Carter Morey

Many people will resort to legal disputes to come to a solution for their problems. These legal battles can go through different paths and vary in their outcomes. However, these cases have one thing in common. Most of them put an immense strain on the people involved and often result in drastic changes in their lives.

As such, legal disputes can compromise the mental well-being of all persons involved. Whether you are the one pursuing legal action or the one at its receiving end, your mental health can suffer. At best, you will only experience stress. But at worst, you can develop mental health issues such as depression or anxiety. Seeking adequate mental health resources will help you develop healthy coping strategies to face your struggles in legal disputes.

What Are Legal Disputes?

A case is considered a legal dispute when a disagreement between opposing parties is resolved through court or a legal process. There are many methods of legal dispute resolution, including the following: 

1. 1. Mediation
   2. Arbitration
   3. Litigation

Each legal dispute has a different goal for the parties and can vary in how they are settled.

Mediation – A legal dispute that often holds informal meetings with opposing parties at a scheduled conference. This procedure involves the opposing parties settling their disputes with the help of a third-party professional mediator. Some examples of mediation cases are personal injury, community relations, divorce, or employment.

Arbitration – This procedure involves another third party who serves as a judge who will resolve the dispute. The arbitration will only take place if opposing parties have consented. Unlike mediation, one party cannot withdraw from arbitration. Both parties can choose an arbitrator to preside over the dispute until they reach an agreement.

Litigation – Unlike mediation and arbitration, litigation requires cases to be presented in a court of law. This process will involve a client facing a plaintiff before a judge and jury. Legal disputes in litigation will be based on conflicts in civil rights.

How Going Through Legal Disputes Can Negatively Affect Your Emotional Wellbeing

When a legal battle starts to become entangled in emotional and personal aspects of your life, it can impact your mental health negatively. Over 80% of lawyers say that their clients have shown symptoms of depression and anxiety during will disputes. However, many of them find it difficult to seek help in these challenging times. 

For families going through a separation, it can be a financially and emotionally taxing process to address. Married couples who decide to get divorced often fight about everything involving their separation. However, not many of them will seek the help of a therapist or counselor as they go through this tremendous life change. As a result, their children grow up witnessing conflict and sometimes, even violence and emotional neglect.

Financial strains during legal disputes have also been linked to the cause of depression in clients. While still grieving a death or separation with a loved one, it can be difficult to sort financial matters and possible debt. This additional struggle can contribute to depression and anxiety. In addition to these mental health disorders, legal disputes can also cause:

• • Excessive stress
  • Withdrawal
  • Lack of motivation
  • Sleep problems

In legal disputes involving members of the LGBTQ+ community, they are often left even more vulnerable because society questions their civil rights. Even though all 50 states now recognize same-sex marriage, many LGBTQ+ rights are still not being upheld. For instance, discrimination in employment and housing is still rampant. 

How Therapy Can Help

People seeking therapy may find conflict resolution therapy extremely helpful. This modality is based on the idea that the conflict is rooted in emotional distress. It is highly beneficial for people going through legal disputes, especially those involving a life-changing event. 

Conflict resolution therapy uses a problem-solving approach to reach a resolution, reduce tension, and improve all parties’ general well-being. Many who engage with conflict resolution therapy will develop the skills needed to address their concerns and future issues, whether with their spouse, family member, friend, or workmate.

A therapist conducting conflict resolution therapy aims to make all parties involved feel as if they’ve reached a “win-win” situation. This method has become well-known as a successful treatment for couples and a valuable resource for mediators and lawyers. It involves a balanced mix of therapy and skill training. A well-trained therapist in this modality should incorporate skill-building exercises and therapeutic intervention into the treatment of their clients.

By the end of a successful conflict resolution therapy, patients are expected to learn how to avoid emotional diversions, communicate properly, and regulate their emotions. These skills are valuable in settling their current disputes and any other disagreements that may arise in the future. 

Conclusion

Going through legal disputes can be a life-changing event and a source of stress for all parties involved. Legal processes are long and complex and may take months or even years to settle. Most lawyers can testify to how much emotional strain a legal dispute can do to a person. This distress can result in serious mental health conditions such as depression or anxiety. When a legal dispute starts to impact you negatively, it’s time to seek help.

