Whiplash is a serious injury that can have lasting effects for car accident victims. Many whiplash victims never fully recover from the injury and continue to feel pain and discomfort for the rest of their lives. This isn’t meant to scare you, but it is meant to alert you to how whiplash can affect you after a car accident and how you should treat whiplash injuries if you received them in an accident. For help seeking financial compensation and more information about a whiplash injury claim, contact car accident lawyer Prosper Shaked.
Signs and Symptoms of Whiplash After a Car Crash
After a car accident, it may not be immediately obvious that you suffered a whiplash injury. First, the stress and adrenaline from the accident may dull the sensation of pain, and it is important to get checked by an EMT or medical professionals at the hospital to identify injuries you may not be able to feel. Whiplash may not be noticeable until hours after the crash, and it typically isn’t until the next morning when a whiplash victim wakes up that they notice the injury.
The delay in noticing the injury makes it slightly more difficult to connect the injury with the accident since there is plenty of time for an intervening cause to have created that injury. That is the argument that the at-fault party may use against your claim, but proper documentation and monitoring by a medical professional can help prove your injury was caused by the car accident.
Whiplash symptoms are mostly what you might expect them to be. Since the injury typically affects the neck, it is common to feel pain, discomfort, stiffness, and reduced mobility in the neck. In addition, the pain may radiate to your shoulders or up to your head, and whiplash could come with painful headaches. If these injuries are not obvious until the next morning, this is a good sign that your injury is whiplash and not just mild neck pain.
Whiplash Recovery After a Car Crash
Many people have an image in their mind of a whiplash victim sitting in court with a neck brace on. In many cases, your recovery will not involve such dramatic looking care. In fact, most medical professionals that treat whiplash tend to avoid keeping your neck stiff in a neck brace. Still, recovering from whiplash often means working with doctors and other healthcare professionals for some time after the accident.
Doctors may run tests and scans to ensure that there is no further injury to your spinal cord or the bones in your neck, especially if your whiplash is severe. They may also want to rule out brain injury if you have severe headaches after a whiplash injury. Ongoing care may involve physical therapy, visits to a chiropractor, and other care to prevent long-term effects and manage the pain and discomfort of any lasting effects. In some cases, this could mean years of ongoing treatment for your injury.
These medical expenses, especially ongoing care, could be quite expensive. It is important to talk to an experienced personal injury lawyer about filing a lawsuit against the at-fault driver to recover the costs of this kind of treatment as damages.
Damages in a Whiplash Injury Case
As mentioned, the cost of healthcare after a whiplash injury can be quite expensive. In addition to these costs, you may need to miss work and you may undergo severe pain and suffering. These harms and more can all be compensated through a lawsuit.
Any medical care that comes as a consequence of the injury should be covered by damages in a personal injury lawsuit. The cost of imaging, immediate treatment, and ongoing care may be paid in full by the financial compensation you receive if you receive the maximum damages for your injury case.
Many jobs require you to be able to turn your head, bend over, or move quickly. If your whiplash injury restricts your movement or your ability to do your job, you may need to take a temporary leave of absence or have yourself put on light duty work. In any case, if this affects your pay, you may be entitled to claim any lost income or reduced income as damages in a car accident lawsuit.
On top of the damages for medical expenses and lost wages, you may be entitled to direct compensation for your pain and suffering. These damages may be incredibly high. Even though the injury is not severe compared to traumatic brain injuries and other life-altering injuries, the ongoing nature of a whiplash injury can mean high levels of physical pain and mental suffering, which can result in substantial damages.
Call Our Miami Car Accident Lawyer for a Free Legal Consultation
For a free consultation on your whiplash injury case, contact Prosper Shaked Accident Injury Attorneys PA today. Prosper Shaked represents auto accident victims in injury cases and fights to get them compensation for injuries like whiplash. To schedule a free legal consultation, call our law offices today at (305) 694-2676.