When you think of whiplash, what do you imagine? Maybe you think of someone who has a mild headache all the time or someone wearing a neck brace. The reality is that whiplash has many implications for your health, both in the short- and long-term.
Whiplash is actually an umbrella term. It can refer to a number of different injuries that occur because of the quick whipping motion the head and neck make in a crash. These injuries are soft-tissue injuries and may affect the head, neck or back.
When you hear about whiplash in the legal sense, the actual medical terminology will refer to your specific injuries. For instance, you may have whiplash-associated disorders, or WAD, or you could just have a soft-tissue injury in your charts.
While most people don’t think that soft-tissue injuries are the most serious, they do still have the potential to cause problems for the person who has them. Whiplash could cause neck or back pain, headaches, migraines, jaw trouble, dizziness and other symptoms.
How do you establish a claim for whiplash?
The best way to get started is to document everything you’re going through. Get the police report about the accident, medical records and treatment plans. These are all things your attorney will need when he or she speaks with the other party’s insurance carrier. If the other party does not have insurance, then this is paperwork that must be taken with you to court when you file a personal injury claim and sue the at-fault driver. Our site has more on what to expect after a whiplash injury.