One of the options your therapist can offer you is conflict resolution therapy. This type of therapy is a good solution for people going through intense disputes, such as divorce. It will allow both parties to navigate their concerns and find a solution properly. They will better understand how to cope with their struggles and address any future conflict readily. 

Sometimes, disputes can only be settled through the law. So, it can be inevitable to engage in a legal battle. However, you do have a choice to undergo therapy while you are undergoing proceedings involving the law. Not only will it make your legal dispute more manageable, but you will also gain skills for life. 

Millions of individuals fall victim to personal injury accidents each year. Even sadder than this statistic is how most people overlook the extent of hurt that victims experience. In addition to physical and proprietary damage, these situations also severely affect a person’s mental well-being. Often, even those suffering from crippling physical injuries disregard the toll their injury can have on their mental health.

What Is Personal Injury?

Personal injuries can be bodily harm or emotional distress. Specifically, personal injury refers to any physical, mental, or emotional damage caused by another person due to intentional, negligent, reckless, or malicious actions. Some examples of situations that may cause personal injury are:

• • Accidents. Personal injury applies to situations where an individual or entity acts negligently, which causes harm to another person. Examples include car crashes, slip-and-fall accidents, dog-bite cases, and medical malpractice.

• • Intentional Acts. In these situations, an individual or entity’s deliberate behavior, such as assault and battery, causes harm to another person.

• • Defective Products. These include any injury sustained from the usage of faulty products, which can be consumer goods, medical devices, and vehicles. 

• • Defamation. Making defamatory claims and slandering an individual’s reputation also counts as a personal injury.

What Are The Mental And Psychological Impacts Of Personal Injury?

Physical injuries are the most commonly acknowledged results of accidents. However, mental, emotional, and psychological impacts arise from accidents as well. These effects can come from the situation that caused the injury itself. But they can also stem from the physical injury sustained from that situation.

A victim can obtain a broad spectrum of mental health issues from personal injury. On the mild end of the spectrum, professionals observe

• • mental anguish, 
  • emotional distress, 
  • fear, 
  • shock, and
  • feelings of sadness and anger.

But for more severe cases, victims of personal injury can develop: 

• • Adjustment disorders

Individuals experiencing adjustment disorder have extreme levels of stress after a traumatic event. Often, this distress can cause problems in a person’s daily life. It can manifest as anxiety, feeling overwhelmed, and having difficulty concentrating. When it comes to more severe cases, it could cause avoidance of and withdrawal from loved ones.

• • Severe anxiety

For personal injury victims, anxiety might escalate into panic attacks. Victims may also develop avoidant coping methods. For traumatic events, the stress and fright might make the victim overly tense and fearful, leading to insomnia or increased blood pressure.

• • Phobias

Trauma may cause victims to develop an irrational fear of something specific. For example, after a car accident, a victim may fear driving or even riding a car. Similarly, a dog-bite victim may develop a fear of dogs. These phobias can interfere with a person’s ability to function daily.

• • Depression

Feelings of sadness and grief that last for a long time can consume a person. They might lose interest in hobbies they used to enjoy. They may also become extremely lethargic or moody. These consequences of depression could strain their personal relationships and sorely affect their outlook on life. More severe cases can lead to suicidal thoughts and actions.

• • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

Personal injury victims may develop PTSD after a traumatic event. Its symptoms include 

• • vivid flashbacks, 
  • intrusive thoughts, 
  • mood swings, 
  • behavioral changes, 
  • pain or nausea, 
  • numbness or detachment, and
  • insomnia.

These could lead victims to develop maladaptive coping strategies, such as excessive smoking or drinking.

• • Chronic pain disorder

Victims may also suffer from acute pain because of psychological stress. Though the feelings of pain are real, it is not directly linked to any physical injury. Additionally, the pain they experience may be non-specific. Chronic pain disorder often develops with other mental disorders, such as depression and anxiety.

