Auto Accident Injury Chiropractor in Sacramento

Uncover the Real Impact of Your Car Accident

Not all auto accident injuries are found during a hospital visit. ER doctors don’t look for disc and joint injuries that surface weeks or months later, which is why you can be told you’re fine, but actually aren’t.

Using X-ray analysis and experience from performing more than 1 million chiropractic adjustments, we’ll find the actual impact of your accident and help you get back to feeling like yourself.

man pointing to jaw explaining pain from auto injury to chiropractor

Serving Sacramento since 1948

Owned and run by Dr. Barham since 1990

X-rays before any adjustments, always

Has Anyone Actually Looked at Your Spine?

A crash exam and a spinal exam look for different things. If you went to the ER, they were ruling out what needed immediate attention: fractures, bleeding, or head injury.

If you haven’t been seen by a doctor at all, nothing has been ruled out yet.

Either way, nobody has checked whether the joints in your neck move through their normal range, or whether a disc has shifted enough to sit against a nerve root.

For a few days, you can feel okay. Then it changes. Adrenaline wears off and what it was covering surfaces. Injured tissue swells over days, and muscles tighten around the area to protect it.

Which is why we hear “I felt fine at first” often. You probably did. And it’s why the timing of your first visit shouldn’t be based on how you feel, because even a low-speed collision can cause spinal misalignment.

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“I was in much pain to the point of disability…“

“I was in a auto accident that literally turned off the lights. My vision, sense of smell, hearing and even taste buds were affected.

The doctors thought I would never walk because the low back was injured so bad. I had no feeling in my leg to the point I didn’t know cartilage in my knee was torn. The original x-rays showed my neck completely in a reverse (explosive) curve.

I was treated by pain, knee and chiropractic doctors, fighting with workman’s comp the whole way.

My chiropractor was on vacation and I met Dr. Barham. After my initial exam, and just two adjustments, I have felt better than I have in years.

My customers even noticed that I wasn’t limping and “holding up the counter” from pain. I do things now that I haven’t done in 5 years!“

Minnie Kropp

Verified Google Review

Why the First 72 Hours After A Collision Matter

Coming in soon after your accident doesn’t mean pain has started. It means finding what’s there before you feel it.

An early visit lets us:

  • Document your injuries properly for insurance and legal claims
  • Examine with X-rays before treatment, so you’re not guessing
  • Treat whiplash and neck injury at the joint level, not just muscle
  • Address the problem early, before compensation patterns set in
  • Tell you what you’re dealing with: whether something is wrong, how significant it is, and what it takes to correct

Already past 72 hours? This isn’t a deadline you missed. We treat people weeks, months, and years out from a collision. It’s still worth being assessed.

man receiving chiropractic adjustment on upper back while laying on treatment table

When Should You See A Chiropractor for An Auto Accident Injury?

Most people don’t come in the day of the accident. They come in when something they assumed would fade over weeks or months, hasn’t.

These are the most common reasons our Sacramento patients visit us after being in a motor vehicle accident:

  • Delayed symptoms
  • Neck stiffness
  • Muscle spasms
  • Sleep problems
  • Difficulty concentrating
  • Dizziness
  • Jaw pain & clicking

None of this is a diagnosis, and this list isn’t exhaustive. If what you’re dealing with isn’t here, that doesn’t mean it’s nothing.

man sitting on treatment table shaking hands with chiropractor while smiling

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“Within the first few visits I felt a HUGE improvement…”

“When I first came in I had just been in a bad highway car accident and my x-rays showed multiple subluxations from my neck down to my lower back.

He put me on a treatment plan and just within the first few visits I felt a HUGE improvement in my neck and back pain and realized how important chiropractic care is and how blessed I was to have landed myself in his office. ”

Angelika Vincent

Verified Google Review

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“Started coming here and my pain is gone”

“I was in a car accident several years ago and developed minor scoliosis and had really bad back pain.

I started coming here and my pain is gone. I started with 3 visits a week and I am now down to once every other week.

Dr. Barham, Dr. Johnson and the staff are super friendly and helpful!”

Jacqueline Timberlake

Verified Chiropractor Review

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“The only chiropractor I will see to work on me…”

“Barham Chiropractic is the best. I have been to his practice a few years ago for treatment due to a car accident and now I am back with severe neck injuries due to a car accident again.

Steve Barham is the only chiropractor I will see to work on me. His expertise and knowledge is what makes him so good, he is the the best.”

Brenda Tarter

Verified Chiropractor Review

Who Pays for Care After A Motor Vehicle Accident?

California is an at-fault state. There’s no requirement to carry Personal Injury Protection (PIP) here, and California insurers don’t offer it. If you’ve read otherwise, that was a page written for another state.

Regardless, gaps cause problems. A long stretch between the collision and your first appointment can be a common reason a claim gets questioned.

Call us and we’ll check what coverage you have and what it means for your situation before you book anything.

If someone else caused the collision, their bodily injury coverage is usually responsible for your medical costs. In practice that’s commonly settled at the end rather than paid as you go, which is why most people use MedPay or their health insurance to cover treatment in the meantime.

Optional coverage on your own car insurance policy. Every California insurer is required to offer it, usually in amounts between $1,000 and $25,000, which means it was likely on the table when you bought your policy.

If you have it, it pays regardless of fault and it pays as you go. It covers medical and funeral costs, but not lost wages.

Worth checking your declarations page on your policy. Plenty of people have it and don’t know they do.

Often the most straightforward route while a claim is still open, with your normal copays and deductibles. If the claim settles later, your health insurance provider may seek reimbursement out of that settlement.

Why People Come to Us for Help

X-rays before anyone touches you

80% of chiropractors don’t take X-rays. Without imaging, nobody can tell whether a disc has moved or whether your collision aggravated degeneration that was already there.

