How Can I Expect an Accident to Affect My Daily Life?

May 11, 2023 -

John McMullin, Juris Doctor, Associate Lawyer, LETOURNEAU LLP

Life after a motor vehicle accident is often an entry into a great expanse of the unknown. You’ve gone through the trauma of the crash itself. After that moment of sound and fury, there’s often no one to tell you what is going to happen. We here at LETOURNEAU LLP can’t predict the future, but we can demystify some of what happens medically after a car accident.

What Are Typical Injuries After an Accident?

It’s very normal to feel like you are absolutely fine after a car accident. You may have told a police officer at the scene that you’re not injured at all, and then a few days later you can’t get off the couch for a week. This can happen when your body’s “fight or flight” response covers the symptoms of the accident so that you can still react to the trauma.

Whiplash symptoms can be more insidious than a sore neck and back. Headache, vision issues, nausea, and memory can all be affected by whiplash.

Concussion is another common injury after an accident, and can cause irritability, depression, word recall, and other issues. PTSD and other mental injuries are also common – you went through trauma, and your body and mind need to deal with it.

Jaw issues, specifically temporomandibular jaw disorder (TMD) are easy to miss when dealing with the aftermath of an accident, but are important to address. TMD can make your headaches and neck pain worse, as well as causing pain and difficulties eating.

More serious injuries such as fractures, chronic pain, burns, and brain injuries can happen in higher-speed accidents, or if someone’s body is particularly susceptible to being hurt in a specific way.

What Do I Do After the Accident to Recover?

There is a lot to do after an accident. One of the most important, if not the most, actions is getting treatment for the injuries you’ve suffered from your accident. You have coverage through your own insurance company for your treatment, and you should use it.

You need to make sure you are working with appropriate healthcare professionals, including:

• Your doctor. If you don’t have a doctor, services such as walk-in clinics or the emergency department can assist. You need a medical professional to determine how badly you’ve been hurt. Many accident victims are worried that their symptoms are not serious enough to discuss with their doctor, but it’s important to remember that medical professionals are the ones that will tell you how badly you’ve been hurt, not the other way around. They can’t help you if you don’t tell them what you’re dealing with.
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• Specialists that you have been referred to. If your accident results in arthritis or fibromyalgia, working with a rheumatologist who specializes in treating those conditions is vital.
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• Your physiotherapist. At LETOURNEAU LLP, we’ve never had a personal injury client who has not benefitted from going to physiotherapy. Your physiotherapist will help you strengthen and repair damaged muscles and tendons. They can also assist with concussion issues and TMD.
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• If your doctor recommends it, a psychologist. Remember how we told you to talk to your doctor about your symptoms? This includes mental difficulties. Your doctor can determine if psychological treatment can assist you, and if they do, your insurance company will pay for it.
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• Your dentist if you have any jaw issues. Most dentists do not specialize in TMD treatment, but they can refer you to someone who does.
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• Many clients also benefit from chiropractic treatment, massage, or acupuncture. There is some coverage for these services through your own automobile insurance.

It’s important to try and keep all of your treatment team informed of what’s going on. Your doctor should know what your physiotherapist is saying, your physiotherapy treatment for TMD should be discussed with a dentist, and so on.

What Kind of Recovery Can I Expect?

Accidents are like nasty snowflakes: every one is different. You will not be able to know how much you’ll recover until you go through the steps to get better.

However, the earlier you get to treatment, and the better you are at following what your doctors tell you to do, the better chance you’ll have at improving.

Hopefully, you will recover entirely from the accident, but that doesn’t always happen. Generally speaking, your health will not improve after two years of treatment, unless there is further significant intervention such as surgery. This is called maximum medical improvement. Your body may stop responding to treatment after a number of years, so it’s important to prioritize treatment early and often.

Organizing and dealing with treatment is an important part of the service we offer at LETOURNEAU LLP. We work with you to find the best treatment providers for your case, ensure your insurance company meets its contractual obligations to pay for that treatment, and deal with the bumps and problems that will come up along the way so that you can focus on getting better. Contact us today to arrange a free consultation to see what we can do to help you recover and get the compensation you deserve.

If you have been in an accident, it's a great idea to speak to a personal injury lawyer about your rights and responsibilities. Contact LETOURNEAU LLP at 403-329-4311 to set up a free consultation for any accident-related injury.

Learn more about John McMullin, our Lethbridge Personal Injury Lawyer.

Learn more about Personal Injury Law.

This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice