Taking Care of Your Mental Health After an Accident
Accidents are, unfortunately, a part of life. As much as we might try to avoid them, and protect ourselves in any way that we can, it’s not always in our control. If you are a driver, chances are at some point you’ll be involved in an accident on the road. We have accidents at work, playing sports or even doing DIY at home. Hopefully, all of the accidents that you are involved in will be minor, and you’ll never find yourself left with a serious injury.
But, injuries are another thing that happens. Whether severe or minor, an injury sustained during an accident can have a significant impact on your life. Carrying an injury can mean that you can’t get on with your day to day life as usual. You might find your ability to carry out your usual tasks impaired, you may struggle with pain and swelling, and you might be forced to take time off work, or away from your usual exercise routines.
Whether you face recovering from a physical injury or not, your mental health might take a knock. Even if you walk away from your accident with just a few minor cuts, you might find yourself feeling anxious, depressed and suffering from a massive lack of confidence. If you’ve been involved in a road accident, you might be scared to get back in your car, and if you got injured at work, you might worry about getting back into it.
This is completely normal. After an accident, it’s normal to feel worried about the future. If you are forced to take time off work and find getting out of the house a struggle, you can get lonely and depressed, and the longer it goes on, the harder it gets. Let’s take a look at some of the things that you can do to look after your mental health following an accident.
Do What You Need To
Following an accident, certain things have to be done, whether or not you are injured. You might need to find a lawyer that’s providing outstanding legal service to their clients. You might need to make an insurance claim or take your car to be repaired. If it was an accident at work, you might want to speak to your manager or someone else that can help you.
It’s hard to move forward when you still have things hanging over you. So, take some time, make a list of what needs doing and who you need to speak with, and get some help getting it all done if you need to. It will be much easier to move on from an accident and start to recover once everything has been dealt with.
Talk About Your Feelings
Most of us are guilty of at some point, bottling things up. We’re worried about looking silly, or we feel guilty about the accident, and we don’t want other people to judge us. So, we try to put a brave face on things and move on. We don’t talk about how we are feeling; we just try to ignore it and pretend that everything is ok.
When you do this, the accident becomes more significant in your mind. You might find that it’s all that you can think about, and your worries and anxieties grow. Your mental health can start to suffer if you don’t get your thoughts and feelings out into the world. You might find that many of your friends and family have been through similar feelings, even if they haven’t been in precisely the same situation. Speak to them and share how you feel. They might be able to help.
Spend Time With Friends
If you’ve taken time off work, and away from your usual hobbies, you might start to feel very isolated and lonely. It can even be hard to see friends, they are still working after all, and you might not be as mobile as you are used to.
Force yourself to see people. Speaking to friends online and over the phone is good, but seeing people in person is even better. Make plans, even if it’s just a friend popping around for coffee or bringing food. Having company, even for a little while can be a big boost for your mental health.
Get Out as Much as You Can
Whether you are injured or not, your isolation, poor mental health and a lack of confidence can mean that you don’t feel safe leaving your house. Even if you are able to move, as usual, you might not want to.
A few days at home in your PJs can be great. But, once it starts to drag on, it can quickly get harder. You might find that you are scared to go out and that you are making excuses not to.
Straight after your accident, try to leave your house. Even a short walk to the local shop or around the park can be a great start.
Go Back to The Scene
It’s common to be scared to go back to the scene of your accident. You might worry about working in those conditions or driving on that road. But, like leaving the house, the longer you put it off, the worse it will be. Go back as soon as you can, taking a friend with you if it makes it easier to tackle.
Do Something For Yourself
Sometimes, the best way to boost your mental health is doing something for yourself, instead of trying to look after other people all of the time. Buy yourself something, take a long hot bubble bath, cook a great meal or go to a show. Treat yourself, pay yourself some attention and don’t worry about other people for a little while.
See Your Doctor
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If you are really struggling with your mental health, these tips might not be enough to help you through. If you need to, speak to your doctor about managing your anxiety or treating your depression. You’d go to the doctor if you broke your foot in the accident, it’s the same.
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