Professor Michele Sterling was recently interviewed by reporter Michael MacKenzie of ABC Radio National to discuss how a new whiplash treatment could change the lives of whiplash sufferers. In the ABC Life Matters program Professor Sterling and two study participants, Samirah Abdullah and Daniel Lewis, discuss the benefits of a combined physiotherapy and psychology treatment to whiplash recovery. A podcast of the interview can be accessed here.
Life Matters story
If you've ever been rear ended in a car crash, there's a good chance you'll know what whiplash feels like. Your neck and head are violently thrown forward and then back and the resulting trauma can last the rest of your life. Treatment usually involves medication, exercise and physiotherapy.
But a new method that incorporates trauma counselling is producing better outcomes than usual, and they still need whiplash victims for the next stage of research.
To be eligible, participants aged 18-70 need to have neck pain from a whiplash injury sustained from a motor vehicle accident within the last 10 years, with no confirmed fractures or dislocations at the time of the injury.
If you fit the criteria and would like to be involved in this study, please follow this link to contact one of the team.
Two early participants, Samirah Abdullah and Daniel Lewis, both reported a dramatic lessening in pain, better flexibility, and less stress behind the wheel after completing the project's rounds of free counselling combined with physio.
Credit: Michael MacKenzie, ABC Radio National
