When you get behind the wheel to drive on a North Carolina roadway, you understand that you’re obligated to do certain things to maintain safety, such as adhere to traffic laws. No matter how cautious you are, however, there’s often little to nothing you can do about another driver’s behavior, especially one whose blood alcohol content level is .08 or higher. Such drivers often lose their ability to drive safely.
You might notice the erratic driving behavior of a nearby motorist, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be able to avoid a collision. If traveling in heavy traffic, his or her car might suddenly veer out of its lane and hit you. Collisions like this often result in fatalities or serious injuries, such as traumatic brain injury. If you’ve had a similar experience, it’s important to know how to build a strong support network as you try to achieve as full of a recovery as possible.
Managing brain injury symptoms as you move on in life
One person’s irresponsible decision to drink and drive can wreak havoc upon your life in an instant. If a drunk driver hit you, and you suffered a brain injury, life, as you knew it just moments before the crash, may never be the same again. Your recovery may be challenging in many ways, especially because your symptoms might not be immediately apparent to others.
You might be having trouble thinking or formulating coherent speech to answer a question, etc., but a person cannot see into your brain and, therefore, may not know that you’re struggling with cognitive issues. You might find it helpful to tell the person to whom you are speaking that you have a brain injury. If you’re able to return to work or school, you may wish to discuss an adjusted schedule or other accommodations to help you be able to perform your regular tasks or carry out your duties.
Living with a brain injury often means accepting limitations
If a drunk driver’s car careened over the yellow line and hit you while you were driving or traveling as a passenger in another vehicle, the impact may have caused such severe blunt force trauma to your brain that there might be certain things you were once able to do that you can’t do on your own anymore. For instance, a severe brain injury might affect your ability to dress or feed yourself.
You might experience balance issues, which could place you at risk for falling, thus necessitating use of a cane or wheelchair for mobility. As time passes in recovery, you might become aware of certain limitations, which can be frustrating or even cause anger, especially when you know that the collision may have been avoidable if the other driver had not chosen to get behind the wheel under the influence of alcohol.
Your support team will have an important role in your recovery
Suffering a brain injury in a North Carolina motor vehicle collision not only affects you but your family and friends who love and care about you, as well. Not only can they provide emotional support and encouragement during your recovery, you might need to rely on them to help you function on a daily basis. A licensed caregiver, such as a visiting nurse, might also be a key figure in your support network.
Emergency medical treatment, physical therapy and other rehabilitative services are expensive. There’s no reason you should have to bear full financial responsibility for injuries that a drunk driver caused. Many accident victims seek financial recovery for their losses in court by turning to a legal team with personal injury litigation experience for support.