Personal injuries from mishaps are often the worst-case scenario for individuals. When you suffer from a personal injury, you want to heal and be done with the legal processes. You don’t want to have to deal with finding treatment for your injury. There are many treatment options for personal injuries, only making the process of moving on and healing more challenging. One of the many personal injury treatment options is chiropractic care. Many patients prefer seeing a chiropractor for their personal injury treatment. This article will help you decide which treatment method is correct for you by discussing the idea of seeing a chiropractor for a personal injury.
What is a Chiropractor?
Chiropractors help their patients reach healing by manipulating their spines, necks, and other joints that may be bothering them. The care given by chiropractors is an alternative form of medicine, as they do not rely on medication and surgery to heal their patients. Many patients enjoy this aspect of chiropractic care as they know they won’t be going under the knife or prescribed opioids.
The field of chiropractic care has been around for centuries. Before modern medicine and safe surgery practices, chiropractic care was the go-to solution for physical pain. Just like with most medical practices, this field improves over the years thanks to research and findings. So, you can trust the improvements and effectiveness of chiropractic care during your personal injury treatment.
How a Chiropractor Can Help With Your Personal Injury Treatment
As mentioned above, chiropractors have helped their patients find relief from their pain for over 200 years. Each chiropractor has to go through at least seven years of studies before obtaining their license to practice. From their several years of training in this field, they know how to help people like you heal from their personal injuries. The treatment plans they offer can be highly effective, especially for personal injuries.
If you want to try chiropractic care, don’t hesitate. Waiting too long for treatment can prolong your injuries and your pain. If you are not in urgent need of surgery, there is a great chance a chiropractor can help you. Of course, if you need surgery immediately, it is best to get it. However, if surgery in the future is recommended, consider trying out chiropractic care. Here are a few ways your local chiropractor can provide personal injury treatment:
They Can Document Your Injury
Alleviating pain aside, chiropractors can also help with your insurance claims and lawsuits. As licensed doctors, chiropractors can diagnose and document their patients’ injuries. This is very helpful when you need to prove you have damage to an insurance company or a court. In the case of someone inflicting the personal injury on you, such as in a car accident, you will need to prove your injury. When you can prove your injuries with a doctor’s help, you are much more likely to get better coverage. Your personal injury chiropractor can help you do this. Their professional and expert diagnosis will be a great relief when facing a personal injury.
Make sure you visit a chiropractor who is experienced with documenting injuries. There are specific things insurance companies look for when deciding to cover someone’s medical expenses. They will need to see the documentation that your injury is real and a treatment plan from a licensed doctor. This is to show you need coverage to heal from your injuries. Also, if you go to court for your personal injury, it will show you do in fact have an injury. And, you will show you are entitled to compensation. Your chiropractor will be on your side so you can receive the personal injury treatment you need.
They Can Document Your Reaction to Treatment
One of the main reasons why you will meet resistance from an insurer is your behavior towards your treatment. If there is more than one gap in your treatment schedule, insurers will take note of that. If you visit a chiropractor consistently for three months and then go six weeks without any treatment before resuming, then that kind of behavior could be held against you. Questions may arise as to whether the later care is valid and necessary to treat the injuries you initially sustained.
Regardless of what treatment plan you settle on, it is crucial to remain consistent in attending all scheduled appointments. Any home exercises your chiropractor may prescribe should be adhered to as well. Work closely with your primary care physician and alternate care providers to ensure that a consistent treatment schedule stays in place until you make a complete recovery from your injuries.
Reputable chiropractors will keep track of a patient’s reaction to treatment, as well as how often one attends his or her scheduled appointments. Information about how a patient reacts to treatment, whether the response is positive or negative, can be documented by a chiropractor in a physical or online journal.
Provide a Low-Risk Treatment Option
As you may know, back surgery is very invasive and can even be considered “high-risk.” You have to be put under anesthesia for this surgery. Back surgery also requires a very long recovery period, which is generally between one and six months. During this recovery, you may need to use a wheelchair for several weeks. Additionally, you will need to take prescription pain medications, which are highly addictive. Unlike surgery, chiropractic care is a non-invasive treatment. This means you do not have to go under operation to reach a point of healing. Patients do not have to go under to receive their chiropractic adjustments, which minimizes any risk.
Getting realignments from a chiropractor also does not require a recovery period from patients. Due to the fact that patients are not undergoing an operation, they can walk out of the office right after their appointment. The only complaint that patients have would be mild soreness if they were completely misaligned. This usually happens in severe cases of personal injuries, and the soreness is very mild. At the end of the day, recovery from chiropractic care is nothing like recovery from surgery. This is one of the biggest advantages of seeking help from a personal injury chiropractor.
