Traumatic brain injuries often have life-altering impacts on individuals who suffer from them—in some cases, impacts that last for the rest of their lives. Traumatic brain injuries can occur in the blink of an eye due to a wide range of incidents, including construction and auto accidents. If you or a loved one suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of an accident, you may need a brain injury attorney to help you navigate the legal system and file your claim. Contact Boohoff Law today at (877) 999-9999 to learn more about how we can help with your legal needs following a traumatic brain injury.
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Is Boohoff Law, P.A. the Law Firm for You?
When you hire Boohoff Law, P.A. after suffering a traumatic brain injury, you will receive the services of a highly-qualified law firm filled with experienced lawyers who can assist you through the legal process. We pride ourselves on:
Meticulous investigation. We want to understand the full details of your case, including discovering whose negligence caused your accident. We will check the scene of the accident, evaluate witness testimonies, and even track down security footage to discover more about your injuries and your claim.- Attention to detail. Often, in personal injury law, little things can have a huge impact on the outcome of the case. We pay close attention to all the details of your case, decreasing the odds that you will miss out on the full compensation you deserve for your injuries.
- Focus on client services. When you suffer a significant injury like a traumatic brain injury, you may not want to come to our office for a visit. To help facilitate the process, we will come to you if needed. We also focus on keeping our clients informed throughout the claims process so they need not worry about how the claim is moving forward.
Understanding Traumatic Brain Injury: Signs, Symptoms, and Complications
Any time you lose consciousness in an accident, you should visit a doctor for a medical evaluation, whether you visit urgent care or the emergency room. Losing consciousness could be the first sign of a traumatic brain injury. Traumatic brain injury brings with it a host of symptoms and complications that can, in some cases, impact every area of your life.
Mild Traumatic Brain Injury
Mild traumatic brain injury problems can linger for weeks or months following your accident—the initial symptoms are the only mild thing about them. In addition to the same symptoms as severe trauma, common symptoms of mild traumatic brain injury include:
- Headaches. You may experience frequent headaches that may increase in severity when you are exposed to bright lights or certain sounds.
- Sensitivity to lights, noise, or other sensory input. In some cases, you may experience mild disturbances in the way you usually perceive sensory input. In others, you may struggle with increased sensitivity.
- Memory loss. Following a mild traumatic brain injury, you may struggle to remember the events around your accident. You may find it difficult to keep things in your short term memory, or you may have more trouble than usual remembering events in the past. This memory loss usually resolves with time, though you may never remember the events immediately around the accident.
- Challenges with focus and concentration. A mild traumatic brain injury may result in significant difficulty focusing on a single task or concentrating on a task for a long period of time. In some cases, this may make it difficult for you to return to work immediately after your injury. You may also struggle to concentrate on tasks that you usually enjoy.
- Dizziness. Even mild traumatic brain injury may cause you to become dizzy or lose your balance more easily than usual. You may struggle more with vertigo or car sickness than you did before your accident.
- Emotional dysregulation. Following a traumatic brain injury, you may struggle to regulate and control your emotions. You may find it difficult to calm yourself down, act more irritable than usual, or struggle with anxiety or depression.
- Sleep problems. Some people with mild traumatic brain injury may find themselves sleeping significantly more than usual as their brain tries to heal itself. They may feel excessively tired or fall asleep in places where they would not normally fall asleep. Others may struggle with the reverse problem, finding it difficult to fall asleep or stay asleep.
Severe Traumatic Brain Injury
More severe traumatic brain injuries present serious initial symptoms. In some cases, you may struggle with ongoing symptoms for the rest of your life following a severe traumatic brain injury. Symptoms of severe traumatic brain injury may include:
- Extreme difficulty with concentration. It may be difficult to focus on any task for even a few minutes, even tasks that you normally enjoy. You may struggle to complete simple tasks.
- Memory challenges. Individuals with severe traumatic brain injury may struggle to remember things from one moment to the next. They may forget the contents of drawers and closets moments after closing them or forget things that have happened in the near past.
- Processing speed. In many cases, individuals with severe traumatic brain injury may struggle to process information. Things may take longer than usual to “sink in.” You may struggle to remember how to perform common tasks or calculations, including calculations that you usually perform with ease.
- Speech or writing difficulties. Many people with traumatic brain injury may struggle with language, including both speech and writing. Their handwriting may become difficult to read, or the individual may struggle to form words. Speech may become slurred or difficult to understand. If you suffer from severe traumatic brain injury, you may also struggle to remember specific words or phrases. In some cases, communication may be slowed or extremely difficult.
