Every tiny aspect of a car accident is stressful. In the immediate aftermath, you’re concerned first about everyone’s safety. After that, you worry about the condition of your car, exchanging insurance information with any other drivers, and/or calling the police—not to mention having to deal with getting transportation until your car is repaired and even going to court to argue who is at fault and should pay for the damages. The whole ordeal is expensive, frustrating, inconvenient, and worse still, painful.
Even weeks and months later, you could be dealing with remaining symptoms like back or neck pain, depending on the extent of your injuries. However, stress can actually make things worse! Keep reading to learn how stress can take your injury to a new level.
How Stress Can Aggravate Existing Injury Pain
Under stress, particularly when it’s prolonged, your muscles tend to stay tense, which makes you feel stiff and tight. You can also feel anxious about reinjuring yourself, leading you to practice avoidance techniques and bad posture that can reinforce the injury instead of help you overcome it.
When your body feels stressed, your nervous system kicks up its sensitivity. In other words, it can more acutely detect when something hurts, making a minor pain turn into a more intense problem.
How Stress Can Slow Healing
Numerous studies have reported that while stressed, your body produces cortisol, a hormone that puts every system on high alert, specifically by suppressing your immune system. With increased cortisol levels, you can have more inflammation, be less able to fight infection, and allow old injuries to flare up again. Perhaps more important, higher anxiety can create and perpetuate a cycle where pain and anxiety cause each other to snowball and simply get worse over time.
How You Can Handle Stress and Injuries After a Car Accident
When you become injured in a car accident, remember you don’t have to navigate the entire process alone. A chiropractor, for instance, can do more than merely treat your injury and relieve your physical pain through procedures in their clinic; they have local contacts, such as lawyers and other resources, that could help you understand the steps to take to have a more successful, smoother recovery. If you continue to feel stress as you get enough sleep, eat healthily, exercise mildly, and practice relaxation techniques, talking with a mental health professional can enable you to process your feelings, learn how to manage anxiety, and move on from the accident in a mentally and physically healthy way.
Ultimately, instead of having to battle so many obstacles, pain, and stress by yourself, make sure you turn to the right help to get you through. You may not be able to avoid stress completely, but with the right assistance, you can recover with fewer complications and feel more at peace.
About the Author
Dr. Zinovy Chukhman at AlignRight Chiropractic in Richardson earned his degree from Parker College of Chiropractic, one of the most prestigious specialty schools in the country. He is also certified by the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners in all four levels and takes advantage of many effective techniques, including Gonstead, flexion-distraction, and Thompson. If you have had a car accident, don’t wait to seek treatment for potential injuries, and call us at 972-907-2800 or go onto our website to schedule your first appointment.
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