What does whiplash feel like?

[lmariana]

I think I may have some mild whiplash. The bottom of my neck/top of my spine are really tender, achy, sore, painful, and just feel broken. It hurts to turn my head quickly in any direction. :(

What happened? Oh, my husband sat on my head. I was sitting in the passenger's seat in my car, and leaned over to get something for Gabe from the back seat, placing my head against the driver's seat. Well, it's raining, and hubby runs to the car and jumps in the seat, ramming my head in the process and shoving my neck backward very quickly. There was some instant shooting pain, but then it's just felt sore "cracky" ever since. Bleh.

I'm planning on going to the Dr. on Monday, but I just wanted to get some feedback from my faithful friends in the meantime. : ) I haven't tried and pain killers yet, but I may take something before bed tonight to see if that helps.

Thanks for lending an ear!

Mariana
Owner of HappyDayBaby
Mother of Gabriel, 08/14/2003
www.heinzandmariana.com (personal site)

http://lilypie.com/baby2/030814/1/5/0/-5/.png[/img] ([img)

[pritchettzoo]

DH (who's not a doctor, but an attorney who has read tons of medical records and deposed tons of docs on this. He thinks he's an orthopaedic specialist ;)) said to take an anti-inflammatory (Advil, Motrin, etc.) and call the doctor first thing Monday morning. If you don't have an HMO, go straight to an orthopedist--in GA, the "big" groups are Peachtree Orthopaedics http://www.pocatlanta.com/ and Resurgens http://www.resurgens.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=locations&locations=north , so you'd be more likely to be able to get an appointment immediately. They'll probably do an x-ray and make sure it's only a cervical strain and there's nothing screwy with your spine. Maybe you'll get one of those cool cervical collars! ;)

If the area starts swelling or the pain becomes unbearable or starts shooting into your arms or further down your back significantly (signs of cervical spine problems), go to the emergency room.

I hope you feel better soon.

Anna
Mama to Gracie (Sept '03)
and One More (coming July '05)

[JElaineB]

I had whiplash from a car accident, not from DH (!), and it was in my upper back. My entire upper back felt sore and I had not idea what it was (was 2 weeks after the car accident) until someone told me. I would agree since this was from DH ramming your head to get a full work-up with x-rays etc. If it turns out nothing is "broken" or seriously wrong I would highly recommend a good chiropractor. They can help relieve your pain without medication. You should be able to get short term treatment for your problem and hopefully be back to new in no time!

Jennifer
mom to Jacob 9/27/02