It’s essential to know your rights if you’ve had a brain injury. Brain injuries can seriously impact your life and your family’s. If your brain injury was caused by someone else’s negligence or intentional actions, you may be entitled to compensation for medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other damages. However, trying to recover from your losses following a traumatic brain injury will prove difficult. You need to know precisely how much compensation is available following the accident and how much your case is worth.
To determine how much compensation is available for your brain injury, there are a few things you need to know about brain injuries — what they are, how they impact your life, and how long it can take to recover from one.
Definition Of a Traumatic Brain Injury
Let’s define a brain injury before learning how much compensation you may receive. A traumatic brain injury (TBI) happens when a sudden injury, like a hit or impact to the head in a car accident, disturbs how the brain usually works. This disruption can lead to a wide range of symptoms, from mild concussions to severe brain damage. Any injury that disrupts the brain’s normal function can be classified as a TBI.
The impact of a TBI can significantly change someone’s life in many ways. It can affect your physical, cognitive, emotional, and behavioral functions:
- Physical symptoms include headaches, dizziness, fatigue, or even paralysis, depending on the severity of the injury.
- Cognitive issues, including memory, attention, and problem-solving skills, may also be impaired.
- Emotional symptoms may include mood swings, depression, anxiety, or irritability.
Additionally, TBIs can affect behavior, leading to impulsivity, aggression, or socially inappropriate actions.
Overall, TBIs can have profound and long-lasting effects on individuals and their families, often requiring extensive medical treatment, rehabilitation, and support to manage the consequences of the injury.
What Are the Types of Traumatic Brain Injuries?
Traumatic brain injuries come in different types, each with its effects and challenges. Some of the most common types of TBIs are as follows:
Concussion: Symptoms such as dizziness, headaches, or brief loss of consciousness are common with this type of TBI, often resulting from a blow to the head or a sudden jolt. Often, concussions occur during contact sports, falls, or car accidents.
Contusion: This is like a bruise on the brain, often caused by a direct impact on the head. It can cause symptoms similar to a concussion but may require more medical attention. The forceful impact of one’s head striking the steering wheel or dashboard in a car accident can cause discoloration.
Diffuse Axonal Injury (DAI): When the brain rapidly shifts inside the skull, it can damage its internal structures, leading to a wide range of symptoms, from mild confusion to serious brain injury, depending on the severity. An example of a DAI includes falling from a significant height, causing one’s head to stop suddenly, and making the brain move inside the skull once it hits the ground.
Penetrating Injury: This occurs when an object pierces through the skull and into the brain, causing localized damage. It’s often severe and requires immediate medical intervention. Imagine someone is working with power tools, and a piece of debris from the tool flies off unexpectedly, striking them in the head. The sharp object punctures the skull and directly harms the brain tissue, causing a penetrating injury.
Hematoma is a collection of blood outside the blood vessels, usually caused by an injury such as falling and hitting one’s head on the ground with significant force. Depending on its location and size, it can put pressure on the brain and cause symptoms ranging from mild to fatal brain injury.
Compensation Available in a Traumatic Brain Injury Lawsuit in Jackson, MS
If you suffered a TBI, you may be eligible for various types of compensation to help cover the costs and losses associated with your injury. Here are some common types of compensation you could receive:
Medical Expenses: This covers payment for past and future medical expenses linked to your TBI, like hospital stays, surgeries, doctor visits, medicine, rehab sessions, and devices to help you.
Lost Wages: If your TBI has prevented you from working or has impacted your earning capacity, you may be entitled to compensation for lost wages and future earning potential. This can include income you’ve already lost due to missed work and any projected earnings you may miss out on.
Pain and Suffering: Payment for pain and suffering aims to help with the physical and emotional pain caused by your TBI. It takes into account factors such as the severity of your injury, ongoing pain, emotional trauma, and loss of enjoyment of life.
Punitive Damages: In cases where the party at fault for your TBI acted recklessly or intentionally, punitive damages may be awarded to punish their behavior and deter similar conduct in the future.
How Much Is My Brain Injury Case Worth?
It’s difficult to determine exactly how much compensation you may receive following a brain injury. Many factors can affect the outcome of your claim, such as:
- The severity of the injury, including any long-term effects and prognosis
- Current and future medical expenses
- Lost wages and impact on earning capacity
- Pain and suffering
- Your age and health
- The circumstances of the accident and whether you were found partially at fault
- The insurance policy limits
Insurance companies, legal teams, and courts may assess these factors to determine a fair and reasonable compensation amount.
Working with an experienced brain injury lawyer in Jackson, MS, can help ensure that your rights are protected and you receive the full compensation you deserve.
They can advocate on your behalf, gather evidence to support your claim, negotiate with insurance companies, and, if necessary, represent you in court to seek a favorable outcome.
Traumatic Brain Injuries Frequently Carry Long-Term Consequences
TBIs often come with long-term consequences that can profoundly impact individuals’ lives. These effects can manifest in various ways, including:
Medical Complications: Depending on the severity of the TBI, people may experience ongoing medical issues such as chronic headaches, seizures, or sensory impairments. They may require long-term medical care, rehabilitation, and medication management to manage these symptoms.
Cognitive and Psychological Changes: TBIs can affect cognitive functions such as memory, attention, and problem-solving skills. People may struggle with concentration, processing information, and learning new tasks. Additionally, TBIs can lead to psychological challenges like depression, anxiety, mood swings, and personality changes, which can significantly impact overall well-being.
Physical Impairments: Some TBIs result in physical impairments, such as paralysis, weakness, or coordination problems, which affect mobility and independence. These physical changes may require assistive devices, physical therapy, or modifications to the living environment to improve functionality and quality of life.
Lifestyle Adjustments: Individuals with TBIs often need to make significant lifestyle adjustments to accommodate their changed abilities and limitations. This may include adapting work responsibilities, transitioning to different living arrangements, or modifying leisure activities to reduce risks of further injury.
When seeking compensation for a TBI, thinking about the future is important. This means considering costs for medical care, ongoing therapy, lost income, and how it affects daily life.
By knowing how serious the injury is and what it means for their life, people can ask for the right amount of money to help them cope with the challenges of living with a traumatic brain injury in the long term.
Consulting with legal and medical professionals experienced in TBI cases can help individuals assess their needs comprehensively and advocate for their rights and future well-being.
Schedule a Consultation With Our Traumatic Brain Injury Lawyers Today
At Giddens Law Firm, P.A., our experienced Jackson head injury lawyers are here to guide you with your personal injury lawsuit. With specialized expertise in TBI cases, we offer personalized legal assistance tailored to your unique situation. We’re dedicated to advocating for your rights, from navigating the complexities of the legal process to fighting for the compensation you deserve.
To find out how much your brain injury case is worth, schedule a free consultation with us today and let our Jackson brain injury lawyers help you confidently move forward.