In addition to the emotional and mental trauma that can stem from the accident itself, personal injury can lead to 

• • bodily harm, 
  • reputational damage, 
  • loss of employment, 
  • financial issues, 
  • lost wages, or 
  • diminished earning potential.

All of these pose adverse effects on a person’s mental health.

How Does Therapy Help Personal-Injury Victims?

Any accident can cause physical injury and emotional distress. Through therapy, victims can learn how to cope with physical and psychological trauma in healthy ways. Personal injury victims can employ various therapy treatments and methods to improve their mental well-being. Among these are

• • Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT). This modality helps victims identify and understand the thought patterns keeping them stuck. Afterward, CBT helps them change their dysfunctional thinking and make room for healthy coping mechanisms. 

• • Exposure therapy. This method helps victims safely face situations and memories they may find frightening. It enables them to learn how to cope with their trauma healthily. In particular, exposure therapy is helpful for people with PTSD.

• • Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR). Combined with exposure therapy, EMDR uses a series of guided eye movements to help victims process their traumatic memories. Through this method, they can change their reactions to those memories.

• • Psychodynamic therapy. This method helps depressed victims understand and cope with their feelings and unresolved, often unconscious, conflicts.

• • Alternative therapies. These can include yoga, meditation, hypnotherapy, acupuncture, and other treatments to help the victims manage stress and other symptoms of mental health problems.

What Are The Benefits Of Personal Injury Therapy?

Personal injury victims enjoy personal and legal benefits from therapy. Some advantages involving the former include:

• • understanding their emotions and behaviors,
  • setting realistic and sustainable goals,
  • learning skills to address their symptoms,
  • adopting healthy mindsets and perceptions,
  • developing healthy coping mechanisms,
  • managing stress and emotions better,
  • regaining a sense of control, and
  • finding pleasure in life.

From a legal perspective, the process of getting compensation for personal injury leading to emotional or mental harm is complicated. It’s harder to prove unless backed by professionals. Personal injury psychiatry offers verification and legitimacy to these claims. Evidence from professionals relieves concerns about fraud and allows the victim to receive proper financial compensation.

In Conclusion

Therapy is indeed crucial for personal injury victims. In addition to getting proper mental health treatment as part of their recovery, therapy also helps them receive the compensation they deserve. With the help of a mental health professional, they can work through their trauma and start their mental healing. 

You will hit significant milestones over the course of your lifetime. These might include starting your own business, buying your own house, or selling your properties. At the same time, you will have to face a major setback at least once. This can involve your real estate properties, marital relationship, or even the death of a family member. 

In all these scenarios, both good and bad, you will have encounters with the law. If you proceed without professional legal help, you will likely find yourself stuck in otherwise avoidable pitfalls later on. A legal counselor will make it significantly easier for you to deal with any legal issues. Employing their help will save you money, time, and many headaches. Most importantly, they can make sure that momentous events remain happy memories and that tragic life events don’t become a source of any more pain. 

If you need any more convincing, here’s a list of services that a legal counselor can offer to make legal proceedings hassle-free for you: 

Inform You Of Your Legal Rights

The law is complicated. But ignorance of the law excuses no one from compliance.  And if you are not sufficiently aware of your rights, you will most likely get the short end of any stick. Luckily, you can hire a legal counselor to inform you of your rights. Your legal counsel has the duty to inform you not only of your rights but also of situations that possibly benefit your case. They can also tell you how you need to behave so you will not be held in contempt. Armed with this knowledge, you are better equipped to make decisions moving forward. You have a better chance of leveraging your case or defending yourself from any charges. 

Review Your Contracts

Almost every significant event in our lives involves some contract. Marriage, employment, and business ownership all require you to sign a contract. You might be tempted to flip through the pages and sign your name where needed. Doing this is a huge mistake. It may cost you in the long run if the other party manages to sneak in loopholes that work in their favor and put you at a disadvantage. At the very least, make sure you read the fine print and understand what it entails. 

It is always in your best interest to run your contracts by a lawyer. Some lawyers specialize in analyzing contracts line-by-line to make sure that you are entering a fair agreement. This will not only save you money in the long run, but it will also protect your relationship with the other parties involved.  

