All of your attempts to stay healthy and safe were useless when you’ve sustained spinal cord injuries from a slip and fall accident. You fell on your back and because the surface was uneven, this resulted to your spinal cord injuries. Because of what happened, a lot has changed – you can no longer hang out with your friends frequently, you can’t do sports anymore and most importantly, you can no longer fulfill other responsibilities at home. Your disabilities made you think that you’re helpless and that you can’t do anything at all – but you’re wrong. Just because you have spinal cord injuries doesn’t mean it’s the end of line for you. To help you get through this phase easier, consider this list for self-help tips for spinal cord injuries:
- Know the five stages of grief: Everybody knows it’s never easy to live when you have an injury, so should you. Don’t be too hard on yourself just because you have injuries. Give yourself time to feel different emotions namely denial, sadness, anger, bargaining and acceptance as this will make things easier for you. Feeling angry for what happened is normal but don’t let this emotion take over you.
- Give your injury time: Adjusting and recovering from an injury are two different things, so don’t rush into one point to another immediately. Doing this can cause more harm than good for your injuries and recovery. Take things slow and keep in mind that your injuries can’t disappear overnight.
- Learn about the injury: It will be easy to get through something once you know what you’re up against. Once you have accepted the fact that you have spinal cord injuries, be wary of what the injury is and what could be the possible effects of the injuries. Don’t compare yourself to others who also have spine cord injuries because this injury comes in different types. Make sure that you know what you’re suffering from so you can also prepare yourself physically and mentally.
- Admit that you need help: This can be difficult to do especially for people who feel guilty about the injury but admitting that you need help for your spinal cord injuries can benefit you in the long run. When you are in pain, or you need someone to talk to, call your friends and family. If you need help with your injuries, set an appointment with your doctors and other medical practitioners. The support and care you get from these people will go a long way for your injury.
- Get into a routine: For the first month or two after sustaining the injury, you might not be able to do the things you normally do, but this should not stop you from doing anything at all. It’s essential that you’d be accustomed to a routine which will allow you to take medications, attend therapies and meet with your doctors. This can be difficult at first, but you should gradually adapt to a routine to pave the way for your recovery.
- Stay positive: This is probably one of the most important tip you should follow if you have spinal cord injuries. Regardless of how difficult your situation is right now, you should always think that it will not always be like this, and there will be better days ahead of you. When you are positive, you can have the motivation to go through life even with a spinal cord injury.
Living with a spinal cord injury is not easy as there will be pain and discomfort, not to mention the money you have to spend on treatments and medications. If you’ve suffered a spinal cord injury because of someone else’s negligence or intentional acts, talk to a lawyer who has years of experience in dealing with spinal cord injuries like this one here.
Take Your Time
When you have spinal cord injuries, a whole lot of adjustment is needed from you in order to function again. You just can’t jump back from your usual routines after suffering from an injury – but all of these are bound to happen once you have spinal cord injuries and no one is expecting that you’d be doing just fine a day after what happened. Give yourself and your injuries to heal, and adjust your lifestyle accordingly and for sure, you’ll be doing well again.