How To Prevent Soreness And Stiffness From Setting In After A Minor Car Accident
After any car accident, it's important to head to urgent care or the emergency room to get looked over and ensure nothing is wrong. But once your doctor gives you that clean bill of health, your health concerns are not automatically over. Even though you don't have any serious injuries, you're likely to be sore and stiff for the next few days as your muscles, tendons and ligaments recover from the trauma and jarring action of the car crash. Luckily, there are some things you can do in the hours following your accident to help minimize these effects.
Visit the Chiropractor
Often when you're in a car accident, your vertebrae are pushed out of alignment -- either in your back, your neck, or both. This may not cause pain right away, but it can make you sore in the long term as the vertebrae pull on the muscles and ligaments in your neck and back. It's best to have the problem addressed right off the bat before the soreness even sets in.
Call a chiropractor, such as Smith Chiropractic, and see if they can squeeze you in last-minute after your car crash. The adjustment should not be painful, though it may cause a small amount of discomfort since you've just been in a crash.
Take An Epsom Salt Soak
Epsom salts are magnesium sulfate. When dissolved in water, these salts dissociate into magnesium and sulfate ions, and they can penetrate your skin and enter your muscle tissues, helping relax the muscles and alleviate any soreness that's starting to set in.
Taking an Epsom salts bath is simple, and it's going to feel great the evening after a car crash. Fill your bathtub almost to the brim with warm water, and then stir in a few handfuls (1 to 2 cups) of Epsom salts. Immerse your body, and sit in the water for 12 minutes. Dry off, and continue on with your evening.
Stay Active
After a crazy day of filing police reports and visiting doctors, you probably feel like sinking into the couch and not moving again for a week. But this is only going to make any impending muscle stiffness worse. Once of the best things you can do for your stiffness is stay lightly active after the accident. Don't go out and run 5 miles, but do some light cleaning around the house, go for a slow walk around the block, or do a little easy yard work. Continuing to move will keep your muscles loose.
Take An NSAID
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs work by alleviating inflammation. But if you take a dose before the inflammation and soreness really start to set in, you might ward it off preemptively. Stick to the dose recommended on the bottle. Ibuprofen and naproxen are both good choices and are sold over-the-counter in drugstores.
Practice Some Aromatherapy
Your nerves are probably on edge after the car accident experience, and mental stress can easily transfer to physical stress, causing your muscles to tighten up even further. A good way to relax your mind and your body is to take part in a little aromatherapy. Some good scents to try include lavender, chamomile, and sandalwood. Add a few drops of one of these essential oils to a diffuser, and let the scent fill the room. Consider doing your aromatherapy at the same time you take your Epsom salts bath for an even greater effect.
After a minor car accident, you might feel like going home and curling up in bed. But being proactive about seeing the chiropractor, remaining active, and following these other tips will mean you suffer from less soreness in the days to follow.