Evaluate Your Case

A legal counselor will provide an objective evaluation of your case to determine whether it can proceed in a court of law. They will also examine the strength and weaknesses of the collected pieces of evidence. 

Pursuing any case can be expensive and not just because of lawyer fees. Fortunately, your legal counselor can help you estimate the total cost of your case. If you gain little benefit from the amount you will pay, they may advise you to drop your case or seek settlement from the opposing party. They may also recommend other types of alternative dispute resolutions such as

• Negotiation,
• Conciliation,
• Arbitration, or
• Mediation.

Plan and Initiate Legal Action

Once you decide to pursue a case, your legal counselor will plan and initiate legal action. They will collect evidence and build your case. They will also take care of preparing and filing all the required paperwork. Missing a deadline or submitting an incorrect document can have your case thrown out altogether. Hiring a lawyer ensures that there is little to no risk of this happening. 

Your legal counselor will also devise strategies along the way to ensure that even if you do not win your case, you get the best possible outcome. They will advise you through every step of the legal process and take your opinions into account. With a lawyer, you are guaranteed that all possible options are laid out to you so that you can come out ahead in any legal battle. 

Provide Comfort and Assurance

Legal processes can be long and exhausting. While the emotional toll involved with pursuing a case will always be present, having a legal counselor will help you have some peace of mind. Because they take care of research, case building, and filing legal documents, a significant burden is lifted off your shoulders. You will sleep better at night knowing that you have an expert who knows what they’re doing on your side. 

Represent You In Court

Filing a case does not always lead to getting a trial. Most cases settle then. But if you ever need to, it is best to hire a lawyer to represent you in court. Without a legal counselor to represent you, the odds of winning your case become drastically lower. You may even end up incriminating yourself and losing your case in the process.

Remember that the opposing party is likely to have a lawyer represent them. Despite their background, even seasoned lawyers opt not to represent themselves in court. Unless you have the time to study up on the law and the mental fortitude and confidence to argue your case, you are much better off getting representation. 

No matter the situation, it is always wise to discuss matters with a legal counselor as long as it involves the law. Whether you are being sued, pursuing a case, or even just entering into a contract, you will benefit from getting professional legal help. They are sure to provide you with exactly what you need, and you can be sure of their input because they are well-versed with the law.

A legal counsel might seem like an unnecessary upfront expense. But you must also consider the long-term costs not just in terms of money, but time and energy. You may not immediately feel it, but legal proceedings are bound to take their toll on you. It is always better to invest in something that can protect you now rather than have to spend a fortune later. 

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If you have ever experienced being in an accident and incurred some injuries, you have most likely tried to focus on how the accident has damaged you physically. Broken joints, tense muscles, torn ligaments, and bodily bruises are some of the most prominent indications of any accident. These injuries are also the ones that frequently get the attention from the medical team. Unfortunately, physical damages are not the only issues that you encounter in the aftermath of a minor or major accident. In a lot of cases, accident-related injuries affect you emotionally and mentally as well.

The Forgotten Effects

Car accidents take a tremendous toll on the country’s citizens, with thousands and millions of these types and over a million injuries reported yearly. In addition to these, plenty of victims go through months of treatment, leave from work, and stress and anxiety secondary to managing their ordeal and their medical and insurance providers. These anxious and stressful circumstances can often overshadow the mental health problems that developed due to the trauma of the accident.

The Impact On The Victims

Victims who have suffered mental health conditions often struggle with the negative impact that it has had on them. Also, they experience issues in the workplace, sleep disturbances, and erratic emotional outbursts. Many of them say that they are stressed because of their injuries, and they don’t seek help. Some also encounter relationship problems for months after the accident. Additionally, it is common for most victims to become restless, lose appetite or gain weight, experience a decrease in their sex drive, or become disinterested in the things that previously made them happy.

