Three factors can extend therapy time after a car accident

Car Accident Injuries

Car accidents can cause many injuries to the body. Unfortunately, these incidents are all too common. You likely know at least one person who has been injured in a car accident, and this isn’t surprising when you consider how many car accidents happen in the U.S. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), motor vehicle crashes injure about 3 million Americans every year. 

Physical therapy can be very beneficial for people with car accident injuries. However, such injuries often take a while to heal, and you might spend weeks or months going to physical therapy after a car accident. In most cases, physical therapy can help speed up your healing. But there are factors that could lead to you spending more time doing physical therapy. 

Three factors that can increase how long you need to go to physical therapy after a car accident

How long you need to go to physical therapy after a motor vehicle accident will vary based on several factors. One of these factors is how serious your injury is. Past injuries in the same part of your body can also affect the healing of your current injury. Here are three factors that can have the greatest effect on how long you need post-accident physical therapy:

  1. Delaying treatment — The symptoms of some car accident injuries might not appear immediately. Whiplash is an excellent example of such an injury. For this reason, you should always have yourself checked out by a doctor after a car accident. Taking this step can help catch dormant injuries and get you into physical therapy before their symptoms appear. Not taking this step can lead to a longer time in therapy. 
  1. Not resting — Like all injuries, car accident injuries will require rest to heal properly. This is because the body does the majority of its healing while resting. Trying to push your body too hard after a car accident injury can have the opposite effect, and it can cause you to need more physical therapy sessions as well. 
  1. Skipping your home exercises — Many physical therapists will give you a home exercise program to do as part of your car accident injury recovery plan. It’s important to do these exercises as frequently as your therapist recommends. Otherwise, you’re likely to spend much longer going to physical therapy. 

Shorten your time in physical therapy after a car accident at Excel Sports & Physical Therapy

Are you wondering how long you’ll need to go to physical therapy after a car accident? Our team at Excel Sports & Physical Therapy can answer this question during a free screening. Your screening will also give us the chance to gather information about your injury and the symptoms it’s causing. We’ll then use this information to build the most effective possible therapy plan for you, and this plan could include beneficial therapy techniques such as: 

Take the next step to start getting our help with your car accident injury. Contact our team today for more information or to schedule an initial appointment.