Should I Go To Urgent Care After A Car Accident?

A car accident can have all sorts of unexpected effects on your health, even if they are not immediately apparent. If you're bleeding or in severe pain after a car accident, or if you momentarily lose consciousness, then you should seek emergency medical care immediately. Your health and safety, as well as that of any other passengers, should be your priority. 

With less obvious injuries, however, you might not be aware of any symptoms for hours or days after the accident. The shock of the sudden accident may induce adrenaline, which can stop you from feeling the pain of some injuries, but that doesn't mean they're not there. 

Car accidents involve sudden, sharp changes of direction. The whiplash of the stop and the blunt trauma of an airbag can cause a lot of strain on your body.  

The Importance of a Quick Follow-Up

Even if you feel fine, it's generally a good idea to go to urgent care or otherwise visit a physician sometime soon after the accident. Your body has had a shock, and it's important to be proactive in addressing any problems you might have that you can't identify yourself. 

If you don't go to the doctor immediately, you should be paying close attention to possible medical symptoms as you start to experience them. Pain and soreness in your neck or in other muscles are common and reflect whiplash-related injuries. You'll need to be very gentle as you recover. 

You should also keep an eye out for concussion symptoms. If you experience mood swings, start forgetting things, have trouble sleeping, or start having frequent headaches, you could be seeing symptoms of head trauma. 

Make plans to see a doctor and get checked out for whiplash and concussions, as well as anything else that might be happening. The doctor will also be able to verify that nothing even more serious is affecting you.  

Keeping Records

As you go about getting the treatment you need and working through the healing process, don't forget to keep track of all of your expenses. You never know when you might need to file an insurance claim or even plan for a lawsuit because of an injury. 

Small injuries may be covered easily by your insurance and not cause any trouble, but every now and then what seems like a small injury can develop over time into something serious with a big impact on both your body and your finances.

When the worst happens and the bills start stacking up, you shouldn't have to drown in those bills all on your own. Be proactive and keep records of the car accident and all of your related expenses, including both direct medical costs and indirect costs such as products required to help you operate as normally as possible. By doing so, you'll be prepared with the help of your car accident lawyer when you need to seek compensation from the person responsible for what happened to you. 

Staying Safe 

The most important things to do after a car accident, however, are to be gentle and careful with your body. You are going to need a lot of rest to heal. You'll also want to be extra cautious when you get back out on the road. Stay alert and practice defensive driving. Not everyone drives responsibly, which means you need to be doubly vigilant.