Chiropractic Care is Low-Cost
If for any reason, you are not approved for treatment by an insurance company nor receive a settlement, chiropractic care is very affordable. It is more affordable than both surgery and pharmaceutical drugs, especially when paying out of pocket. Studies show that chiropractic care is much more cost-effective, as well as more effective for healing personal injuries. So, no matter if you get coverage or not, chiropractic care is much more affordable.
For the most part, patients have coverage with alignments from chiropractors with their insurance. Most insurance companies recognize that chiropractic care is a form of medical treatment from licensed doctors. This is excellent for patients who want to try a more natural method of healing. Also, if you are found to be at fault for the injury, you can still get coverage through insurance. If you are dealing with an injury, check your insurance provider’s website to see if you can get coverage.
They Can Spot Previously Hidden Injuries
Treatment alone is not the focal point of why you attend chiropractic appointments. Experienced personal injury chiropractors do more than treat you. They will also evaluate your condition as a whole. Upon evaluation, discoveries can be made concerning injuries that would have otherwise stayed hidden. Some injuries such as muscle soreness may not appear for days after an accident occurs. Another scenario is you have a slip and fall accident, and right after that you suffer from headaches, but you don’t make the connection right away.
Because of their experience, chiropractors are better prepared to discover hidden injuries that you may not be aware of. Once these injuries are found, chiropractors can then offer specific treatment plans for them. This has a considerable impact on preventing potential long-term health issues.
They Can Prevent Bad Injuries From Worsening
Some personal injuries sustained from events like auto accidents will heal properly on their own. However, other injuries require the intervention of chiropractic care, and they could get worse if they are not treated right away. There are limitations to the human body, and it becomes paramount that you get the chiropractic help you need as soon as possible after an auto accident occurs.
If you prefer not to have invasive treatments or other procedures like surgeries, it becomes ideal to receive personal injury chiropractic care. If you have your injuries treated early and often, you can avoid the need to have surgery depending on your situation.
They Can Help You Recover Properly
Some of the conditions that follow from an auto accident are easy to recognize. These conditions include headaches, joint or muscle pain, chronic back pain, limited range of motion in the arms or legs, or sharp, shooting pain in the legs. It is usually due to the accident’s impact causing a misalignment of your spine, resulting in these conditions existing. If these conditions are left untreated, personal injuries can heal improperly and can lead to more complications in the future.
Some patients often make the mistake of not seeing a chiropractor immediately after an auto accident. Even if you initially feel fine, it is recommended to schedule an appointment with a chiropractor. It is better to be safe than sorry when addressing personal injuries.
They Can Help You Avoid Pharmaceuticals
Chiropractic care helps reduce inflammation of personal injuries and enable quick recovery, but it can also help decrease your dependence on painkillers and other pharmaceutical drugs. Whenever pain becomes a chronic problem, people often feel pressured to rely on an immediate healing solution, such as taking prescription drugs or over-the-counter medicine to relieve their pain.
Chiropractors don’t view pain relief from the same angle as medical doctors. A chiropractor’s job is to try and find the core of the problem and allow the body to heal on its own time. Pain can often be relieved simply by realigning the spine and retraining the impacted joints and tissues. When you receive consistent chiropractic care for your personal injuries, there is no need to rely on pharmaceuticals to relieve your pain heavily.
They Can Help You Maintain an Active Lifestyle
If you have a passion for working out or playing sports, then it would help to keep a consistent schedule for the treatment of your personal injuries. Your body is left open to additional strain and pressure when you engage in extracurricular activities like sports. It is this kind of stress that can cause misalignment in your spine if you are not careful.
When you see a chiropractor on a regularly scheduled basis, you give your body a chance to maintain the active lifestyle that you want. Should any issues arise, such as pinched nerves or slipped discs, a chiropractor will be there to spot the problem, and you can plan accordingly to treat the condition. Your chiropractor is an excellent source of information regarding health-conscious tactics you can implement in your active lifestyle. These tactics include exercise routines, nutritional dieting, and various methods to help relieve stress.
Should You See a Chiropractor for Personal Injury Treatment?
If the benefits listed above sound enticing to you, then you should absolutely try out chiropractic care. The best thing about adjustments is that you can quit them anytime, unlike surgery or other treatments. You are able to decide to not reschedule an appointment if you dislike seeing a chiropractor. With surgery, you must go through the lengthy healing process and have to be patient on the long road of recovery. You must go along with the recovery process after surgery, and cannot back out of it. This is a serious commitment for many patients.
Chiropractic care is an excellent place to start when attempting to heal a personal injury. If you are unsure of the route you would like to take for healing, it is a safe choice to go with the least risky and most cost-effective option available. After a few appointments with your chiropractor, you can reconsider your options again.
If you’re looking for a chiropractor who does personal injury treatment in Pensacola and the surrounding area, we would love to help you. Dr. Derek Finger is a licensed and professional chiropractor who has been helping his clients find relief for decades. Call our office to make an appointment today!
