Motor vehicle accidents are commonplace throughout the entire United States, and Florida actually has more than most states. The Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles Department reported 686,590 drivers were involved in traffic accidents statewide in 2017.
Frightening for all involved parties, car accidents pose a serious risk to your physical health and well-being. Substantial injuries sustained from motor vehicle accidents could unexpectedly change your lifestyle. For example, nerve damage resulting from a crash can complicate daily tasks you once found easy.
How many types of nerves do you have?
Your nervous system is essential for communicating messages from your brain and spinal cord to the rest of your body. Nerves ultimately dictate all your actions, including breathing, moving, seeing and thinking. When your nerves sustain damage, it becomes increasingly difficult to perform some actions critical to your existence.
Your body has three types of nerves which serve unique purposes:
- Automatic nerves control bodily functions such as your bladder, heart rate, blood pressure and digestive system;
- Motor nerves control your body’s mobility by controlling muscles; and
- Sensory nerves control your body’s ability to distinguish between hot and cold, experience pain, and feel touch.
In the aftermath of a motor vehicle crash, you could experience symptoms of nerve damage to all three kinds of nerves. However, the signs do vary slightly from one nerve type to the next.
What are common symptoms of nerve damage?
Nerve damage affects your ability to live life as you once knew it, and can make it difficult for you to perform actions that once came easily. There are many clues to determine if you have nerve damage and may give insight into which type of nerve you’ve injured.
Here are some common symptoms of damage to motor and sensory nerves:
- Numbness,
- Feeling weakness in your muscles,
- Frequent falls due to lack of coordination
- Unusual pain and/or burning
Untreated damage to motor nerves can result in serious consequences, including paralysis.
Additionally, symptoms of injury to your automatic nerves include:
- Excessive sweating, or not sweating enough
- Dizziness
- Constipation
Being involved a motor vehicle accident can have lifelong consequences to many facets of your life including the ability to enjoy physical activities, work and your physical well-being in general.
If you sustained nerve damage due to the negligence of another person, you may be entitled to compensation. The best way to obtain full compensation for your past and future pain, injuries and financial losses is by reaching out to an experienced Bodily Injury Attorney such as Kim Wells at the .