When you get behind the wheel of a car to drive on a Florida roadway or travel as a passenger in someone’s car, there’s always an inherent risk that something will happen to prevent you from arriving safely to your destination. Any number of issues can cause a collision, perhaps, resulting in severe or even life-threatening injuries. As a licensed driver, you understand that you’re obligated to obey traffic laws.
However, you have no control over the actions of other motorists. You might be a safe driver, but that doesn’t guarantee that you’ll be sharing the road with other drivers who are the same. In fact, if a distracted or drunk driver hits your vehicle, it’s important to seek medical attention and monitor your condition in the days and weeks that follow, and to watch for certain symptoms that suggest severe injury.
Symptoms that suggest additional medical treatment is needed
If you’re driving along a highway or community road and are suddenly struck by another vehicle, the impact of the collision can cause numerous injuries. Some injuries are more immediately apparent than others, such as the emotional trauma you’re likely to experience when an uneventful road trip turns disastrous. The following list shows other symptoms that may surface in the aftermath of a crash, for which it’s best to seek immediate medical attention:
- Inability to move part of your body
- Head, facial or neck pain
- Numbness or tingling sensations
- Back pain
- Personality changes, including mood swings or lethargy
These five symptoms may be suggestive of various underlying conditions, some of which may place your overall health or even your life, at risk. For instance, pain in your neck, face or head, even days after a motor vehicle collision, may be suggestive of a traumatic brain injury. The same goes for abrupt mood swings or extreme fatigue and lethargy.
Taking one day at a time in recovery
One of the reasons it’s so important to report such symptoms to a physician is that doctors who have experience in treating accident victims know what types of tests to run to rule out brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, internal bleeding and more. A competent medical team can help you achieve as full a recovery as possible, at least, physically.
The aftermath of a motor vehicle collision often sparks financial distress, especially because of medical expenses or having to take time off work during recovery. In cases where driver negligence has caused collisions, recovering victims have often been able to obtain compensation for damages by pursuing litigation against those deemed responsible for their injuries.