- April 25, 2020
- Workers' Compensation
Emotional trauma, psychiatric trauma, and various other elements that can lead to a breakdown are no laughing matter. People in Emergency Rooms, call centers for emergency response, Police Officers, gas station attendants, and more all experience the daily risk of trauma. Witnessing assaults, trauma, being held at gunpoint, or witnessing the trauma of long-term abuse can all lead to people to snap.
The only way to ease these issues is usually through rest and taking time before reentering the workforce. If this is all happening because of an instance or ongoing exposure at work, then you should apply for workers’ compensation.
Getting a Diagnosis of Emotional or Psychiatric Trauma
Military members, firefighters, police officers, first responders, healthcare professionals, journalists, and war correspondents have something in common. Every one of these professions is a high risk for trauma disorders such as PTSD. They are subject to gruesome scenes, death, violence, and during that exposure, they must continue working. For first responders and healthcare professionals, if they fail to perform their duties, it may make a traumatic situation worse by leading to death.
A diagnosis of PTSD and other trauma or stress disorders can stem from occupation stress and breakdowns. Many people downplay the full impact of these disorders and their effect on the patient’s everyday life.
The National Institute of Mental Health has an overview of what it takes for a PTSD diagnosis. It acknowledges that PTSD is ongoing, or chronic, and they acknowledge that PTSD is ongoing or chronic and goes far beyond typical stress disorders. They look for symptoms that make a person feel as if they’re re-experiencing the event, avoidance symptoms, arousal or reaction symptoms, and mood symptoms.
“Postal” the Urban Term and Real Threat
Between 1970 and 2017, there have been over 25 instances of mass violence, specifically including U.S. Post Office workers. The underlying issue? Occupational stress. Although they don’t witness exceptional violence or traumatic events, they are in a position where they are under extreme monotony with strict controls and essentially zero freedom.
Post office workers, although they’re in a generally safe environment, have some of the highest rates of fatalities associated with job stress. So what can happen when it comes to desk rage, phone rage, or when you have a breakdown because of occupational stress?
You can file a worker’s compensation claim for occupational stress and mental health. You still need to go through the protocol for workers’ compensation. That means you need to see a doctor and get a referral from a registered healthcare professional on the network.
Should You Get Help for Non-Physical Illnesses?
Absolutely and if you cannot file a claim through your worker’s compensation insurance with the employer, then you need to get help on your own. Occupational stress can lead to more difficult situations than a breakdown. Mental health can absolutely not go without treatment or attention. Get the help you need and contact a worker’s compensation attorney to move forward with filing your claim.
A worker’s compensation attorney can help clear up issues that stem from an initially denied claim. In recent years, mental health concerns have come to the forefront. They often acknowledge that there’s little someone can do in the way of filing a worker’s comp claim for mental health diagnosis. The common belief is that those issues stem from all of life’s aspects, not just work.
Breakdowns, however, often happen because of isolated or specific instances. Regarding your breakdown, you should carefully review what triggered it. Was it a slow decline from being overworked, or feeling that you couldn’t stop to manage other areas of your life? The root cause of your breakdown will play a huge role in this claim.
Start by Contacting a Charlotte North Carolina Workers Compensation Attorney
Your Charlotte worker’s compensation attorney should go through the elements of building a worker’s compensation case and application. That means that you’ll need to show that you meet the minimal requirements. If you indeed had a breakdown or mental break of some kind that was brought on because of work, then you can pursue compensation for your time off work and treatment.
Charlotte Workers Compensation Lawyers is a local office that you can come to for help when you need to file a claim. That claim might initially receive a denial because you’re claiming non-physical injuries. That doesn’t mean you should give up; in fact, you should fight through the appeals process. Contact our attorneys to get started now.
