Workers’ compensation can supply you with replacement wages while you are unable to work, but time away from your career – a career that might be a major part of who you are – can have drastic mental health effects. As such, it is important to be aware of some of the ways that being on workers’ comp can hurt your confidence, make you feel restless or listless, and even lead to serious depression.
Mental health symptoms you might face while receiving workers’ comp
Workers’ Comp generally focuses on paying you benefits for your replacement wages and medical expenses while you are unable to work, and it should compensate you for any effects that result from the injury, including mental health treatment and psychological care. But there are some symptoms and thoughts you might experience primarily because you are away from work and stuck at home on workers’ comp.
Feelings of uselessness
One of the worst feelings you might experience is feeling useless because you cannot work or contribute. This can be a big blow to your confidence and rattle your sense of place and purpose in your home and family. For instance, if you were the primary “breadwinner” in your household, but your spouse had to step up and get a job while you were unable to work for your full wage, you might feel like you have let your family down or put your spouse in a difficult position.
Talking with your family and seeking therapy for this is important because these kinds of rifts in household roles and purposes can often lead to greater strife if left unexamined or undiscussed. It can also be a big blow to your confidence generally.
Additionally, you should speak with Allentown Workers’ Comp lawyers about whether and to what extent you might be able to return to work. Many people do not know that workers’ comp benefits can continue paying for healthcare while you return to work at partial capacity, allowing you to regain some feeling of purpose while still getting care needs covered. Moreover, wage-loss benefits still cover some of the difference if your wages are lower while working at a reduced capacity.
Anxiety about reinjury
Workers end up on workers’ comp in the first place, typically because of a quite serious injury. When you face a serious injury or a very dangerous accident, it is quite likely that you will develop at least some level of PTSD-like symptoms, nervousness around reinjury being one of the most common.
If you have more serious PTSD symptoms, like flashbacks that interrupt your daily life, you should consider seeking coverage for treatment, as this would likely be considered a symptom of your initial injury. But fear of reinjury alone can also cause massive interruptions in your life and your recovery, especially if it prevents you from participating in activities or necessary tasks. For instance, if you were injured in a car crash at work, and your anxiety about reinjury keeps you from getting behind the wheel or getting in the car to go to your care appointments, you might have difficulty keeping your benefits or going about your daily routine.
Depression
Many people find purpose in work, but it is also something to do day in and day out that keeps your mind focused. When you are at home recovering, that extra time to think might lead to darker thoughts. Combined with the trauma of a serious injury, the feelings of listlessness or uselessness, and anxiety about your injury, depression is a common experience for those receiving workers’ comp benefits. Talk to a doctor or therapist about your symptoms and consider seeking mental health treatment as part of your recovery.
Anger
Workers’ Comp does not require applicants to prove fault when seeking benefits, so questions of who is to blame for your injury might not always come into play. However, you are still likely to have it in your mind that a particular person or entity was at fault. This could lead to anger – anger at your coworker for causing your accident, anger at your employer for failing safety standards, or even anger at yourself if your mistake caused your accident. This anger can spill over into other areas of your life and potentially lead to substance use, violence, or self-harm if left unexamined and untreated.
Does Workers’ Comp Pay for Mental Healthcare?
Many people are often confused about the extent of their coverage when it comes to mental health treatment under workers’ comp. In general, Workers’ Comp pays for all medical treatment to treat the initial work-related injury – and that includes mental healthcare. But it is vital to speak with a lawyer and your treating physician about your mental health and your individual treatment needs and the causes of those needs.
For care to be covered, it needs to be related to the initial work injury. This should likely cover treatment and medication for depression, anxiety, PTSD, and other mental health effects that the injury causes, such as therapy to help you deal with fear of reinjury. But insurance carriers might be unwilling to cover therapy appointments for something like depression or feelings of uselessness tied to being home on workers’ comp. Even so, there might be an argument that this is ultimately related to the work injury and should be covered anyway.
Dealing with a serious injury is something you never have to do alone. Workers’ comp will often pay for mental healthcare related to your injury, and you should take full advantage of that to help you keep yourself mentally fit while you try to return to physical fitness and get back to work.
Ellen Diamond, a psychology graduate from the University of Hertfordshire, has a keen interest in the fields of mental health, wellness, and lifestyle.
