Whether an incident occurs that causes you injuries or you simply acquire wear and tear over time at your place of work, the likelihood of you being able to file a workers’ compensation claim are fairly high. On the other hand, something that affects your mental state may not be cause for such a black and white determination of your legal rights.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, also known as PTSD, has been gaining more and more attention as a condition that debilitates those who it affects. While this condition is often thought to have a profound effect on those who work as members of our military, there seem to be others who are also experiencing the symptoms associated with PTSD. People who work in the United States in very high-stress jobs have recently been diagnosed with this condition more and more. Most often these people have careers like police officer, firefighter, EMTs, and contact workers in areas that are deeply affected by war or poverty. Since there are far more people who are currently at risk of developing PTSD, it’s no wonder that we have been fielding questions about whether or not workers’ compensation claims would be appropriate for this mental consequence of working a job like those we just mentioned.

While it is well-known that trauma is a large part of some occupations, a traumatic event can occur for anyone regardless of the type of job they have. Whether it be workplace harassment, violence, bullying, or discrimination, a person can easily have an experience in their place of work that leads to them going through the aftermath of trauma. In some cases, this aftermath can result in PTSD. PTSD that would not have occurred otherwise if the person has not been employed in that specific workplace.

PTSD Claim Types

Emotional distress caused by a person’s workplace is normally categorized in three ways:

• PTSD that has resulted from physical injuries that occurred on the job.
• Emotional injury only, in which there is no physical harm that is linked to the mental trauma.
• Psychological and physical damage that occurs because of emotional damage.

What Are The Symptoms Of PTSD?

There are many different physical symptoms that come along with PTSD. They are as follows:

• High Blood Pressure
• Ulcers
• Vomiting
• Chronic headaches and migraines
• Heart Attack
  

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Additionally, there are many other side effects that come with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. While individuals do have fairly different reactions to trauma, the overall scope of symptoms remains quite the same, with people experiencing different combinations of the following, more common symptoms:

• Flashbacks
• Hypomania, also known as periods of increased activity
• A lack of emotional response
• Nightmares or intrusive memories
• Physical manifestations of stress
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Panic Attacks
• Avoiding socialization and activities
• Inability to relax
• Violent reactions to being startled
• General confusion

Are You Suffering From PTSD Due To Your Job?

If you have been diagnosed with PTSD or you think you may be experiencing the symptoms of this condition, you may want to reach out to a workers’ compensation lawyer sooner rather than later. We would be happy to assist you at The Monk Law Firm. Call us right now for more information!