Many incidents can result in people suffering serious injuries without them immediately realizing it. If you suffered injuries in a car accident, the adrenaline you feel could mask any pain or other symptoms that could point to a severe injury. It is not uncommon for injuries to show symptoms days or even weeks after an incident occurred.
Because there is a chance that you could have suffered severe injuries without fully realizing it, it is always a smart idea to seek medical attention after a car accident. Even if you do not feel unwell, inform any emergency room staff or your primary care doctor of what you experienced in the crash. For instance, if you hit your head, it is important to tell the doctor, even if your head does not hurt at the moment.
Traumatic brain injuries
In many cases, when a person’s head is hit by an object or strikes an object, traumatic brain injuries can occur. Car accidents are a leading cause of this type of severe injury. If you experienced any of the following symptoms after a head injury either immediately or even days later, you could have suffered a TBI:
- Vomiting
- Nausea
- Headache
- Feeling stunned
- Sleepiness
- Convulsions
- Loss of consciousness
- Unusual pupil dilation
Unfortunately, even if medical staff members perform an MRI, the injury may not show up on the imaging. As a result, a diagnosis for a TBI could be delayed until other severe effects appear.
Long-term effects
Some long-term effects of a TBI can also show up days, weeks, months or even years after suffering the injury. Some areas that you could notice a decline in function or ability include the following:
- Mood regulation
- Ability to filter environmental stimuli
- Cognitive function
- Energy and alertness
- Sensory and motor functions
- Coordination
As you can likely imagine, issues with any of these areas can cause severe problems in your life.
Treatment
Fortunately, treatments and therapies exist for TBIs, and you may benefit from receiving long-term help in strengthening areas affected by your injury. Of course, you may worry about the financial impacts of such help, and that concern is understandable. However, if your injury resulted from the negligent or reckless actions of another person, you may have reason to file a personal injury claim against that person in order to seek compensation for damages allowable under Wisconsin law.
