3 things most people do not know about serious injuries

Like most of your neighbors, you have never suffered a serious injury. If you have not watched a friend or family member deal with a life-changing injury, you may also not understand the consequences of sustaining one.

While everyone’s injury experience is a bit different, there are three things you may not realize about serious injuries.

1. Symptoms may not show up immediately

Your body releases hormones to help you manage stressful events, such as a car crash.  Unfortunately, though, this stress response may disguise injury symptoms, causing you not to realize you have sustained a serious injury for hours or even days after an accident.

This phenomenon is common with traumatic brain injuries.

2. Your relationships may change considerably

Your injury may make your loved ones feel anxious, angry, inadequate or insecure. While these emotions may dissipate over time, your close relatives and friends may require counseling or therapy to help them cope with your injury.

If you have young children, using age-appropriate language and other methods to explain your injury may be helpful.

3. Money may become scarce quickly

Diagnosing and treating a serious injury tends to be expensive. Meanwhile, you may have the inability to work or secure other sources of income. Put simply, in the immediate aftermath of an injury, you may experience unprecedented financial insecurity.

Even though money may be scarce after you sustain a serious injury, your injury is not the end. Recognizing the challenges you are likely to face and facing them in a proactive way may help you minimize the negative consequences of your life-altering injury.