Understandably, many people will first take care of their vehicle repairs and themselves when there are no major injuries. Please consider, though, that even a mild car accident can cause many disruptive symptoms. These can persevere and even worsen over time if not treated. These include headaches, neck, back and shoulder pain, insomnia, confusion, anxiety, and many other complaints.

Alberta Insurance Act recognizes that alternative medicine is beneficial in these cases, and the law covers treatments following an MVA.

What Do I Need to Know After a Car Accident?

1. You will need to contact your insurer within 10 days of the accident.
2. Accessing treatments will not cause any increase in your premiums, whether you are at fault or not.
3. According to current regulations, you have 90 days to use your benefits!
4. You are entitled to between 10 to 21 treatments, which include Acupuncture. These benefits can save you around $2000. You can apply for more if necessary.
5. Even if you don’t have any symptoms right now, Whiplash symptoms can occur a few weeks or months after the accident. It is worthwhile to claim your benefits and take care of your body now, whilst it is covered.
6. Your Adjuster (insurance company) will direct you to book an appointment with your primary health care practitioner, such as a Medical Doctor, Chiropractor, or Physiotherapist.
7. After that, you can choose which practitioners and modalities you would like to support your healing. You can choose between Acupuncture, Chiropractor, Massage therapy and Physiotherapy. You can go to different clinics for different therapies.
8. This article will show you why Balance Method Acupuncture combined with other treatments like cupping therapy should be an important part of your treatment plan. This is to ensure fast recovery from MVA’s physical and mental implications.

You can also check the official Alberta financial insurance website for your benefits coverage after an MVA – automobile collision insurance. Click here

Why is Balance Method Acupuncture Highly Recommended?

1. Fast results – experience pain and symptom relief in the session itself.
2. Uses distal points for more holistic and less painful healing (not needling where the injury is).
3. There is no danger of causing more pain or damage than other localized treatments such as chiropractic manipulations, massage, or physical therapy.
4. Acupuncture is excellent for reducing inflammation and pain.
5. Balance Acupuncture Treats Anxiety and PTSD after a car accident with good results.
6. You will Feel very relaxed, rebalanced and calm after the treatments.
7. Acupuncture can treat multiple injuries in one session.
8.  Acupuncture is covered with most benefits plans.
9. Results are seen during the session, which means we can see after a few sessions if this will help you or if you need to combine with other therapies.
10. Acupuncture can be combined with any other methods like Chiropractor, Massage, Physical Therapist, etc.
11. Treatments can be done lying face up, face down or sitting- whatever is more comfortable for you.
12. You receive Cupping therapy, Electro-acupuncture if needed for free.
    Cupping Therapy on the neck and shoulders is very effective in whiplash.  The suction created by the vacuum in the cups improves blood flow, releases muscles and promotes healing to damaged tissues.
13. Chinese Herbal Therapy. When needed, herbs and supplements are prescribed (chronic cases).
14. Recall Healing Therapy can be used to treat the trauma if needed.

Balance Method Acupuncture

BMA is very effective in treating pain and injuries. In Balance Method acupuncture, we use different diagnoses and acupuncture points compared to other kinds of acupuncture. This allows for fast recovery from pain and inflammation.
The acupuncture points we use are distal points, meaning: if you have pain in the neck, the points yielding the best results will be at your ankle or your wrist.
For best results: Acupuncture for Motor Vehicle Accidents and Injuries can be very effective. It is recommended to come two times a week or three times in severe cases for the first couple of weeks. Later you can continue to come once a week, once a month, etc., depending on specific needs.

Most Common Injuries After a Motor Vehicle Accident – MVA

Whiplash – Whiplash is a neck, upper back and shoulders injury due to forceful, rapid back-and-forth movement of the neck, similar to the cracking of a whip. Symptoms may occur immediately after the accident or a few weeks or months later. This is why it is important to care for it right away, even if symptoms are initially not prevalent.
The whiplash symptoms are neck, shoulder, upper back pain and stiffness, headaches, pain or numbness in arms, fatigue, dizziness, insomnia, stress, and anxiety.

Concussion

A hit to the head is a common injury causing a concussion. With a concussion, your brain bounces around inside your skull. You may not notice symptoms right away, such as headache, neck pain, nausea or dizziness, confusion, sensitivity to light, etc. Sometimes the symptoms can take days or weeks to appear.

Back and spine injuries – Lower, middle or upper back pain is common after a car accident. In mild cases, the damage will be in soft tissues like muscles, tendons, and ligaments. The more serious the damage, the more we can see injuries related to herniated or bulged disc and even fractured bones.

Hand and leg injuries – Sometimes, pain in the extremities can be related to an injury of the spine and sometimes it will be a local injury. There can also be fractures in the scapula or other bones.

Mental and emotional – In many cases, there can be signs of anxiety or PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). It is understandable and can be related specifically to driving or other areas in a person’s life.

Why Is It Hard to Heal After a Car Accident?

A fast movement to the body (like whiplash) can be hazardous. For example, it can damage the spinal cord and create a disability. This is why the body has a mechanism called – protective muscle spasm. This is where the muscles’ tension protects the affected area (like a cast) and can stay long after the accident whilst also preparing for a “future accident.” Even if the person doesn’t feel stressed, the body itself can carry the accident’s stress.

Without releasing this tension – physically and mentally, it will be hard to heal because, for the body, it is considered a positive mechanism. This is one reason people can take months or more to heal, even from a mild car accident.
Acupuncture is perfect for releasing this tension as it is a holistic method that knows how to work on the mental, emotional and physical aspects.

Severe Physical Symptoms in Motor Vehicle Accidents

All these symptoms mentioned above may worsen if you’ve been involved in an accident previously or have pre-existing conditions.
In severe car accidents, there can be a variety of internal damage and bleeding. The signs of internal bleeding may include pain, swelling or purple skin in the torso. Also, pay attention to any dizziness, fainting, headache, seizures or loss of consciousness. In these cases or where there are other abnormal signs, you should immediately see a physician.

Be safe,
Elad Shalev.