With the millions of cars on American roads each day, it’s quite common for most of us to experience a car accident at some point in our driving careers. Depending on the type and severity of the accident, you may be left with many different emotions and physical challenges after the event. Knowing what to do and how to handle this situation is key to a full recovery–mental, emotional, and physical. Car accidents are stressful events, and you need to take some simple steps to ensure that you reduce your stress and prioritize your self-care and recovery.
Follow these tips for coping with and reducing stress after your accident:
Take a deep breath: assess the situation
It is normal following an accident to have feelings of guilt, anger, sadness, and even rage at the other parties involved in causing it. Allowing yourself time to take a deep breath and mentally remove yourself from the situation, attempting to view it objectively, will get you in a clearer headspace for problem solving in the minutes, hours, and days to come. Monitor yourself and others from injury, and call the local authorities and 911, if necessary, to assess victims for life threatening conditions. Do your best to remain calm regardless of the circumstances, and let law enforcement officials and medical technicians know what you need.
Seek medical attention soon after the incident
Regardless of whether it is a fender bender or a catastrophic accident, you’ll need to undergo a physical examination soon after the accident to make sure you have sustained no lasting injuries. Common issues after a car accident include:
- muscle pain or stiffness
- ringing in the ears, pain in the neck, or visual disturbances
- bruising, swelling, or numbness throughout different areas of the body
- headache, dizziness, slow reaction time (signs of concussion)
Other obvious injuries include broken bones, bleeding, and other blunt force trauma injuries that will need immediate medical attention. Let qualified medical professionals care for you and nurse you back to health, no matter how minor your injuries may seem at first.
Follow through with reporting the accident
There are a lot of logistical things that go with wrapping up a traffic incident, and no one wants to slog through them as they are in the midst of recovering from injuries. This is a necessary step in being able to move forward and repair any damages, report any law infractions, and other legal issues that might come up as a result of the accident. The sooner you take care of these items, or have someone else assist with handling them, the sooner you can move on. This site, https://www.preszlerlaw-ns.com/happens-car-accident-driver-doesnt-insurance/, gives valuable insight on how to handle accident situations where drivers are uninsured or uncooperative. Experiencing an accident is stressful enough without having to compensate for drivers who won’t accept responsibility for the occurrence; do yourself a favor and get professional help in dealing with your issues if needed.
Try to get back to your regular routine
You’ve just experienced a traumatic event, and although no one expects you to forget what happened, there will be a point in time where you will have to move on and try once more to embrace your daily activities and routines. Driving becomes a must after an accident; you may be scared to do so and want to limit your out-of-the-house activities, but becoming mobile once more is part of the healing process.
Learn from the incident
While the accident may or may not have been your fault, it is important to take something away from the experience that you can learn and apply to become a better and more observant driver in the future. Practicing defensive driving techniques is one way to prevent future accidents from occurring. Reducing the amount of time spent eating, talking, and texting behind the wheel are all good practices to uphold, and teaching your children, friends and family members about defensive driving techniques will benefit all in the future as you drive and ride together. Refuse to beat yourself up mentally over the incident; instead look to the future as an opportunity to learn and grow from it.
While an accident is an inconvenient and traumatic experience for anyone to occur, it does not necessarily have to be a life-altering event. Following your doctor’s instructions for aftercare, dealing with legal and logistical issues, and practicing safer driving techniques will ensure that you can get back to creating life as you want once more.