Tips For Keeping Your Personal Injury Journal
If you suffered an injury that was someone else's fault, you'll likely need to take them to court in order to receive compensation. However, the process of filing a lawsuit can be very long, with it taking many months or years after your injury happened until you finally settle the case. This means that the nature of your injury and your recovery may not be fresh in your mind when you need to recall what happened to you. That's why It always helps to keep a journal to document your injury. Here are some things you should put in your journal.
Pick A Convenient Format
It's important that the format of your journal is something that is convenient for you, and that will encourage you to update it frequently. For some people, this means making a paper journal by printing out some template pages and putting them in a binder. For others, it's keeping a digital journal. You'll know what works best for you when picking a format.
Use A Pain Diagram
If you are experiencing pain in multiple parts of your body, it is a good idea to include a diagram of the human body so that you can identify where you are experiencing pain. For example, if you were in an auto accident, you may have neck, back, and wrist injuries. Each entry could include a circle on the diagram around each area that is causing you pain, as well as a number next to that circle to show the associated pain level.
Document Your Limitations
An injury is not always measured in pain, but rather, what you can and cannot do. Consider using your journal document which things you were unable to do that day because of your injury. Could you not handle lifting the laundry basket to do laundry? Were you unable to play with your kid? Could you not cook dinner for your family? Could you not exercise? These are all things worth noting because the injury is affecting your quality of life.
List Your Medications
Some of your symptoms may be masked by a medication that you are taking. That's why you should also be keeping track of what medications you are taking and what ailments they are helping with. For example, pain medication could be making your pain less intense, which would cause it to be a lower number on your pain diagram.
For more information, speak with a local personal injury attorney.