A car accident can affect your life in several ways, and one of them is sleep disorders. A significant percentage of people involved in car accidents report a change in sleep patterns.
Further, if you suffer a traumatic brain injury (TBI) in the crash, you are likely to have sleep problems. Sleep disturbance is a common effect of TBI.
Let’s look at two types of sleep disorders that can result from a car crash.
Insomnia
Being involved in a car accident is a traumatic event. Accordingly, one or more of your body’s senses may be overstimulated, causing the brain to become flooded with neurochemicals, such as adrenaline. These neurochemicals can last some time before subsiding. Accordingly, you may have trouble sleeping (insomnia) and may experience nightmares and fatigue.
Another reason one may experience insomnia after a car accident is due to the increased risk of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Some people re-experience the trauma of a car accident. They find it difficult to avoid thoughts of the collision and keep having flashbacks. This can significantly affect the quality of their sleep.
Hypersomnia
Hypersomnia is when someone has trouble staying awake. You may find yourself sleeping excessively or having chronic drowsiness despite getting enough hours of sleep at night.
While a TBI can cause insomnia, other severe injuries may result in the opposite effect. Additionally, since your body will be healing itself, you may be more tired than usual. This can lead to sleeping a little extra, which is normal. However, you should be concerned if you continue to be plagued by hypersomnia.
Sleep disorders are among the many problems that can occur after a crash that can have a negative effect on your life and need treatment. It’s important to consider all of your injuries and medical expenses necessary to treat them when seeking compensation from an at-fault driver.