In Baton Rouge and elsewhere, crash victims often struggle with feelings long after physical injuries have healed. It is not unusual for trauma to trouble crash victims for months or even years after the accidents. The condition is known as post-traumatic stress disorder.
Initial feelings
Car accident victims could experience a range of feelings, some of them last for days, while others just never go away. The feelings during the accident and in the days following usually include the following:
- Shock
- Fear or uneasiness
- Trouble believing it really happened
- Nervousness or worry
- Anger
- Guilt
Crash victims could experience one or all of the feelings. For some, the resulting emotions remain strong beyond the time they would usually take to move on. However, how would they know when their feelings are too strong to go away without therapy?
Telltale signs of post-traumatic stress disorder
In some cases, a person who suffered few or no serious injuries witnessed a loved one dying or suffering catastrophic injuries at the crash scene. That could be a traumatic experience, exacerbated if the person feels guilty for not being able to help them. The following might be telltale signs that a person is heading for PTSD:
- A feeling of disconnection from people or events
- Persisting uneasiness
- Excessive irritability, anger and worry
- Anxiety about riding or driving vehicles
- Troubled sleep with frequent nightmares.
- Flashbacks of the accident
- Uncontrollable memories of the accident
- Problems sleeping and eating
When one’s daily life and career are affected by the ongoing trauma, medical and psychological intervention are required. PTSD is typically a long-term condition requiring ongoing therapy. The sum total of medical expenses, lost wages and more could ruin the victim’s financial stability. If the negligence of another party caused the car accident that gave rise to the PTSD, the victim is likely entitled to pursue financial relief through the Baton Rouge civil justice system.
