You’re driving your way along a road that you regularly take when all of a sudden, another car collided with yours. Even if your car’s seatbelt and airbag protected your body and head, respectively, you’ve still sustained physical injuries as a result of that car accident, which then led to you getting rushed to a hospital. Lost wages aside, the car accident that you got involved in can take a considerable toll on your health, which can turn your life into a living hell. All hope is not lost though as you can still improve your health after a serious car accident with these steps that you should start doing after you’re done reading this:
1. Don’t go back to work yet until your doctor says so
After getting involved in a serious car accident, you might be itching to go back to work so that you can make up for all the earnings that you’ve lost.
- However, rushing into doing any work – regardless if it involves manual labor or simply sitting at a desk all day – after a car accident may cause your injuries to reappear, thus making the recovery period that you previously spent essentially useless.
- To be safe, you should visit your doctor again and have an assessment if you can already go back to work or not yet.
2. Have yourself undergo physical therapy to restore your mobility
Even if you’ve already taken some rest after getting involved in a serious car accident, chances are you might not be able to move your limbs and joints normally, which can turn doing even the simplest of tasks like holding a glass of water an extreme burden to bear.
- Getting yourself some rest can only do so much to improve your physical health after a serious car accident. Thus, you’ll also need to schedule a series of sessions with a licensed physical therapist.
- Your physical therapist will make you do some very light conditioning exercises, which they can then gradually increase in intensity until you can comfortably move all your limbs and joints.
3. Consider visiting a chiropractor as well, especially as you may have sustained back and neck injuries too after getting involved in a car accident
As your physical therapist is limited to restoring your mobility, they might not be able to take away the pain that you feel in your neck and back as a result of your car accident. Thus, you might want to schedule a series of sessions with a licensed chiropractor as well.
- Your chiropractor wouldn’t do any surgical procedure on you at all or even prescribe you with painkiller medications as they’re not allowed to do these. Instead, they’ll manually adjust whichever part of your body is hurting as a result of your car accident whether it be your neck, back, spine, or limbs.
4. Consult a mental health professional
Your physical health may have vastly improved after doing the three steps listed above, but your mental health after being a victim of a serious car accident is also of the utmost concern.
- As a car accident is a traumatic event, you may have a speedy physical recovery and yet still suffer from mental health problems like post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety disorder, and fear of driving.
- Unfortunately, some car accident victims forego having their mental health checked until any of the aforementioned mental health problems had already fully manifested and hindered them from resuming their normal way of life. Add to that the still prevalent stigma surrounding having your mental state checked by a qualified professional, which can result in people branding you as “sick in the head” or “insane.”
- However, you shouldn’t let people’s preconceived notions of mental health get in the way of getting yourself psychological treatment after having suffered from a car accident.
- Thus, you should consult a psychologist or counselor who can perform cognitive behavioral therapy on you by reframing all the negative thoughts that your mind formed after your car accident and replacing them with positive ones.
- Your psychologist may also prescribe you antidepressants to help you more easily overcome your mental health problem through chemical intervention, though you should double-check first with the doctor who treated your physical injuries if you can take the said medication aside from any previous ones that you’ve already been taking.
According to the Association for Safe International Road Travel, around 20 to 50 million people all over the world become injured or disabled every year after getting involved a car accident. If you’re a part of that statistic right now, you surely have been wishing for the trauma left behind by the car accident that you got involved in to go away as soon as possible. You can seek the help of a lawyer regarding this matter, especially if the recommended course of action is to file a pedestrian accident claim, of which you can learn about if you click here. If you do get rewarded compensation from the case, you can use it as well as the above-listed steps to improve your health after a serious car accident so that you can go back to living a normal life.
Vicki Haskett
Vicki is a law writing enthusiast who’s had over 25 years of experience in her field. She enjoys sharing her experiences with those who want to learn more about the legal world. In her spare time she spends quality time with her family and friends.
