The Relationship Between Personal Injury and Mental Health

Introduction

When someone suffers a personal injury, they often experience a variety of difficulties, including struggles with their mental health.

Often, we focus on physical recovery when helping clients through personal injury and its aftermath. We encourage them to see a physician and begin physical therapy if necessary. But behind the scenes, many clients quietly struggle with a different kind of fallout: mental and emotional trauma.

Personal injury affects not only your body, but also your mind and emotions. You might feel anxious, sad, stressed, or even hopeless. And these feelings can last for months or even years after the injury.

We have seen firsthand how injuries have a wider impact on just the body. If you’re feeling alone, overwhelmed, or unsure, we want you to know that help is available.

How Injuries Affect Mental Health

After an injury, you may experience:

Depression

Depression is “characterized by a low mood or loss of pleasure or interest in activities for long periods of time” (WHO).

After an injury, you can experience depression due to lifestyle changes, chronic pain, or loss of independence. Major changes in the way that you exist in your daily life can impact how you are feeling.

Anxiety

Anxiety can be “defined as apprehension, tension, or uneasiness that stems from the anticipation of danger” (NIH).

After an injury, you may have anxiety about an increase in medical bills. Clients can also experience anxiety when thinking about whether their case will result in a meaningful settlement.

PTSD

PTSD, or Post-Traumatic-Stress-Disorder, can be defined as “a psychiatric condition that may occur in people who have experienced or witnessed a traumatic event or series of traumatic events” (APA)

Clients who have suffered injuries can develop PTSD and face ongoing symptoms like depression or flashbacks.

Changes in Daily Life

Many clients experience changes in their daily lives following an injury. Some clients feel increasing amounts of stress in their lives. We have clients who lose their jobs due to their injuries and are therefore unable to support themselves or their families. Medical bills are piling up, which adds more tension.

Additionally, sometimes our clients have to utilize assistance programs to complete their daily tasks like household chores or driving to appointments. Injuries often change our clients’ lives in an instant, and they often lack the ability to perform the tasks that they once could. This sudden change of routine can lead to a feeling of dissatisfaction or unhappiness in their daily lives, making them more vulnerable to a mental health crisis.

What the Research Says

A large study in New Zealand looked at over 2,800 people who had different types of injuries. They examined the long-lasting effects that they faced with their mental health after their injuries. Here’s what they found:

1 in 4 (25%) people felt serious emotional distress just 3 months after their injury.
Even a year later, 15% of these individuals were still struggling with their mental health.
At 2 years, 16% still had stress that affected their daily lives.

This study is one of many that links mental health problems to personal injury. It showed that even when injuries are not life-threatening, they can still make an impact on the individual’s mental health.

Who is Most at Risk?

The study found that some people were more likely to feel distress after an injury:

People over 45 years old
Those with low income
People who had mental health issues before the injury
Those who had trouble getting medical care

People who feel distressed in the first few months after an injury often continue to struggle a year or two later.

This doesn’t mean if you don’t meet any of these criteria that you can’t experience mental health issues. If you are experiencing symptoms of anxiety, depression, PTSD, etc., you should seek help. We have listed some resources at the bottom of this page for you.

Why This Matters in Personal Injury Cases

As a law firm, we know that healing isn’t just physical. Emotional pain can affect your ability to work, enjoy life, and recover fully. This is why we take mental health (pain and suffering) seriously in every case.

You might feel overwhelmed, anxious, or depressed after an injury, but you’re not alone, and you didn’t cause these feelings. These feelings are valid and deserve attention.

Society has made many believe that personal injury lawsuits are unwarranted or unnecessary and may just be a quick way to make money. The truth is that many of our clients come to us as a last resort. Our clients are coming to us because they have been wronged by a negligent party and they need help. Their lives have been permanently altered through no fault of their own and we are here to guide them through it.

Resources

These resources are available to you regardless of whether you are a client of ours or someone who just stumbled across this post. Many of these resources are free of charge. Please take advantage of the services that they offer if you are struggling.