(ThyBlackMan.com) The impacts of a personal injury go beyond finances and physical health. A personal injury can also damage your relationships in unimaginable ways. This is not something that people realize immediately after the accident, but often happens over time.
It is also important to remember that any accident is a significant life event that may change you or your loved one’s outlook on life. A combination of this with the immediate changes that take place after a serious accident can spell disaster for your relationships. These include your relationship with a spouse, family members, neighbors, work colleagues, and other people you interact with regularly.
So how does this happen? Here’s how a personal injury can damage your relationships:
Whether to Sue
While it may seem obvious to want to file a compensation claim after an injury, some couples and families might be in disagreement about this.
Personal injuries lawsuits can get, well… personal.
The defendant will dig up all the information they can use to invalidate or cut down your claim. This includes looking at your social media and any damaging info on you or a loved one.
In other cases, the lawsuit might require sworn evidence from your loved one or another third party who is not comfortable with this option.
The push and pull as you debate whether to file a lawsuit can cause mistrust and strain your relationships.
Inability to Provide for Your Family
Personal injuries often leave victims incapacitated from work. The period of incapacitation can be anywhere from days to forever. Regardless, a sudden reduction in the household’s total income can stress a relationship.
The other partner might have to work twice as hard to make ends meet. This can bring them physical burnout and emotional distress.
Besides this, the inability to provide can cause emotional pain to the victim, especially men, leading to all sorts of reactions.
Psychological Damage from an Injury
Damages from an injury can range from physical to psychological. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is a common condition that develops after shocking life events such as an accident.
You can also develop brain damage that can gradually have catastrophic effects on your mental health.
The above outcomes of a personal injury are bound to stress the relationships with people around you as they struggle to accept the reality. To alleviate this distress, consider finding a therapist for the victim and any affected family members.
Loss of Consortium
In personal injury cases, the victim’s spouse bears most of the brunt of the accident. They lose a sense of companionship, alliance, and love. The injury can also have severe physical impacts that it becomes impossible for a couple to enjoy conjugal rights.
All these can raise problems within a relationship as one partner starts to feel lonely, even if they are well aware that it is not their spouse’s fault.
Can You Seek Compensation if a Personal Injury Damages Your Relationships?
In a personal injury, victims seek compensation for two main types of damages: economic and non-economic. The latter comprises intangible damages that are difficult to quantify, like emotional pain.
If a personal injury caused by another person has damaged your relationships, your lawyer might be able to prove that you need compensation for this too. A personal injury attorney in Baton Rouge will assess the specifics of your injury and the effect it has had on your relationships. They can use statements from your spouse or reports from your family therapist.
In some jurisdictions, compensation for the loss of consortium is paid out directly to your spouse or concerned parties.
Staff Writer; Carl Jackson