- Sensory problems. If you suffer from severe traumatic brain injury, you may notice substantially increased sensitivity to certain types of sensory input—or, conversely, you may notice that sensory input has less impact on you than before. You may struggle with certain senses more than others or perceive sensory input in an unfamiliar way. It may take time to retrain yourself to this new style of perception.
- Vision problems. Vision, in particular, may suffer serious impacts in a severe traumatic brain injury. You may suffer from double vision or struggle to perceive visual input. You may also have blurred vision after your accident.
- Hearing challenges. Some victims of traumatic brain injury show marked problems with hearing following an accident. You may struggle with decreased hearing or have problems with ringing in your ears.
- Emotional difficulties. Many people with severe traumatic brain injury have severe issues with emotional regulation. They may struggle with increased irritability or anxiety. Controlling your temper may become extremely difficult, especially in high-stress situations. Many people with severe traumatic brain injury also struggle with depression. In some cases, irrational fears may flare up, including a fear of falling asleep.
- Sleep disturbances. Severe traumatic brain injury can cause a substantial change in normal sleep patterns. Many patients struggle to reach certain levels of deep sleep or may have issues falling asleep at all.
How Does Traumatic Brain Injury Occur?
Traumatic brain injury can result from a wide range of accidents, generally involving a violent force applied to the head. You may receive a traumatic brain injury from:
- Construction accidents. Wearing a hard hat can help protect your head from injury in many construction environments. However, the hard hat may not protect your brain completely. Falling from a high surface or an object falling on your head can easily result in traumatic brain injury.
- Auto accidents. From big truck accidents to motorcycle accidents, hazards on the road can cause a traumatic brain injury in the blink of an eye. Wearing a helmet when riding a motorcycle can help decrease the risk of traumatic brain injury, but it does not eliminate it.
- Bicycle accidents. Falling off a bicycle, especially as a result of an accident, can cause the rider’s head to strike the pavement, resulting in a traumatic brain injury.
- Slip and fall accidents. Many accident victims slip, fall, and strike their heads in the process, resulting in traumatic brain injury.
Who Bears Fault for a Traumatic Brain Injury?
To establish who bears fault for a traumatic brain injury, you may need to consult with an attorney. In general, if someone else’s negligence caused your accident, they will bear responsibility for your injury. This may include:
- A negligent construction company that failed to adhere to OSHA guidelines;
- Another driver who caused an auto accident or bicycle accident; or
- A business that failed to adhere to proper guidelines to prevent slips and falls or objects falling on your head.
To help establish fault, your attorney may ask:
- Who bore a duty of care to you at the time of the accident? How did that individual or entity violate that duty of care?
- Did that violation cause your injuries?
Claiming Compensation for Your Traumatic Brain Injury
Following a traumatic brain injury, many people seek compensation in the form of a personal injury claim. This claim often seeks to recover costs for:
- Medical bills. You may have many scans or a long-term hospitalization following a traumatic brain injury. You may also require skilled medical care while you recover.
- Lost time at work. You may not be able to return to work in your previous capacity while you recover from your traumatic brain injury. In some cases, reduced processing capacity may make it impossible for you to ever return to your previous job. In this case, you can claim lost earning potential.
- Pain and suffering. In addition to physical expenses, you can claim compensation for both physical and emotional pain and suffering following your accident.
The amount of compensation you deserve will depend on a variety of factors, including the full extent of your injuries and the coverage offered by the responsible party’s insurance company. Talking with a lawyer can help you more effectively determine exactly how much you deserve for your injuries.
How Much Does a Traumatic Brain Injury Lawyer Cost?
For many people, the cost of a lawyer seems prohibitive, especially after a serious accident. Fortunately, most personal injury attorneys understand that financial difficulties can leave you struggling even more than your injuries. At Boohoff Law, P.A., we start with a free consultation to help us better understand your injuries and your claim. We accept clients on a contingentcy fee basis: that is, instead of requiring payment upfront, we will take our compensation out of the damages you receive for your injuries. Keep in mind that hiring a lawyer offers these advantages:
- We can often increase the compensation our clients receive for their injuries. Many find that, even once our fees are taken into account, they receive increased damages after we work with them.
- We can communicate with the insurance company on your behalf. For many traumatic brain injury victims, this reduces stress and frustration.
- We can prevent you from getting taken advantage of. Often, for example, the insurance company will issue a low settlement offer immediately after your accident—one that does not reflect the full compensation you deserve. When you work with us, we will help you negotiate a more appropriate settlement offer or take your case to trial, if necessary.
Do You Need a Seattle Traumatic Brain Injury Attorney?
After a serious accident, you may need an attorney to help you file a claim and seek the compensation you deserve. If you suffered a traumatic brain injury due to someone else’s negligence, contact Boohoff Law, P.A., today at (877) 999-9999 to schedule your free consultation.