[Joy6]

Hello,

I am new here and was suggested to post this from the other forum because some of you may be able to relate. I live in the state on NJ. I am new to these boards and need to seek some advice from anyone that can shed some light or have been in my shoes.
I was involved in a motor vehicle accident with my boss at work a couple months ago. We were t-boned by another driver who ran a stop sign and I hit my head on the side window and blacked out briefly. I immediatly went to the ER and they did not perform the proper tests like an MRI, X-rays and let me go home.

I was to dazed and confused to suggest otherwise. Within a few days of the accident I felt like I went into a dazed and tired existence. I had horrible headaches, fatigue, I was so angry and just couldn't shake the feelings. I tried to go back to work and ended up having a panic attack when a worker had to explain something to me 6-7 times before I could really get what she was saying.

I told my mom and she said that I sounded like I may have had a concussion. I called the WC claims adjuster and she sent me to one of their doctors who diagnosed me with a concussion and referred me to a nuerologist. I went to the nuerologist and he ordered an MRI and X-rays for my neck, and he took me out of work.
They came back normal but because I am still having alot of those symptoms he made a referral for a nuero-psychological evaluation.

He said that WC does not always like to pay for this testing but was sending me anyway. Up until the evaluation I was not having problems with WC, I received a TTD check for lost wages as well. Well this past Friday, I did not receive my TTD check for the past two weeks. When I called WC, they said because I had reached a "cap" on what they are going to pay me out.

I told them that I am still out of work and receiving ongoing treatment...I wanted them to explain more but the rep just referred me to the claims adjuster since they had made that decision. I immediatly called my WC attorny and he said that the answer I got was basically nonsense.

He said I am entitled to 70% of my wages as long as I am out of work. He does not want me talking to the claims adjuster and he said he would call her. He told me today that she is not returning his phone calls. I am still waiting to hear what the next steps are to get them to respond. I also received a call today that my report from the nuero-eval was ready and the clinical director would be submitting it to the insurance company so they could authorize a more in depth evaluation.

He said that I will be feeling this way for a minimum of 3 months post-accident and at that point they will see what symptoms I am still having then and decide the best course of treatment, but he is going to give me therapy in the meantime to help cope with the day to day problems I am having.

Needless to say I am already a mess and for WC to be giving me these problems is making things worse. They already denied to pay for one of my medications and now they are not sending money for lost wages.

Are they allowed to do this? and why would they stop sending checks out of the clear blue?? I have not been released to work yet and I don't really know when that will happen. I hold a stressful mgmt position and my symptoms would totally interfere with me doing my job. Are these tactics??

Its not like they are not going to recover all of their costs from the the driver who hit us insurance so why the hassle? It was a bad accident and I would automatically think that would entitle me to a higher level of care. Thanks for any advice or info

[Joy6]

Also, forgot to add that I am wondering what to expect at the longer nuero-psych evaluation. The DR. said it would be about 6 hours long. It sounds exhausting and complicated.

[Mark in Idaho]

Joy6,

Welcome to Neurotalk. Sorry to hear of your accident and injury.

Is your attorney a Work Comp attorney, a personal injury attorney, or both?

You will likely have better recovery with a personal injury claim than a WC claim. You need an attorney who has years of experience with concussion/mTBI.

Work Comp insurance companies routinely deny concussion claims. They often pay for just the start of the claim then back away to force a settlement. WC is not supposed to be so adversarial but the adjusters are paid to minimize payouts.

What kind of treatment and meds have you received so far?

btw, An MRI or CT at the ER would have likely been premature unless you had severe neurological symptoms.

You need to be sure that your neck is evaluated. Most concussions include trauma to the neck, especially the upper neck. Head aches can be caused by C-1 injuries.

Tell us more about yourself and your symptoms and we will be able to offer better support. Your attorney should be able to deal with the WC adjuster. Rely on him. WC is a slow process and getting anxious will only make your concussion symptoms worse.

My best to you.

[Joy6]

Originally Posted by Mark in Idaho

Joy6,

Welcome to Neurotalk. Sorry to hear of your accident and injury.

Is your attorney a Work Comp attorney, a personal injury attorney, or both?


You will likely have better recovery with a personal injury claim than a WC claim. You need an attorney who has years of experience with concussion/mTBI.

