Traumatic injuries take a toll on more than the human body – they also affect the mind. It’s common to develop symptoms of PTSD after injuries and accidents. According to the Sidran Institute, 16.8% of people that experience serious accidents develop PTSD. Also, 70% of adults in the US will experience at least one traumatic event during their lifetime. That’s why it’s essential to know that mental recovery is just as crucial as physical recovery.
The trauma can cause symptoms such as anxiety, trouble concentrating, nightmares, and more. These are serious mental side effects that should not go ignored. Sometimes, physical symptoms can even occur that aren’t related to the injury. Headaches, fatigue, and stomach pain can all show up due to mental trauma. Read on to learn how to emotionally recover during rehab after a traumatic injury.
Psychotherapy or Talk Therapy
Peace of mind is essential for anyone recovering from an accident. If you don’t have legal representation, hiring a spinal injury lawyer can help place your mind at ease. That way, they can get to work on securing compensation for your physical and emotional trauma.
Talking it out is another way to deal with emotional trauma from injuries. For patients with brain injuries, it’s common to become more emotionally reactive than usual. As such, it’s normal for patients to feel confused and ashamed that they can’t control their emotions. That’s where individual psychotherapy can help. The therapist can help the patient understand why they’re so emotionally volatile. They can also relieve these symptoms through various methods, such as breathwork.
Psychotherapy is also effective for long-term recovery. It’s normal for injured patients to worry about the future. There may be concerns if they can work again, or they may have anxiety about getting injured again. A therapist can help stabilize the dramatic ups and downs of recovering from an injury.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for TBI
Cognitive-behavioral therapy is a popular treatment option for traumatic brain injuries or TBI. It centers on rewiring the brain to change unwanted thoughts and behaviors. For example, if someone struggles with anxiety after an accident – CBT can get rid of that habit. CBT gets patients to understand their behavior and feelings to learn how to change them.
Patients learn what creates their feelings and how their feelings reflect their behavior. From there, the way they behave reinforces their feelings. It’s a vicious cycle that requires awareness to disrupt. An example would be a patient that believes they can’t drive again after an accident. That causes them to feel anxiety, which turns to fear whenever they try to drive. Since they’re frightened, they can’t perform at their full potential. CBT aims to disrupt this cycle by helping them identify unhealthy patterns.
The road to recovery after an injury involves more than physical injuries healing. It’s also necessary to address the mental scars that traumatic injuries leave behind. For anyone that’s been recently injured and is struggling emotionally, don’t wait to seek help. CBT and psychotherapy are two treatment options that work well for injured patients. It’s also wise to seek legal representation sooner than later, especially if you got hurt on the job.
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