If you’ve ever survived a serious car accident, you know the immediate thought that runs through your head after being discharged from the hospital.
Just get through recovery. Then deal with everything else.
This mindset is completely normal. But what’s dangerous about it is how common it is. There’s this silent understanding that as long as the body is healing, everything will be okay. But what about mental health?
The trauma from a bad accident doesn’t magically disappear after a few months. Months or even years later, survivors of serious accidents will tell you that emotional repercussions took way longer to heal than any injury.
Families suffering from a wrongful death car accident are at an even greater disadvantage. The trauma of losing someone isn’t something you kick once broken bones have healed. When grief, shock, and legal concerns collide in the wake of an accident, it can spill over to every aspect of life. With the compassionate support of Equinox Therapeutic, families can begin to process their loss, navigate emotional challenges, and find a path toward healing during such an overwhelming time.
Inside this guide:
- The Psychological Side Effects of Physical Trauma
- Survivors & Why Emotional Trauma Is Often Ignored
- What Trauma Looks Like For Accident Survivors
- How to Process Emotional Trauma the Right Way
- How Legal Support Can Help After An Accident
The Psychological Side Effects of Physical Trauma
When you go to the hospital, they treat you like a physical being.
They assess injuries with scans, they label them, and they treat them. What happens mentally after a traumatic accident is often treated as an afterthought.
Road accident survivors who’ve suffered serious injuries often leave the hospital with an ironclad physical rehabilitation plan but no resources whatsoever for their emotional health. Unless facing wrongful death consequences because someone died in the accident, there’s no recovery plan for mental wellbeing.
Dealing with a traumatic accident is bad enough on its own. Losing someone you care about because of someone else’s negligence? That’s a different story.
If a loved one was killed in a car accident because of a negligent driver, the traumatic stress experienced isn’t a secondary concern. It is the primary concern. That deserves to be recognized.
Family members who lost someone dear to them because of another driver’s negligence should know there are legal options available — especially for those in Texas affected by someone’s carelessness on the road. Visit https://www.pstriallaw.com/practice-areas/houston-car-accident-lawyers to learn more about the options available to you.
Survivors: Why Emotional Trauma Is Often Ignored
America has a problem when it comes to mental health.
Traumatic injuries like broken bones, lost limbs, and concussions are considered legitimate injuries. There’s no argument over whether or not the injury is real. A broken arm has an X-ray to prove it.
But what happens when healing doesn’t happen emotionally? There’s no magical scan for that. So when people start experiencing car accident trauma like depression, anxiety, and panic attacks months after an accident, they’re told they should be “over it” by now.
It’s far from reality.
Road trauma causes more PTSD than any other type of injury outside of military veterans. And another study suggests that 1 in every 5 RTA survivors will develop PTSD after a crash. That’s not even accounting for the people that develop lingering depression and anxiety that never officially manifests as PTSD.
Physical trauma is treated. Emotional trauma is swept under the rug.
What Trauma Looks Like For Accident Survivors
How bad can accident-induced trauma really get?
Picture this.
Someone who loves driving but refuses to get behind the wheel ever again. Someone who wakes up sweating from a horrible dream about the crash over and over again. Someone who can’t show up to work or be there for their kids because they can’t escape how much they’re hurting. Someone who feels nothing at all.
Losing someone you love to a car accident is a massive shock to the system. Grief has no timetable. But what is felt is valid — even if no one else can see it.
Shock, anger, and severe bouts of sadness are normal. Everyone grieves differently. But what if there’s none of the above? What if there’s just nothing?
The lasting mental effects of being in a serious accident can look like:
- Intrusive thoughts
- Flashbacks of the accident
- Avoiding driving or riding in cars
- Emotional numbness
- Irritability
- Anxiety
- Sudden bursts of anger
- Chronic nightmares
- Extended grief
Some of these symptoms overlap with what is traditionally thought of as grief. But they can also stem from accident trauma, too. If left untreated, PTSD symptoms can debilitate life for years after the accident. Some estimates show that accident-induced PTSD can last upwards of one to two years.
How to Process Emotional Trauma the Right Way
Here’s the thing about mental health: it can be treated.
Just like physical trauma, mental health needs attention to improve. Instead of going to physical therapy every week to check in on injuries, meeting with a therapist ensures emotional healing is also taking place.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, more commonly referred to as CBT, is the gold standard for treating post-traumatic stress disorder. CBT works by gradually exposing the patient to the trauma (in a safe environment) so they can work through the fear and anxiety surrounding what happened.
CBT and other therapeutic practices can help, but it’s also important to:
- Address trauma as soon as possible — not months or years down the road
- Have loved ones around that can be trusted
- Maintain open lines of communication with doctors
- Lean on peer groups to help process what you’re going through
Trauma doesn’t disappear overnight. But with each support system in place, survivors slowly rebuild after the accident. That’s what healing looks like.
How Legal Support Can Help After An Accident
One thing that most accident survivors don’t think about is the legal side of things.
Filing a lawsuit isn’t something anyone should have to worry about. But if someone you love was killed due to someone’s negligence on the road, holding them accountable is a right worth exercising.
While nothing will bring a loved one back, seeing a negligent driver held responsible for their actions can help with healing. It’s one piece of the puzzle that feels like justice.
In addition to that sense of accountability, a successful lawsuit can also provide:
- Coverage for therapy and mental health services
- Coverage for lost wages and income
- Compensation for pain and suffering
- Coverage for long-term care if necessary
Losing someone you care about is going to change life in ways that are hard to anticipate. Legal recovery options exist to help provide the support that’s needed.
Emotional Recovery Isn’t Optional
Getting through physical recovery isn’t the finish line.
The injuries from a car accident are temporary. But what happens if emotional healing never comes? Being trapped in a constant state of panic and depression has a way of affecting every corner of life.
Thanks to America’s stigma around mental health, traumatic experiences like car accidents can leave lifelong scars. Families deserve to heal from this — both physically and mentally.
Here’s what can be done to recover after a serious accident:
- Understand emotional trauma is just as real as physical trauma
- Get mental health checked out as soon as possible
- Document all symptoms for medical and legal purposes
- Use every resource available, including legal ones