It is not uncommon to become depressed after being physically injured. Your whole life changes because of an injury, sometimes permanently. You might also find yourself feeling hung up on the circumstances that led to your accident or feeling cosmically cheated by the seemingly random series of events that ended with you being injured.
If you experience depression or another mental health condition after being injured in an accident, you have the right to pursue monetary compensation for your related damages through a personal injury claim. These damages can include the cost of therapy to work through the condition and your reduced quality of life while recovering from depression.
Symptoms of Depression
Depression manifests differently from person to person. This can make it difficult to pinpoint in yourself or a loved one. A few common depression symptoms are:
- Disordered sleeping;
- Loss of appetite;
- Loss of enjoyment of hobbies and other activities the individual once enjoyed;
- Mood swings;
- Excessive crying; and
- An inability to concentrate on tasks like job duties and household chores.
Less common, but no less serious, depression symptoms include:
- Physical aches and pains with no obvious cause;
- Reduced attention span; and
- Memory lapses.
How Depression can Negatively Impact Your Life
When an individual suffers from depression, every aspect of his or her life can be negatively affected. Mood swings and irritability can lead to social isolation, cutting the victim off from his or her social support networks and making it more difficult for him or her to work through the condition. Social isolation, disordered sleep, and the cognitive impairment that can accompany depression can also make it difficult or impossible for the patient to perform his or her job, causing him or her to experience financial strain. Financial strain and social isolation can further fuel the feelings of hopelessness and loss that can come with depression, making the victim’s condition worse.
Depression can also cause an individual to suffer a reduced appetite or the opposite, overeating. When an individual’s eating is disordered in any way, his or her physical health can suffer. This can be from obesity or from malnourishment.
Treating Depression
Depression can be treated. Usually, treatment involves some type of therapy, such as psychotherapy or cognitive behavioral therapy. When therapy alone is not enough to treat the patient’s symptoms, a physician may prescribe antidepressants, antipsychotics, and/or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs).
Work with an Experienced Personal Injury Lawyer
When you are injured in an accident, you can suffer mental injuries as well as physical injuries. One of these injuries is depression. If you are suffering from depression symptoms because of an accidental injury you sustained, you can potentially recover monetary compensation for your expenses related to the depression through a personal injury claim. To learn more, contact our team of personal injury lawyers at Moen Sheehan Meyer, Ltd. today to set up your legal consultation with us.