Decompression is done by hand

Machines can’t feel resistance. Hands can. Instead of computerized tables, we use manual Cox flexion-distraction to isolate and treat injured vertebra, adjusting in realtime.

Know How Long, Before You Start

A care plan can run three to 18 months, with re-imaging to confirm what changed. You’ll know your plan before it starts, useful when there’s a claim and a settlement in the picture.

Three Doctors, One Care Plan

Dr. Barham Sr., his son, and son-in-law practice together and share one treatment record. Whoever’s in the room knows exactly where you left off, aligned on what you need.

Meet the Sacramento Chiropractors Behind Your Care

Doctor Steven Barham Sr., Chiropractor at Barham Chiropractic Clinic in Sacramento

Dr. Steven K. Barham Sr. D.C.

Founder & Chiropractor

Over 35 years solving cases others couldn’t, and now training the next generation.

Doctor, Steven Barham Jr., Chiropractor at Barham Chiropractic Clinic in Sacramento

Dr. Steven Barham Jr. D.C.

Chiropractor

Trained under his father from the beginning, continuing a decades-long standard of patient care.

Doctor Clark Johnson, Chiropractor at Barham Chiropractic Clinic in Sacramento

Dr. Clark Johnson D.C.

Chiropractor

Former Atlanta Braves pitcher who came in for a week and has stayed for 12 years (and counting!)

Here’s What Happens At Your First Visit

1. Discuss Your Accident

We’ll go through exactly what happened: the impact, when symptoms started, and how everything has been affecting your daily life since to get a full picture.

2. In-Depth Exam

Our examination includes full X-ray analysis, orthopedic testing, and neurological assessment, all focused on the specific injuries car accidents are known to produce.

3. Create Your Plan

We’ll explain exactly what’s wrong, show you the evidence on your X-rays, and create a personalized corrective care plan designed to address your discomfort.

Is This The Right Kind of Care for You?

Some people want to be seen once and sent home. Others want to know what the collision did. We’re built for the second.

The right fit:

  • You want to know what the collision actually did
  • You’ve been told it’s soft tissue or that imaging showed nothing, and something still isn’t right
  • You have a claim to document and you’d like any injury treated
  • You’re willing to follow through on treatment recommendations

Probably not the right fit:

  • You want an adjustment without an exam or X-rays
  • You’re looking for a quick fix in four or five visits, or short-term relief without the deeper work
  • You want documentation for your claim only, not treatment
  • You’re only coming because your attorney told you to get checked

Don’t Let a “Minor” Accident Turn Into a Major Problem

Our Sacramento patients have recovered and are back to their normal lives. Isn’t it time you joined them?

Post-Accident Questions We Hear Often

If there’s any chance of a serious injury — head impact, loss of consciousness, severe pain, numbness that isn’t improving — go to an emergency room or your physician first. Those need ruling out before anything else happens.

Once that’s done, a chiropractor is better suited to address the non-life threatening injuries that a collision can produce, such as joint restriction or soft tissue damage.

Plenty of people see both practitioners, and there’s no conflict in doing so. If you’re not sure which you need, call us and we’ll tell you honestly.

As soon as possible. Ideally within 72 hours of your accident, even if you feel fine.

Many of the injuries a crash causes (whiplash, disc damage, soft tissue damage) don’t produce symptoms right away, so how you feel in the first few days isn’t a reliable signal.

Coming in early also documents your injuries close to the date of impact, which matters if a claim is involved.

Adrenaline masks pain in the short term, and inflammation builds over days. Getting assessed early means we can document your injuries properly, begin treatment before compensatory patterns set in, and give your body the best possible chance at full correction rather than chronic management.

Yes, and this is one of the most important things we tell new patients. Emergency rooms screen for life-threatening injuries: fractures, internal bleeding, neurological emergencies. They are not looking for the spinal misalignment, disc damage, or soft tissue injuries that cause pain weeks after an accident.

Being cleared at the ER means you don’t have a medical emergency. It doesn’t mean nothing is wrong. We’ve treated thousands of patients who were told they were fine and weren’t.

It depends on the severity of your injuries, but our corrective care plans typically run from three months to about a year and a half.

Unlike practices that treat symptoms indefinitely, we build a plan with a defined beginning and end, including mid-course X-rays to track objective progress and final X-rays to confirm correction. You’ll always know where you stand and what’s left to do.

A few things, but the most significant is that we practice corrective care, not symptom relief.

That means X-rays on every patient before we touch them, something roughly 80% of chiropractors skip. It means identifying the structural cause of your problem.

And it means our spinal decompression is performed entirely by one of our doctors, not a machine you’re left on for 20 minutes.

We’ve been doing this in Sacramento since 1990 and patients even come to us from out of state.

Yes, and for most auto accident injuries, it’s an effective, non-surgical treatment option.

Chiropractic care is non-invasive, drug-free, and specifically suited to the kinds of injuries car accidents produce: whiplash, spinal misalignment, disc injuries, and soft tissue damage.

We conduct a thorough examination and review your X-rays before beginning any treatment, so care is always informed by what we actually find, not assumptions.

It’s not too late, but sooner is always better. Delayed treatment means the body has had time to adapt around the injury — muscles tighten, scar tissue forms, compensatory movement patterns develop.

These make correction more involved, but not impossible. We regularly treat patients who come to us months or even years after an accident having never addressed the underlying structural damage. The first step is finding out exactly what you’re dealing with.

Bring any documentation related to your accident: police report, insurance information, any imaging or reports from the hospital or other providers.

If you have an attorney, their contact information is helpful too.

If you don’t have anything yet, don’t let that stop you from coming in. We’ll work with what we have and help you gather what’s needed.