Can't stop replaying the crash in my head — anyone else go through this?

Not legal advice, but I'll mention this because most people don't realize it: the psychological aftermath of an accident — what you're describing — can be a legitimate part of a personal injury claim if another party was at fault. Things like therapy costs, lost sleep affecting your work, all of that can matter. Just make sure you're documenting how you feel, ideally by telling your doctor. Whatever you decide to do legally, your mental health comes first — but don't assume the emotional toll doesn't count.

Practical stuff that helped me: don't avoid being in cars entirely if you can help it, because the longer you stay out of them the bigger the fear gets. Start small — short trips, low traffic, someone you trust driving. Also, and I mean this kindly, put your phone down before bed. Doom-scrolling when you're already anxious is like pouring fuel on a fire.

What you're describing sounds a lot like acute stress response, which is extremely common after traumatic events — especially ones involving sudden physical danger. Your nervous system basically got flooded and it takes time to regulate back down. The sleep disruption and hypervigilance (like grabbing the door handle) are your brain trying to protect you, even when you don't need protecting anymore.

Please do bring this up with your doctor if you haven't already, especially with the concussion in the mix. Sometimes concussions can make emotional regulation harder in the short term, which could be amplifying everything you're feeling. You're not being dramatic — this is a real physiological response.

Yes. A hundred percent yes to everything you just described. I went through something really similar after a bad intersection crash two years ago. The door slam thing, the passenger-seat panic, the jolting awake — I had all of it. What honestly helped me the most was finding a therapist who specifically does trauma work, not just general talk therapy. There's a type called EMDR that's specifically for stuff like this and it felt kind of weird at first but it genuinely made the flashback loop stop. It took a few months but I can drive again without white-knuckling it the whole time. Hang in there — it really does get better.

Journaling helped me way more than I expected. Not like a diary — more like I'd write out exactly what happened in the crash in as much detail as I could remember, almost like I was filing a report, and then I'd write what actually happened AFTER (I survived, I walked away). Doing that over and over kind of helped my brain accept that the story had an ending. Might not work for everyone but it gave me something to do with the replay loop besides just suffer through it.