After being hit from behind, then having your head bounce off the head rest, catapulted forward, back & forwarded again results in what is commonly called “Whiplash”.
POINT #1
A Man & a Woman in the same car, same accident, the woman will be injured worse! Why? because women, as a generalization, have less muscle mass supporting their head.
POINT #2
If you are stopped, then rear ended, what direction was your head pointing?? Forward? Looking down? Looking left or right? THIS IS HUGE in the resulting injury AND prognosis outcome!! Why? Try this right now: look forward, now flex your head backward & forward. In the absence of injury, your resulting range of motion should be pretty good. NOW: Look either left or right all the way to comfortable end range. At that point, try to extend your head back. Your head & neck are already at end-range locked up! Now at this moment, what if your are hit from behind?? This is a recipe for a much greater injury including disc injury. Many attorneys & most, no All insurance companies do not comprehend this.
POINT #3
If your whiplash damage is not properly treated & rehab’ed by your chiropractor, then one will hold one’s head in the most comfortable position, that being, in the forward position. And that is where it will heal, accelerating the degenerative processes of the bones/vertebra, ligaments/tendons, joint capsules & muscles.
Author: Dr Lawrence A. Dieter DC