What Does Spinal Cord Injury Recovery Entail?

On behalf of Lovett Law Firm posted in Spinal Cord Injuries on Wednesday, May 13, 2015.

After a person suffers a spinal cord injury, they have a long recovery in front of them. A spinal cord injury most commonly happens due to trauma or an impact to the spinal column. This sometimes occurs in a car accident or after a fall. There are around 200,000 people in the United States living with spinal cord injuries.

What does care for a spinal cord injury consist of? First, a medical team will need to evaluate the person to see how if the person can walk or how the muscles respond. Where does paralysis start or stop? Once this is determined, then it can be decided how the person can move forward.

In many cases, the person may not be able to continue working at the same job or could lose the motivation to participate in social activities since they can’t do what they once enjoyed. Individual therapy must be provided for those with spinal cord injuries who need to relearn how to do daily activities like cleaning, washing, or cooking all over again.

Emotional support may also need to be provided for those with spinal cord injuries, because they have to adjust psychologically to their conditions. Recovery can be painful mentally and physically, requiring assistance psychologically to get through it. On top of this, health care will need to be provided, potentially for life, for the injured party.

All of these things need to be considered by Texas courts when a settlement is decided on between a victim and a person he or she holds responsible for the injury.

Source: The American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc., “Living With Spinal Cord Injury,” accessed May. 13, 2015