Whiplash usually occurs when the head and neck are unexpectedly or suddenly thrown very quickly in one direction and then rebound in the opposite direction. You might say the head is “whipped around” on the neck. A whiplash type injury doesn’t only occur in automobile accidents. Whiplash injuries may occur as a result of sudden forces to the body such as in contact sports like football, soccer, or boxing, falls, direct trauma to the skull or even a sudden sneeze.