Every year, negligent drivers in Texas cause families and communities to suffer when fatal tragedies occur due to their hazardous behaviors. Learning that someone you love has succumbed to injuries suffered in a motor vehicle collision can make you feel as though the world has dropped out from underneath your feet. It’s never easy to lose a loved one, even when the death is expected, such as with terminal illness.
However, if you recently suffered the sudden, quite unexpected and untimely loss of a loved one, it may intensify your grief all the more. Your own physical or mental health may be at risk due to utter shock and not being prepared to cope with such a devastating loss. Recovery can be a difficult, lengthy process, but may be possible if you access available support resources for guidance and assistance.
Signs of depression and complicated grief
A key factor in your recovery may lie in being able to recognize signs of possible depression or unresolved grief. If you or another immediate family member experiences one or more of the following conditions, you may want to reach out for help:
- Thoughts of suicide or death wishes to be reunited with the one who has passed is a definite sign that there is some impediment preventing a healthy grieving process.
- It’s natural to think of your deceased loved one often; however, if such thoughts prevent you from carrying out basic daily tasks or trying to move forward in life, it may be a sign of severe depression.
- If you blame yourself (especially if you were not with your loved one when the accident that caused his or her death occurred) you may want to share your feelings with a licensed counselor or other trusted confidant who can help you process your emotions. It may help to remember that you could not have changed another driver’s actions behind the wheel.
- Nightmares and hallucinations are also major signs of complicated grief and depression.
No one can take away your sorrow as you adapt to life without your loved one. It’s also understandable that you might experience feelings of frustration or intense anger if the collision that cost your family member’s life need not have happened except for the negligence of another driver. There are various coping mechanisms available to help you and your family. Reaching out for support may be the first step toward recovery.
In situations like yours, others who have lost loved ones in fatal Texas collisions have found it helpful to their mourning processes to seek justice on the behalves of their deceased loved ones by filing wrongful death claims against those who were negligent.