By Debbie Kacic, LMT
It happens to most of us at one time or another. You’re driving along one minute, and the next minute you are in an auto accident. It happens so fast you don’t have time to think about reacting. Your body just takes over, going into the flight-or-fight mode that Mother Nature blessed us with to keep ourselves alive in a dangerous situations. Our heart rate increases because our body needs more oxygen. Capillaries contract to hold blood near the core where it will be used to protect vital organs located there. Our breathing increases and our adrenal glands fire a shot of adrenaline throughout our body. We are now stronger and faster and ready to fight in this new state of heightened awareness. We lock up our legs on the brake, our arms and elbows on the steering wheel. Our eyes are focused on what’s ahead until impact.
I consider myself fortunate because my minivan was the only vehicle damaged, and my injuries were not life threatening. In just a split second I hit an icy patch and lost control of my vehicle, ending up upside down in someone’s front yard. In that survival mode I was able to scan my body for injury, open the window before turning the ignition key to off, wedge myself up long enough to unhook my seatbelt and pulled myself out of the van window, crawling to a safe spot where I waited for help to arrive.
A few hours spent in Medina General ER provided me with the information that nothing was broken and there were no internal injuries. My prognosis was good, but the ER doctor informed me that I would have a lot of soreness develop over the next few days. After explaining that I was a Massage Therapist and had several friends who could help me out, he agreed that massage would probably be the best thing for me at this time.
I set up an appointment the following day for some soft tissue work with a friend of mine who gently massage the muscles in and around my neck and shoulders. I had hit my head and had a slight concussion so she included a gentle scalp massage as well. After spending an hour with her, my headache was diminished, my neck muscles had relaxed and I could tell that I was on the road to recovery. I had a massage treatment every other day after my accident for a week, as well as a chiropractic adjustment, and I can honestly say that it has kept the soreness I would have felt otherwise to a diminished state and put my body back into proper alignment. Not only did the massage treatments help with the soreness, they also helped to put me in a more relaxed state of mind. Massage restored balance to my autonomic nervous system and helped to reverse the effects that the shock and trauma of the accident had on my nervous system.
Just two weeks after my accident I was back to work full-time and with just minimal soreness by the end of the day. The headaches were gone, neck and shoulder range of motion are back to normal, and the swelling and bruising were minimal. If you find yourself in the position that I did, please consider Massage Therapy (after obtaining approval from your physician) as part of your treatment plan. Give your body a chance at healing itself in a natural way.
Debbie Kacic is a Licensed Massage Therapist and owner of Nature’s Touch Massage and Wellness Center at 708 East Smith Rd. in Medina. She can be reached at 330-721-9357 or e-mail NaturesTouch4u@aol.com.
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