If you have psychological injuries, and you feel someone else caused these injuries due to their negligence, you may be able to file a personal injury claim. However, the majority of personal injury claims are filed for physical injuries. As such, you may have many questions about the differences between filing a claim for physical injuries and for psychological injuries. Here are a few of the questions you have and the answers. 

What Are Psychological Injuries?

There are various types of psychological injuries that people may have. Some of them include post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), traumatic brain injury (TBI), a concussion, chronic pain, or a disorder that involves mood or emotions. While the difference between physical and psychological injuries varies greatly, it doesn't mean that you do not have a claim. Often times, after someone is involved in a car accident, they suffer psychological effects. While it may depend on the severity and circumstances of the accident, there are certain triggers that can cause someone to experience this. 

Psychological injuries vary slightly from emotional distress. Emotional distress is typically a short-term feeling and a psychological injury can be long-lasting or permanent. While they both affect the same sensory system, psychological injuries require more care and professional attention.

Can You File a Psychological Injury Claim if You Don't Have Physical Injuries?

You may be able to file a claim for just psychological injuries. This is best to do with the help of an attorney as they know what insurance companies tend to look for. They also have a better understanding of the injuries and what compensation those injuries may entitle you to. Winning a psychological injury claim can be a bit more challenging than a physical injury case.

With phsycial injuries, you can show a judge or jury an Xray, an MRI, or other proof of your injury. With a psychological injury, the judge or jury has to take your word about the symptoms you are experiencing. An attorney can guide you to specialist who can evaluate you and provide reports that corroborate the accident and the emotional distress you are experiencing.

How Do You Prove Psychological Damages?

Proving psychological damages can be difficult. In these types of cases, documentation is extremely important. Try to document everything that you remember about the accident, including any sort of feelings and thoughts that you have. If you keep a detailed record, this could help prove you suffer from psychological damages. Psychological trauma varies greatly from person to person and what you may experience is not the same as what someone else does. Some of the symptoms of psychological damage include loss of sleep, fear of being in the situation that cause the accident, anxiety and depression. Keeping a journal will help to show what symptoms you may be experiencing and how they impact your life and ability to function normally, which can help prove your claim.

Another important element to winning psychological damages claims is having an expert back up what you are saying. Speaking and working with a psychiatrist, counselor or even a doctor who specializes in psychological damages can help establish that you are suffering from a medical condition as a result of the accident you were involved in.

Getting answers to the questions you have about psychological personal injury claims will help you to better understand what you can expect if you think you have one of these claims. If you are unsure if you meet the criteria for filing one of these claims, schedule a consultation with a personal injury attorney through resources like Law Office of Daniel E Goodman, LLC. They can evaluate your case and help you decide if filing a personal injury claim is right for you and if you have compensable injuries.