If you have been involved in a car accident in the Los Angeles area and feel you may be experiencing PTSD, contact us today. We fight for the rights of car accident victims to ensure their rights are protected and those responsible are help accountable.
What is PTSD?
Post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, is something many people have heard of, and most commonly associate with military combat veterans and victims of violence. Modern research, however, suggests that PTSD may effect many more people than previously assumed. As many as 9 percent of people involved in car accidents show symptoms of PTSD. There are more than 6 million car accidents in the United States every year, most involving multiple people. That means that car accidents are the number one cause for PTSD in America.
A majority of car accident victims will experience symptoms such as numbness, overwhelming stress, or depression. These symptoms are strong at first, but diminish over time, usually only lasting a few weeks. People who exhibit these symptoms and have them grow more intense over time may be experiencing PTSD. While PTSD can present itself in a wide variety of ways, the primary symptoms typically fall into four categories.
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- Re-experiencing – Reliving the traumatic experience over and over, showing physical symptoms like sweating, increased heart rate, and shortness of breath. Nightmares and frightening thoughts during the day are also common.
- Avoidance – Seclusion behavior, like avoiding public places or events, and sometimes objects relevant to the traumatic event may support a diagnosis of PTSD. Becoming emotionally numb or distant from loved ones, and losing interest in what were once favorite hobbies or activities
- Arousal – Constantly feeling tense and on edge, being startled easily, being short tempered with angry outbursts, and having a hard time sleeping through the night.
- Cognition and mood – Issues with memory, specifically in reference to details of the traumatic event point to a possible PTSD diagnosis. The victim may negative though, either about themselves, those around them, or the world in general. There may be strong feelings of guilt or responsibility for the traumatic event.
One or more of these symptoms may appear shortly after a car accident, but it’s also possible for them to appear and then intensify weeks, or even months later.
How is PTSD Treated?
Post-traumatic stress disorder should not be taken lightly, and requires the attention of an experienced xanax mental health professional. It is very common for PTSD to be treated with either one-on-one or group therapy. Medication may also be helpful in some cases. There is evidence that suggests facing fears head on can be helpful, too. Taking control of the situation, and driving back to the scene of the accident can help establish a feeling of comfort.
Ultimately, PTSD is a very complex and sensitive condition, and there’s no single fix-all solution. Once an effective support system is found, it needs to be given time to work. An optimistic estimate for treatment time may be as little as 2-3 months, but it could potentially take much longer.
As PTSD is a mental health condition that effects people’s lives so deeply, it’s not unusual for victims to have difficult paying for the necessary treatments. If your accident was due to the negligence of another person or party, you may be entitled to compensation for the cost of treating all of your injuries, both physical and mental. Contact us today to speak with an experienced Los Angeles car accident attorney. Together we’ll work to get you the compensation you deserve.
Allen Vaysberg practices personal injury law and works tirelessly to defeat the tactics of insurance companies and large corporations who try to deny justice and fair compensation to injured people.