Studies have revealed, however, that there is proof indicating the stress that car crash sufferers experience may take the form of what medical professionals call ‘subsyndromal PTSD,’ which is a partial type of PTSD that usually causes accident victims to manifest only with some of the more typical symptoms related to stress – the propensity to feel like he is continually experiencing the accident over and over, and hyperarousal. In cases like this, patients usually encounter avoidance issues or surges of emotional detachment. Research suggests that accident victims who go through partial symptoms are inclined to recover much faster than those who experience complete PTSD.

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Mood instabilities develop as one of the most usual types of mental health complications ever experienced by car crash victims who are diagnosed with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. One study revealed that more than 50% of these diagnosed individuals also suffered from a major mood disturbance. What’s worse is that more studies show that women who have PTSD are more likely to have alcohol or drug abuse issues than those who don’t have PTSD. Additionally, males have five times more likelihood of turning to alcohol or drug abuse when they have PTSD.

Distress And Pain

Some studies have been performed to identify how to associate cases of PTSD with chronic pain symptoms. Numerous research efforts have confirmed that chronic pain seemed to affect the building up of different forms of post-traumatic stress, and there has been evidence suggesting that most of the stress that these patients encounter may be due to some form of impairment and physical discomfort.

As expected, there have also been studies that tried to identify whether or not there was a connection between lawsuits and reported cases of psychological distress. Hence, anyone who informs you that you may think your accident was due to some psychological damage is possibly falsely assuming that your Posttraumatic Stress Disorder is doing this to reinforce your litigation claims.

Conclusion

An essential thing that you can do after an accident that causes an injury is to be aware of your own mental and emotional well-being. If you are confused, depressed, scared, or irritable days or weeks after the incident, know that this is not abnormal at all, though if it persists, you must inform your physician and let him know what you think or how you really feel. It would be very disappointing to ignore your mental health concerns and hope that what you are feeling will disappear.

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It is also crucial for you to report any issues about your physical, mental, and emotional state to your lawyer, particularly if you are making a legal claim for damages from the sustained injuries. Your personal injury lawyer must know if you are suffering from any pain or enduring other signs and symptoms so that he can legally provide you with the medical treatment that is required for you to recover. The great news is that with much attention, care, and wise counsel of a seasoned lawyer, you will successfully recover, claim what you deserve, gain back that confidence and self-worth, and ultimately become whole again.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Most of the personal injury privileges depend on a legal basis; a term called negligence, which is defined as a situation where an individual or business did not utilize proper care. The individual claiming negligence – the plaintiff – must prove that he should not have been harmed were it not for the defendant’s unreasonable actions. Cases like these do not usually occur from getting infected with an infectious disease like flu. It may not be easy to show the exact basis of exposure, as well as to determine a particular action by a defendant that proved unreasonable actions. Conversely, there are certain circumstances where a patient claims negligence against a defendant established from contracting COVID-19.

Negligence In The Nursing Facility

Seniors are particularly vulnerable to contracting the coronavirus and acquiring severe symptoms from the disease. A lot of aging individuals in the United States live in nursing facilities, where the virus has a higher likelihood of spreading quickly. If indications suggest that a specific facility did not take proper precautions to make sure that its residents are protected from infections, a resident or residents can file charges against the facility.

What they will be required to do is to present evidence that they have contracted the virus because of improper implementation of safety guidelines by the facility staff. These might include unsanitary facility conditions that have influenced the proliferation of the disease or an insufficient response to a pandemic in the community. For instance, a nursing facility might require their residents and staff to be quarantined and disinfect their facility and are obliged to inform other residents of the recommended measure. Cases vary, though, and appropriate measures are dependent on these specific cases.

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Just last month, there were a total of 15 states that were granted protection to nursing facilities against particular types of claims that are associated with the pandemic. Some of these states include Arizona, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, New York, Rhode Island, and Michigan, among others. The extent of protection depends on the state. Generally, facilities like nursing homes in the mentioned states are spared from liability for simple negligence as a result of COVID-19-related harm. Normally, they are not protected from liability for intentional misconduct or gross negligence. Still, these circumstances are rare, as they tend to be difficult to prove these higher degrees of liability. Facilities may also be guarded under laws that protect healthcare providers from charges of simple negligence in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, even though these laws do not reference specifically nursing facilities.

