Car crashes lead to some of the most catastrophic injuries. Unfortunately, you may also suffer mental and emotional trauma. Sometimes, the mental trauma you experience may last much longer than your physical injuries.
While post-traumatic stress disorder is most commonly associated with soldiers returning from war, the condition can arise after any situation someone considers traumatic. A car accident is just one of those situations, and you need to understand your rights and how to cope if it happens to you.
Your Legal Rights
Post-traumatic stress can be considered pain and suffering in personal injury law. You can recover compensation for this type of condition through non-economic damages. These types of injuries don’t have a direct monetary value to calculate a settlement, so it’s vital to get a medical professional’s diagnosis to show how PTSD has impacted your life.
Suffering post-traumatic stress can cause a loss of enjoyment in life. The triggers you may experience can make it nearly impossible to do some of the things you once did before your crash. Legal processes can consider the impact a collision can have on your emotional well-being.
Tips to Cope with the Lasting Effects of PTSD
It’s never easy to deal with PTSD. Post-traumatic stress can cause anxiety and fear in any situation that reminds you of or brings your memory back to your crash. These feelings may prevent you from ever driving again. Here are a few tips that may help you cope with your anxiety or fear of driving:
- Self-monitoring: This means recognizing what triggers cause your feelings of fear and anxiety. A trigger is any reminder of your crash that incites memories of what happened. Self-monitoring may mean avoiding situations that can lead to further trauma.
- Social support: Have someone you can rely on to help you get through feelings of anxiety or fear.
- Therapy: Therapy can help you understand your condition and triggers to avoid them or take them head-on and address them without fear. Therapy is one of the most common coping mechanisms people use to get the support they need.
- R.A.I.N.: The rain method stands for:
- R: Recognize that your condition exists
- A: Accept that you have PTSD and the feelings associated with it
- I: Investigate what causes your triggers and why your feelings occur
- N: Not letting the condition identify who you are
The aftermath of a car crash can be difficult to overcome. Working with our Las Vegas car accident lawyers helps you pursue compensation to cover your therapy costs and other financial losses. At Bertoldo Carter Smith & Cullen, we’re here for you every step of the way.
Call our firm today at (702) 505-8115 for a free consultation with our team and learn how we may be able to help you.