The moments, days, and weeks after a car accident are disorienting. You're managing pain, insurance companies, police reports, possibly an attorney, and the demands of your regular life — all simultaneously. It's easy for the most important thing — your actual recovery — to get deprioritized in the chaos.

This is a practical guide to what to do, when to do it, and what to expect — so that your health and your claim are both protected from the start.

Day 1: The Accident Day

At the scene:

Call 911 and request both police and medical response, even if you feel okay
Get a police report number — this is foundational documentation
Document the scene with photos: vehicle damage, road conditions, positioning
Exchange insurance information, driver's license, and contact details with the other driver
Get contact information for any witnesses
Do not make statements about how you feel beyond basic acknowledgment — adrenaline is masking your pain signals and what you say at the scene can be used later

After leaving the scene:

Contact your insurance company to report the accident — do this promptly
Contact a personal injury attorney if the accident was someone else's fault — most offer free consultations and many work on contingency. This is worth doing even if you don't think you need one yet.
Do not give a recorded statement to the other party's insurance company without speaking to an attorney first

Within 24-72 Hours: Get Evaluated

This is the most important step most accident victims skip — and the one that affects everything that follows.

Get a clinical evaluation within 24-72 hours of the accident, regardless of how you feel. The physiological reasons for this are covered in our post on what car accidents do to your body — the short version is that adrenaline suppresses pain perception and many significant soft tissue injuries don't produce full symptoms until inflammation peaks, which happens 24-72 hours post-impact.

At Breathe, your post-accident evaluation includes a comprehensive assessment of the cervical and thoracic spine, neurological screening, orthopedic testing specific to whiplash-type injuries, and thorough clinical documentation from the very first visit. Documentation that begins contemporaneously with the accident — not weeks later when symptoms have worsened — is the most clinically and legally valuable documentation you can have.

We work with personal injury patients on a lien basis — in most cases, you receive care, and we are compensated from your settlement.

Book Personal Injury New Patient Appointment HERE

Your First Appointment: What to Bring

The police report number and case number
Your insurance information and the other driver's insurance information
Your attorney's contact information if you have one
Any photos or documentation from the scene
A description of the accident — direction of impact, approximate speeds, what you remember about the sequence of events
A list of any symptoms you've noticed, however minor

The more complete your account at the first visit, the more complete your clinical record from day one.

The First Few Weeks: What to Expect From Care

Post-accident chiropractic care typically follows a progression:

Weeks 1-3: Acute phase
The focus is on reducing inflammation, restoring initial range of motion, and addressing the acute muscle tension and joint restriction from the impact. Treatments are typically gentle — this is not the time for aggressive manipulation of recently injured tissue. Cold laser therapy is particularly useful in this phase for its anti-inflammatory and tissue repair effects. Frequency is typically 2-3 times per week.

Weeks 3-8: Rehabilitation phase
As the acute inflammation subsides, the focus shifts to restoring full range of motion, addressing scar tissue formation, and retraining the movement patterns that were disrupted by the injury. Frequency typically reduces to 1-2 times per week.

Ongoing: Resolution or maintenance
For many patients, 6-12 weeks of consistent care produces significant resolution of symptoms. For more complex presentations — significant disc involvement, pre-existing conditions, severe initial injury — the recovery timeline is longer. We'll give you an honest assessment of where you are and what's realistic at each stage.

Documentation Throughout Your Case

One of the most important things we do at Breathe for personal injury patients is maintain thorough, consistent clinical documentation throughout your care — not just at the beginning.

Your clinical records are evidence. They establish the nature and extent of your injuries, the treatment you received and why it was clinically indicated, your progress over time, and the connection between the accident and your ongoing symptoms. Well-maintained records support your claim. Gaps in records, inconsistent documentation, or records that don't clearly connect treatment to injury can undermine an otherwise valid claim.

We understand the documentation standards for personal injury cases and take them seriously from the first visit. We can provide records, clinical narratives, and supporting documentation as needed by your attorney or for your claim.

When to Seek Additional Imaging

Not every accident requires MRI or X-ray, but some clinical presentations indicate that imaging is needed before we proceed with certain types of treatment. We'll recommend imaging if:

Your neurological screening suggests nerve root or spinal cord involvement
Your pain pattern doesn't follow the expected trajectory for soft tissue injury
You have pre-existing conditions that affect how we interpret your examination findings
Your history suggests a significant impact that warrants ruling out fracture before manual treatment

We'll be direct about this and help you get what's needed through your insurance or through your attorney's medical funding process.

The Most Common Mistakes People Make After Accidents

Waiting to see how they feel. Covered above — this is the most costly mistake for both health and claim.

Settling too quickly. Insurance companies often offer early settlements before the full extent of injuries is known. Do not settle until you understand the complete scope of your injuries and care needs — ideally not until your treating providers can give a prognosis.

Stopping treatment too soon. Feeling better is not the same as being healed. Soft tissue injuries that feel resolved at week four can flare significantly at week eight if underlying dysfunction hasn't been addressed. Follow your provider's recommendation for the full course of care, not just until symptoms subside.

Not telling your providers about all symptoms. Headaches, dizziness, difficulty concentrating, sleep disruption, mood changes — these are all potential consequences of cervical and neurological injury from an accident and all belong in your clinical record. If you're experiencing it, mention it.

We're Here to Help You Navigate This

Breathe Chiropractic has worked with personal injury patients in Phoenix throughout Dr. Carla's career. We understand the clinical picture of accident injury, the documentation requirements of personal injury cases, and the importance of treating the full person — not just the structural injuries — in the recovery process.

If you were in an accident, call or text us at (602) 254-2454 or book directly below. We'll get you in promptly and start building the clinical record your case and your recovery both need.

Book Personal Injury New Patient Appointment HERE

Dr. Carla Freeman, DC | Breathe Chiropractic | 1130 E Missouri Ave Suite 402, Phoenix AZ 85014