How To Sleep After A Car Accident

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Trouble sleeping after your car accident?

If youve been hurt in a car accident and believe you have a concussion, it is in your best interest to contact Kisling, Nestico & Redick. We have helped many car accident victims with concussions move forward with their life through our skilled legal representation.

Its Common To Have Adjusted Sleeping Habits After An Accident

Dont be too alarmed if you find yourself sleeping in later or struggling to stay awake during the day following an accidentits common. However, you should still be wary of certain effects since they might be signs that you suffered a head or brain injury. Some soreness and tiredness are common after an accident, but if they remain for more than a week, or the sleepiness feels extreme, it could be something a bit more serious and then getting proper medical guidance will be key.

Types Of Car Accidents That Causes Ptsd

There are various degrees of car accidents, and their levels of severity are determinants to how terrible victims may feel afterward. Notwithstanding the extent of a crash, victims who already suffer from an anxiety disorder from another event may suffer PTSD or a worsened case of whatever they earlier suffered.

Here are the two types of car accidents that expose victims to PTSD:

Car accidents that cause severe injuries
Car accidents involving the death of a loved one

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Why Does My Head Hurt After Car Accident

Muscle-Contraction/Spasm Headaches: One of the most common causes of headaches after a car wreck , is caused when the muscles of the neck, head , or upper back are injured. Especially during an auto accident , a sudden jolt on the neck and head can tear or injure the soft tissue, causing strain or spasm of the muscles.

Report The Accident To The Authorities

Sleep deprivation is dangerous, but especially behind the ...

You should report the accident to the police. OCGA §40-6-273 requires drivers to report any accident that results in injury, death, or property damage of more than $500. The police can begin to investigate the accident once you report it.

You should report the accident to your insurance provider, even if you were not at fault. If you fail to report the accident, your provider may deny you coverage later. Be careful not to admit fault in any way to your insurance representative. Remember, your insurance company may be more interested in saving money than getting you the financial recovery you deserve.

You may also wish to call our firm after the accident. A lawyer on our team can advocate for your best interests after the accident. He can recommend a healthcare provider if you need one, begin to investigate the accident, and help you with the insurance process.

For a free legal consultation, call

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Dominique Apollon Med Lcpc Ncc

Member Since 2018

Dominique Apollon, M.Ed, LCPC, NCC is a clinical mental health therapist working at NVision You, a Chicago-based private practice in the Loop. Dominique is a member of the Anxiety and Depression Association of America and serves on their public education committee. Dominique also serves on the steering committee of the Social Isolation and Pets Consortium, initiated and supported by the Human Animal Bond Research Institute and Mars Petcare.

Dominique applies evidence-based treatments, including mindfulness-based techniques, for clients who experience anxiety, depression, OCD, and other stress-related disorders. She strives to help her clients discover what it means to live intuitively, embrace their vulnerabilities and learn to challenge and face uncertainty with more confidence.

Dominique and ADAA

“I became involved with ADAA in 2018 and have been an active member of the Public Education Committee since. I chose to become a member of ADAA because of how resourceful and current they are with mental health topics.

I enjoy being a part of an organization that is constantly striving to be the best mental health resource worldwide. ADAA is genuine and thoughtful in its approach to provide helpful tips, resources and evidence-based research. I have personally enjoyed being able to write blogs and assist in hosting and presenting webinars as an effort to educate others.

Fatigue Related To Depression

For some people, unusual daytime sleepiness following a car collision might not result from a physical injury. Often, the emotional fallout from a devastating crash can have a lasting emotional impact on the injury victim. Numerous emotions can come rushing to the victim of a car crash, including guilt and anger. However, sadness is often one of the most overwhelming emotions under these circumstances.

Depression is a common result from the strong emotions that follow a serious motor vehicle collision. Emotional suffering can be especially difficult to deal with. While outwardly visible injuries are easy for most people to understand, internal hardships like depression are not.

Cleveland Clinic reports that one of the common symptoms of depression is excessive sleeping. This is not a physical symptom as is the case with a traumatic brain injury. Excessive sleeping due to depression after an injury is an emotional response.

Some other symptoms that could come with sleeping too much include:

Anxiety

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Practice Progressive Muscle Relaxation During The Day

Essentially, progressive muscle relaxation is an exercise where you intentionally release tension from your body from feet to head. Think of it as highly-purposeful pre-sleeping. Were not relaxation experts, so well direct you to a resource that will teach you how to relax your body and practice mindfulness muscle-by-muscle.

