If you are pursuing a personal injury case, pain and suffering are likely to be part of your damages. The pain and suffering damages are nonmonetary losses that you have suffered as a result of the defendant's actions or inaction. The following are some of the specific elements of pain and suffering damages.
Physical Pain
Physical pain is almost always present after an accident. For example, if a car knocked you over while you were jogging by the road, you may suffer fractures, dislocations, and lacerations, among other potential injuries. All these injuries are painful even though they present different levels of pain.
The level of physical pain is difficult to determine. Here are some of the factors courts use to gauge your level of physical pain:
For example, a fractured limb that takes months to heal will cause you more pain than a sprain that takes a few weeks to heal.
Loss of Enjoyment
An accident may also make you suffer if the injury denies you the ability or opportunity to enjoy the things you used to do. For example, an injury can trigger loss of appetite that bars you from enjoying your favorite meals. A leg injury may prevent you from playing your favorite sports such as rugby or football. A pelvic injury may make it difficult for you to enjoy sexual relations with your spouse.
The activities you can no longer engage in, your usual lifestyle, and how long the loss of enjoyment lasts all affect your pain and suffering. The defendant should compensate you for the loss of enjoyment since they are responsible for your injuries.
Emotional Pain and PTSD
Lastly, your accident may also trigger emotional pain and injury. Emotional pain may manifest itself in various ways such as:
In some cases, emotional pain even triggers physical pain such as headaches. In extreme cases, your emotional injury may even trigger post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a psychiatric disorder that afflicts those who have experienced or witnessed an extremely traumatizing event or events. PTSD is characterized by extreme irritability, anxiety, disturbing flashbacks of the traumatizing event, and even nightmares, among other things.
Hopefully, you will get the compensation you deserve in your personal injury case. The best way to maximize your damages is to involve a personal injury lawyer in your pursuit of damages right from the start of the case. For more information, contact an attorney like Nicholas B. Hall - Personal Injury Lawyer.
Share10 May 2019
It can be hard to know what to do to protect yourself legally in the immediate aftermath of a car accident. You’re liable to be disoriented or in shock, you may be injured, and you’re surely worried about your passenger or the other driver. At least, that’s how I felt. The thing is, the things you say and do in the immediate aftermath of an accident may affect a legal case later. Depending on who’s at fault and what the laws are in your state, you may want to sue the other driver for damages, or you may find yourself being sued. My blog is designed to give you tips for a car accident lawsuit, no matter which side you find yourself on.