Possible Cruise Ship Related Liabilities

Some coronavirus patients get infected with the disease while they were vacationing in a cruise ship. If this is the case, these patients may most likely trace the exposure to their ship. A passenger could file charges against a cruise ship company if this has failed to implement appropriate precautions for the safety and protection of their passengers. For instance, if crew personnel were not able to identify contaminated passengers and negligently failed to separate them from the rest of the healthy passengers, then a healthy passenger who later got infected with the disease could claim liability. This particular law can be complex, as the deal on the ticket provides limitations on possible privileges. Among these limitations is a sanction on class actions, though it is uncertain whether or not the sanction would be imposed.

Medical Malpractice

If an individual became a potential carrier of COVID-19 because of negligence in a hospital setting, he might charge the hospital with medical malpractice. Medical malpractice charges are not the same as the simple personal injury lawsuit, as they encompass a more particular standard of care. In most circumstances, the plaintiff will require an expert who can provide a clear explanation of why the defendant did not act competently as compared to the others who are working under the same circumstances.

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Medical malpractice cases usually entail delicate technical requirements, and a plaintiff or complainant must consider having a lawyer regularly if he is planning to pursue this type of claim. In some states, laws have been enforced that protect healthcare providers from such liabilities as simple negligence associated with COVID-19.

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While the coronavirus rises throughout the United States, many Americans will undoubtedly continue to incur injuries from falls, vehicular accidents, and other usual events. A victim can still bring on a personal injury claim to acquire compensation for his injury amidst the global outbreak. However, he might want to be aware of specific concerns that may influence his claim.

One of these concerns is associated with the courts, which mostly have been shut down until the crisis subsides. Thus, a victim’s personal injury case might not be resolved as effectively as it would have been under normal circumstances. Typically, almost all of these cases are settled even before it gets into a trial, although many of these cases go to at least one hearing before reaching a settlement. With all this chaos and strict guidelines placed on the various states, accident victims will most probably be facing delays in getting resolutions to their cases.

Personal Injury Settlement

The financial burden caused by the coronavirus outbreak might push a lot of accident victims to pursue a case settlement the soonest time possible. He may immediately need the cash from the settlement, mainly if they have just gotten unemployed. Unfortunately, insurers can attempt to misuse this circumstance by providing an unfair amount of settlement. This is why a victim who only incurred serious injuries must think about accepting the first offer of the insurer right away. Most often than not, the insurer will take advantage of the current situation and will not provide the coverage that the victim deserves.

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If a trial progresses, the victim must also be aware that he might get a tougher resistance from the insurer. The insurance industry profits are expected to go down as the economy grapples to survive, which is why insurers are firm in their efforts to reduce the value of victims’ claims to protect their end more assertively than usual. This could mean that there could be more than one trial to anticipate, or perhaps it may even proceed to a lawsuit.

In other cases, it may be more difficult to collect compensation from a defendant these days. A lot of companies are struggling because of the economic pressures caused by the outbreak, and an uninsured company may be unable to pay. Thus, if the defendant decides to file for bankruptcy, the victim will have to wait for quite a long time to receive the judgment award or the settlement that he is entitled to. What’s worse, he might not even get the full amount.

Medical Care

To make better use of compensation in a personal injury case, the victim must receive medical care as recommended by his doctor or healthcare provider. Medical documentation is necessary for proving the extent of the injury that the victim has suffered and the cost of the injury. While the outbreak is ongoing, a lot of people are hesitant to go to the hospital for their appointments or consultations for fear of getting infected by the virus. This is a valid reason; nevertheless, getting the medical care that he needs is also vital to the value of the claim, which is why victims must try their best to be seen by their doctors while following the necessary social distancing guidelines.

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Health care centers have lately been jam-packed with coronavirus patients, so accident victims might need to wait a long time to acquire medical care. Consequently, settlement of their cases will also take a longer time. They will not be able to determine the full extent of their damages if they do not receive treatment and reach full medical progress.