Work Comp insurance companies routinely deny concussion claims. They often pay for just the start of the claim then back away to force a settlement. WC is not supposed to be so adversarial but the adjusters are paid to minimize payouts.

What kind of treatment and meds have you received so far?

btw, An MRI or CT at the ER would have likely been premature unless you had severe neurological symptoms.

You need to be sure that your neck is evaluated. Most concussions include trauma to the neck, especially the upper neck. Head aches can be caused by C-1 injuries.

Tell us more about yourself and your symptoms and we will be able to offer better support. Your attorney should be able to deal with the WC adjuster. Rely on him. WC is a slow process and getting anxious will only make your concussion symptoms worse.

My best to you.

Thank you Mark.

He is a WC atty and PI atty. I started out with the personal injury and after the first lawyer heard my situation, he passed me off to his partner who specializes in WC. They said I had a strong case. Unfortunately, I was not really aware that I would need an atty who specialized in TBI at first. I was in a fog when I first had my appt with him. It is still early but he seems to be good and he always talks to me when I need to ask questions. I don't know how much experience he has with concussions though and I didn't think to ask.

So you are saying that this is probably just the start of my problems. How long do these things usually drag out? Why do they not like concussion claims?

My current symptoms are daily headaches that flare up if I try to do to much. For instance I can't even get through a load of laundry without feeling like I have to lay down. I have kids so that makes everything so much harder and my husband is working alot now so we don't fall to much behind. I am constantly tired...tired to the point that I am angry about it. I have been a yelling monster around the house to my family and I was never so quick to snap. Before the accident I was an extremely high functioning person but now I can't even focus or concentrate on getting my house clean or in order. I am constantly forgetting things and doing random foolish stuff that I just have to kind of laugh at. I have had a concussion in the past, but I was never like this. My memory of things before the accident, not the long term stuff, but just things like what I was working on at that time or my job duties seem like it was all a dream. I know that sounds weird but I feel like a totally different person.

I was prescribed Zoloft for anxiety and take Tylenol everyday for he headaches. I hate the Zoloft though and am going to ask for something else because I can't tell if its helping or making things worse. I've never taken meds before.

[Elisabeth PS]

Originally Posted by Joy6

Thank you Mark.

He is a WC atty and PI atty. I started out with the personal injury and after the first lawyer heard my situation, he passed me off to his partner who specializes in WC. They said I had a strong case. Unfortunately, I was not really aware that I would need an atty who specialized in TBI at first.
I was in a fog when I first had my appt with him. It is still early but he seems to be good and he always talks to me when I need to ask questions. I don't know how much experience he has with concussions though and I didn't think to ask.

So you are saying that this is probably just the start of my problems. How long do these things usually drag out? Why do they not like concussion claims?

My current symptoms are daily headaches that flare up if I try to do to much. For instance I can't even get through a load of laundry without feeling like I have to lay down. I have kids so that makes everything so much harder and my husband is working alot now so we don't fall to much behind.
I am constantly tired...tired to the point that I am angry about it. I have been a yelling monster around the house to my family and I was never so quick to snap. Before the accident I was an extremely high functioning person but now I can't even focus or concentrate on getting my house clean or in order.
I am constantly forgetting things and doing random foolish stuff that I just have to kind of laugh at. I have had a concussion in the past, but I was never like this.
My memory of things before the accident, not the long term stuff, but just things like what I was working on at that time or my job duties seem like it was all a dream. I know that sounds weird but I feel like a totally different person.

I was prescribed Zoloft for anxiety and take Tylenol everyday for he headaches. I hate the Zoloft though and am going to ask for something else because I can't tell if its helping or making things worse. I've never taken meds before.

Hi Joy, I'm new here too, but what you are saying sounds very familiar. I'm four months on from a car accident. With me it's more fogs, dizziness and feeling very, very off and shaky. I was doing ok, on Valium, but a recent trip to a family wedding (big, big mistake) has set me way back in my progress, and now it's misery again.

So I guess I'll put the Valium back up to where it was two months ago and just keep going. All you can do is accept what is and do the best you can until this passes. Don't put too much pressure on yourself, get lots of rest, and try to get all the help you can from your family, that's crucial.