine is made up of 33 vertebrae (24 of them that are moveable) and is intricately interconnected to the surrounding muscles, ligaments, and limbs to allow coordinated movement and function. Additionally, there are 31 pairs of nerves leaving the spinal cord to direct vital body function. With all of these moving parts, having any area out of alignment can lead to some major issues. Spine misalignment affects nerve health and energy. When there is blocked energy, back pain and dysfunction are most often the result.

How a Chiropractor can help

Chiropractors are experts in spine alignment. They recognize the little nuances in the body that block nerve energy and wreak havoc on the body. Misalignment is often hard to recognize to the untrained eye and can lead to chronic pain, full body dysfunction, and other health problems that can be hard to pinpoint. When you seek care from a chiropractor, you can address these underlying issues to finally make sustainable improvement and boost your quality of life.

Chiropractic treatment options for addressing spine alignment to help relieve your low back pain include:

• Spine adjustments
• Soft tissue massage
• Exercise recommendations to reinforce good spine alignment once adjusted
• Modalities for pain relief such as heat, ice, traction, electrical stimulation and more

Get the relief you deserve

Low back pain can make it hard to participate in your life the way you’d like. It can affect your concentration, productivity, and the way you move throughout your day. Simply put, it can leave you feeling miserable and make it hard to enjoy your life to the fullest. Low back pain is an ambiguous problem that takes a holistic full body approach from an expert like a chiropractor.

Whether it’s a car accident, fall, or too much spine spent in a bad posture that has led to your low back pain, chiropractic care can help. Restoring spine alignment paves the path to recovery. Don’t ignore your symptoms and let them get progressively worse after a car accident. Get in touch with the team at North Alabama Spine and Rehab today to see what non-invasive treatment options are available to you.