Tips For Coping With Posttraumatic Stress After A Car Accident

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Psychreg on Psychotherapy

People who experience serious motor vehicle accidents are at a greater risk of suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder , an anxiety disorder after a life-threatening event, or sustaining severe injuries. Some of the symptoms to look out for include changes in emotional reactions, avoidance behaviour, negative thoughts and mood, intrusive memories, and more. A lack of social support, being extremely emotional after an accident, and prior psychological adjustment issues are among the factors that increase the risk of getting post-traumatic stress disorder. Heres how to cope with PTSD after a car accident.

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Anger Irritability Or Agitation

Drivers and passengers can be angry after a car accident. This may be as a result of allocating blame. Accident victims tend to take their anger out on people around them. Irritability and agitation may remain for a while, as they are characteristics of stress reaction. You can deal with these stress reactions by performing breathing exercises that aid relaxation.

Disorders Stemming From Trauma

In addition to experiencing short-term side effects of traumatic experiences like those described above, there are also psychological disorders that can affect victims long after the initial traumatic event. While many trauma victims will experience initial anxiety and fearfulness post-trauma, many will recover from those feelings and go back to their daily routines with a sense of normalcy. However, there are some people who will continue to have those feelings and flashbacks to the traumatic event, and develop disorders stemming from those feelings.

Another common disorder that trauma victims may experience is acute stress disorder . In acute stress disorder, people who have experienced a trauma recently may have flashbacks to the event, avoid situations that remind them of the trauma, and have heightened fears or awareness of their surroundings. While this may sound strikingly similar to PTSD, the symptoms for ASD begin within 4 weeks after the traumatic event and resolve after no more than a month. If symptoms last longer than a month, ASD may evolve into PTSD.

Getting Your Sleep Schedule Back

Feeling constantly tired can begin to impact so many parts of your life: your job, your relationships, and your overall health. Trouble staying awake after a car crash should be treated like the side effect of any major accident and be addressed quickly to help you get better. Know that youre not alone and that a number of head injuries can cause your sleepiness. Also know that with the right help, like guidance from a chiropractor, its treatable.

For more information, please contact us.

Characteristics Of Drowsy Driving Accidents

Many drowsy driving accidents will involve at least one of the following:

a single vehicle leaves the roadway
the driver is alone in the vehicle
the driver does not swerve or take any evasive action
the driver drifted out of his/her lane right before the accident
the driver crossed a double yellow line and/or drifted into oncoming traffic before the accident
the driver cannot recall what happened immediately before the accident, and
the accident occurred during high risk hours — early morning, mid-afternoon or late at night

Accidents caused by drowsy driving are often more catastrophic than other car accidents, because of the drowsy driver’s slowed reaction time and possible failure to take evasive action.

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Signs Of Something More Serious

In order to determine if you have an injury after a car accident, it helps if you are able to share all your symptoms with your doctor and how long youve been experiencing them. A headache after a car accident coupled with excessive sleepiness may be a sign of the following types of injuries to the head and neck.

Get Witness Contact Info

If there are willing witnesses, ask them for their contact information and if they can wait for the police to arrive. If the accident occurred on private property, like a parking lot, ask security or a manager to make a statement. You want to have a neutral third-party account of the incident if at all possible.

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Incidence Of Accidents Due To Sleep Apnea

The number of car accidents due to ineffective sleep such as that induced by sleep apnea is placed between 16 and 20 percent. It has been shown that sleep deprivation over a weeks time can mimic the problems associated with drunk driving and a blood alcohol concentration of 0.10, well above the accepted standard for drunkenness. Since sleep apnea affects approximately 25 million individuals, the scope of the problem is monumental.

It has been shown that over 6,300 fatal accidents nationwide as well as 328,000 motor vehicle accidents are due to sleep loss. According to AAA, this is about 21 percent of the total crashes, an increase from 16.5 percent in 2010.

Changes In Function Or Personality

Evergreen girl died while sleeping after car crashes into her home

This symptom may be signs of a traumatic brain injury from the car crash. Changes in personality usually means that someone is more irritable, moody, or generally depressed after a car crash. It can also mean having trouble thinking, focusing, moving, or looking around in ways that were not present before the accident.

