ESTRA Seattle Official Car Accident Blog: Summer Series: Life After Disability

Seattle (ESTRA) - Sometimes in life, you have to go with the flow. This can mean anything from life going very well to bad. The key in life is to never give up or in, no matter what comes your way.

Policyholders often become vulnerable after a car wreck and this a time where insecurity rears its ugly head. Why? The reality that vehicles are not always a safety tool and in some instances can only do so much becomes very real when involved in a car accident, especially if injury or death is in involved.

So a collision has changed your life track. Now what? What is life after disability to you?

If like most people injured in a wreck, a lot of time is spent on recovery and trying to ascertain whether insurance companies will pay you on time, so parts of life goes on as usual. Money is the engine that runs our society, and if there is no oil for your engine, it ceases to run, in other words, no money means more stress, more worries about where life goes from here. Would some insurance companies use fear as a bargaining tool against vulnerable, end of the month broke, policyholders? In my opinion, some insurers do.

Now that a car accident has come your way, make some very important decisions. Today let’s talk about 3 things that are helpful in regaining life purpose and meaning after a disability:

1. Be fearless and courageous – The question of what is going to happen often creates a lot of worry and fear. In order to move from this position, a decision must be made to put fear aside and seek resolutions which help to have a better day. For example, money or lack of it if a major concern for people who are unable to work after a collision. And this is a very valid concern. The key question to ask is, what can I do about this today, tomorrow, or into the future? Ask yourself, are you using money in ways that will help it last as long as possible? Have you devised a backup plan if running out of money? How trustworthy is my insurance company in paying out benefit claims to their policyholders? And if they stop without notice, what are the options? Regardless of the concerns that come your way, know this one thing: You will survive and learn new ways of living and taking care of yourself. Therefore, be courageous and take the steps necessary to improve conditions, physically, emotionally, financially, and spiritually, because it will take all these actions to keep moving forward and figure out how to open up new paths that bring a renewed hope of a better life from here.

2. Feel the pain and suffering and still choose what is in your best interest. In my opinion this is the most difficult part of life after disability. It takes an enormous amount of energy to get through pain and suffering of an injury in most cases. When injuries turned into a permanent disability, self-esteem often takes a blow because previous life speeds may no longer be an option now or into the future. Comparing ones old self to one’s new self can be very discouraging. So keep in mind, life is not constant but always changing. If needing a reminder look at a new born baby and compare them to an elderly person. This is an easy way to see life is constantly changing. In the prime of life, most people injured cannot see past dreams held within and the plan made for their lives. Does this mean after injury you have to give up on your dreams? No necessarily. There is always more than one path to reach any destination. Sometimes there are other doors available, and sometimes it’s time to chart new waters. Some people have to live with pain and suffering daily, such as with chronic conditions, for others it may be a mental injury which prevents one from having the same aptitude. Fortunately, there are many different ways to compensate for disabilities, especially with technology constantly advancing, so never lose hope, and keep seeking out whatever you need to make life better.

3. Believe in yourself and release insecurities. Yes you still look good! And if you want to continue looking better, take it one day at a time. Everyone wants something about them changed. The key is self-acceptance, today, tomorrow, and into the future. The mirror looking into should be from your own soul, not what someone else sees or believes. This equation is really about you, your hopes and dreams, of choosing to make it from injury or disability back to a life dreamed of by you, for you. There will be others who will try and create your destiny, but it’s not theirs to decide, it’s for you to decide. Decide to love yourself right now, today, in fact, give yourself a great big old hug! Yes, we are all special and gifted in some way, before and after a car accident. Life after disability only means that a new learning curve has just begun. The things you never realized before will come into full view. What you use to think was important may no longer be, and heart felt concerns about you extends to a new group of people you would not have encountered had there been no disability. Life after disability opens up a whole new world for people injured in a car accident. Take a moment and think about what it has brought into your life. Rarely in life is something taken away without something being put in its place. Take moment today and count your gifts and seek out new ways of using them.

Stay safe, well, and determined. - ESTRA

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