What injured maritime workers need to know about PTSD

Many maritime workers engage in dangerous work, putting their lives at risk every day on boats, oil rigs, barges, ships, and other vessels. Workers can be injured in accidents caused by bad weather, falls, slips, collisions, explosions, or mistakes by coworkers.

Regardless of how a maritime worker is injured, the results can be devastating. Not only must an injured worker recover from the physical effects of a major trauma, they must struggle to survive and make ends meet, which can be especially difficult if they can’t work because of their injuries.

All of this is bad enough, but there is more. Some injured workers are also struck down by post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after an accident. Indeed, some incidents are so gristly and painful that it can be difficult for a worker and witnesses to cope mentally with flashbacks, images, and a general sense of doom or depression.

Researchers have recently pointed out that victims of other types of traumas like auto accidents can suffer from PTSD. Certainly, any human being hurt in a serious accident can be haunted by the after-effects for some time.

Signs of PTSD in injured maritime workers

If you or someone you know has been injured in an offshore accident, you should watch out for signs of post-traumatic stress disorder. Symptoms include:

• Reliving the event: after an accident, victims can suffer from flashbacks, or sights or sounds may remind the victim of the incident, causing feelings of horror, nightmares, or anxiety.
• Avoidance: a victim may avoid thinking or talking about a traumatic event, and may avoid situations that remind him or her of the accident.
• Numbing: victims sometimes seem to “turn off” their emotions, not wanting to engage emotionally with other people or family members, or neglecting once loved hobbies. They may also forget some of what happened in the accident.
• Hyperarousal (aka feeling “keyed up”): some seriously injured workers may be unable to relax and may seem always alert and wary of danger. They can be angry, irritable, unable to concentrate or sleep, and they may startle too easily.

It can be difficult to get an injured worker to admit that they are struggling with the after-effects of a serious accident, but there is hope. PTSD can be treated with various types of therapy or medication.

If you need help after a maritime injury, offshore accident, or with a Jones Act claim then bring your case to lawyers with experience, compassion, and an impressive track record. Please contact the Houston based law firm Vujasinovic & Beckcom and let our attorneys help you get back on the road to recovery with fair compensation and justice.

Vujasinovic & Beckcom P.L.L.C

1001 Texas Avenue, Suite 1020

Houston, TX 77002

Phone: 713.224.7800

Fax: 713.224.7801