I keep having recurrences and I'm not sure what I can do to stop them. Hoping to get some advice. They all occur with whiplash type injuries mostly in transport (cars, buses, etc.) and the full host of symptoms accompanies them (prior to each incident I don't have any symptoms at all) and I am completely out of commission for months at a time. Movement up and down doesn't seem to cause any issues but rapid head movement back and forth creates problems (like if a car/bus breaks too quickly and I get jolted forward, for example).

Are there any types of things I can do to strengthen my neck to prevent this from happening? Other things?

Years ago, somebody posted a link to neck strengthening exercises that their doctor had recommended. I tried doing a search but could not find it. Dr Robert Cantu is a proponent of neck strengthening. Maybe he has something. UPMC also focuses on necks.

Don't know if it would help you or not, but I was given specific neck stretches by my PT, and told that I would have to do them for life. If you feel your head symptoms and neck symptoms are related, you are not alone! While I haven't been able to put my finger on exactly what my recurrence trigger is, I certainly notice my neck is worse when my head is worse, and vice-versa.

I also started deep tissue massage this year, focusing on the most painful part of my neck. I say massage...it started out more akin to torture sessions, my neck was so tight. While it hasn't completely "cured" my head (or neck) issues, I feel that I've continued to make progress.

I suspect everyone is different in what helps and hinders just a bit, so as long as what you are doing doesn't make it worse for you, why not explore it?

interesting: what stretches were you given?

i was also given stretches that were pretty standard but not sure how much they helped me.