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Call 911 & Get A Police Report

State laws require that you call the police if anyone is injured or if property damage exceeds a certain threshold. You may also need a police report when you file your insurance claim. If you need to, be politely persistent with the other driver and the police officer that you would like a written statement. Write down the following information:

The officers name
The officers badge number
The officers phone number
The police report number

Get Evaluated By Your Doctor Or Brain Specialist Asap

If TBI goes undiagnosed and untreated, you could become disabled or even lose your life.

The sooner you get a CT scan, get a diagnosis, and begin medical treatment for your symptoms, the sooner you can start your journey of a full recovery. In your accident case, the other driver may be responsible for paying for your medical bills.

Be sure to keep your medical bills and records to be able to show a clear relationship between the car accident and your injury, or the reason why you were sleeping so much.

Surgery to remove blood clots, repair skull fractures, and relieve pressure inside the skull.

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Reasons For Trouble Sleeping After A Serious Car Accident

The national research center on brain injuries known as MSKTC states that nearly 60% of people with TBI experience long-term difficulties with sleep. Not sleeping well at night can spark depression, anxiety, irritability, and affect your overall health and well-being. These symptoms can be claimed as damages in your car accident settlement, in addition to the damages for your brain.

At this moment you may be experiencing these signs of a TBI:

Struggling to stay awake during the day
Dreading the wake up and having a hard time starting the day
Feeling sluggish or moving slowly the entire day

What Should You Do After A Car Accident

Missed an hour or 2 of sleep? Your car crash risk just doubled

Seek immediate medical treatment for your physical injuries. Pay close attention to your emotional and mental health. If you continue to feel upset, paranoid, or anxious after a car accident, talk to your doctor immediately. Your doctor may refer you to a mental health expert for further evaluation.

Seeking help for emotional distress is nothing to be ashamed of. Experiencing a traumatic event often results in emotional distress and mental trauma.

The key is to seek help as soon as possible so that you can recover. Documenting your symptoms also improves your chance of recovering a fair settlement for your injury claim.

For more information, reach out to one of our convenient locations nearest you for assistance.

Savannah law office at

If you would prefer to email us, then please visit our contact page.

What Happens After A Car Accident

There are loads of emotions that come with car accidents. Some of them linger for months or years and can be challenging to live with. No one ever prepares for a car accident, and this is why the feeling can be traumatic. What emotions are common after a car accident?

Here are four types of emotions to expect after a car accident

Shock or disbelief
Anxiety, worry or fear

Intestinal Issues After A Car Accident

Stomach problems such as GERD, acid reflux and reflux pain, indigestion and heartburn can be caused by the restriction of the seat belt as the body gets thrown around by the accident, emotional stress and trauma from the accident or injury to internal soft tissues, nerves or muscles. A chiropractor looks at any misalignments that can be putting pressure on the nerves to relieve pain and discomfort.

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The Original Two Offenders

In 2014, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine released a statement explaining that insomnia is a major contributor to fatal car crashes and other unintentional fatal injuries. Their findings revealed that individuals with severe insomnia were 2.8 times more likely to die from a fatal injury. Difficulty falling asleep was the symptom that was most closely tied to the various cases involving death related to insomnia.

Then in 2015, the AASM released another statementand this time, sleep apnea was the focus. They found that patients with sleep apnea were nearly 2.5 times more likely to be the driver in a motor vehicle accident and that sleep apnea treatment reduced the risk of car crashes among those with sleep apnea by 70%.One year later, the AASM would go on to sleep apnea as a hidden health crisis in the United States. There are many reasons for this decision, including the fact that sleep apnea is behind millions of dollars going to work and auto accidents each year.

Risk Factors For Ptsd In Adults And Children

Sleeping Through a Car Crash

The risk factors for developing PTSD are similar for adults and children, in that it is caused by experiencing or witnessing an event that is perceived to be traumatic. Not everyone that experiences or witnesses a trauma will develop PTSD its all about an individuals perception of the traumatic event. Risk factors for the development of PTSD in adults include:

Age and gender: Research shows that the stage of life that a person is in may directly affect their chances of developing PTSD after a trauma. For example, women are more likely to develop PTSD in their early to mid-fifties, while men are more likely to develop it in their mid-forties. Read more on this study here.
Family history of PTSD: People that have family members who have developed PTSD are more likely to develop PTSD themselves.
History of mental health issues: People with a history of mental health issues like anxiety or depression may be at an increased risk of developing PTSD.
Multiple traumatic experiences: If someone has experienced a traumatic event in their past and develops PTSD from it, they are at an increased risk of developing PTSD after any traumatic events that may follow.

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