If you have never been in a car accident, you are either very young or very lucky. According to an Esurance report, 77 percent of drivers have been involved in at least one crash. Moreover, statistics indicate that individuals who start driving at age 16 will have 3 to 4 car accidents during their lives. That equates to one accident every 17.9 years.
While car crashes can differ in severity, and the physical and emotional consequences for someone involved can vary, it is quite common for people to feel a sense of shock, stress, and other emotions immediately following an accident. Additionally, your body will generally produce adrenaline. While these responses are designed to protect us, they can mask injuries for a period of time.
Therefore, a person may not fully understand potential injuries immediately following the accident. The signs that an injury occurred may not be fully identified until the passage of some time. In this blog, we will discuss some signs or symptoms you should not ignore after a car accident, even if they do not present until hours, days, or longer until after the accident.
Slow-Developing Symptoms that Can Arise After an Accident
- Headaches: Lots of things can cause headaches, and fortunately the pain often disappears. However, headaches can also be symptoms of injury, and sometimes may appear days after the accident. Your head and neck may experience whiplash, or your head can hit something hard in the automobile. Headaches can signal concussions, traumatic brain injury, blood clots, and injuries to the head and neck.
- Changes in behavior: Some people start to have symptoms such as changes in behavior and mood. There can also be symptoms such as depression and impaired memory or thinking. Related physical signs could appear, such as problems with hearing, vision, balance, and movement. These symptoms can indicate brain injury, as well as post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
- Stomach pain and swelling: Abdominal pain, swelling, and bruising can be an indication that you have suffered internal injuries or bleeding. It is important to have these symptoms diagnosed promptly.
- Numbness or tingling: We often associate numbness and tingling with the body’s extremities, but it can also be felt in other parts of the body. It is important to get checked out for these symptoms, because they can signal injury to the neck and other parts of the spinal column. Specific examples of injury include herniated discs and pinched nerves.
- Back, shoulder, or neck pain: It is common after automobile accidents to feel pain in the back, shoulders, or neck. Some patients have classic whiplash injuries. There can also be damage to the ligaments, nerves, muscles, and vertebrae.
Do Not Delay in Seeking Treatment
The bottom line: If you have any unusual pain or discomfort following an automobile accident, even if some time has passed since the crash, be sure and get checked out by a medical professional.
Call with Questions
If you have suffered injuries in a car accident, no matter when you first noticed them, you will likely have questions about your rights under the law. Please call us promptly for a free consultation. The experienced personal injury lawyers at Nelson MacNeil Rayfield handle car and truck accident cases all over Oregon. We believe that justice demands that injured victims be made whole for their losses. We also believe that it is imperative to hold negligent drivers accountable for their conduct so that all of society will be safer in the future.