The Shoulder
The Shoulder
67
brave-seal-677

Rolled our car on the highway last winter and I still can't drive on the freeway

I don't really know why I'm posting this but I've been carrying it around and maybe talking to strangers on the internet will help idk.

Last February my boyfriend and I were driving back from a weekend trip. It was a long straight stretch of highway, totally dry looking, middle of the afternoon. Out of nowhere the back end just let go — black ice under a bridge overpass that you couldn't see at all. We spun completely around and went sideways down an embankment. The car caught on a guardrail post and flipped onto the passenger side — my side.

I remember the sound more than anything. Like the whole world just crunching in on itself. The window next to my head shattered and I ended up half-hanging in my seatbelt with dirt and glass literally in my face. I kept calling out for my boyfriend and he wasn't answering for what felt like forever (he was conscious, just stunned — he told me later he heard me but couldn't get words out).

Physically I ended up with a fractured collarbone, some cracked ribs, and a gnarly concussion. My boyfriend walked away with bruises. I know I was lucky compared to what could have happened.

But it's been almost a year and I genuinely cannot merge onto a freeway without my chest tightening up. I white-knuckle the door handle on passenger rides. I had a full-on panic attack at a drive-through last month because a truck pulled up fast behind us.

Has anyone dealt with this kind of anxiety after a crash? Does it get better? I feel like I'm stuck in that second when we started spinning and I can't get out of it.

11replies

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11 replies

  • 21
    swift-swan-721

    Spent years on the other side of these claims. Psychological injury after a rollover is 100% compensable but it's the first thing that gets undervalued because people don't document it the way they do broken bones. Start seeing a therapist NOW even if you're not sure you "need" it — having documented treatment creates a paper trail that matters enormously if your claim isn't closed yet. Speaking from experience watching files where people had zero mental health records and got lowballed hard.

  • 17
    steady-swift-801

    What you're describing — the chest tightening, hypervigilance around vehicles, getting triggered by things that are near cars but not even dangerous — that's textbook PTSD response, not you being dramatic or weak. Your nervous system literally learned that cars equal life-threatening danger and it's just doing its job now. The good news is that with the right support (EMDR and somatic therapy are both well-studied for crash trauma specifically) your brain can rewire. Please don't just white-knuckle through it and hope it fades on its own — the longer it sits untreated the stickier it can get.

    • 5
      careful-passenger497

      That lines up with what my adjuster told me too.

    • 7
      level-road-soul622

      Took me three tries but they finally budged. Don't give up.

  • 17
    curious-vole-688

    I know it doesn't feel like it when you're mid-panic-attack at a drive-through, but the fact that you recognize what's happening and are naming it and reaching out? That's actually huge. A lot of people just stuff it down and it comes out sideways for years. You're already doing the harder thing by facing it.

  • 16
    gentle-beaver-018

    Two things: Get yourself into trauma therapy, not just regular talk therapy — there's a difference. And separately, did you ever settle your insurance claim? A collarbone fracture and cracked ribs from a highway accident is not a "here's your deductible back" situation. Just making sure you didn't leave anything on the table.

  • 16
    curious-marten-456

    Not legal advice, but I'll echo what the person above said — injuries like yours typically have ongoing costs that people underestimate at settlement time. Future physical therapy, the mental health treatment you clearly need, any lost wages. If you already settled and it's been less than a year check whether your state has any provisions around that. If you haven't resolved the claim yet, don't let them rush you while you're still in active recovery. That's a really common pressure tactic.

  • 12
    tidy-tern-130

    I could have written this post a year ago, I swear. After my wreck I was the same way — couldn't even watch a car commercial without my heart rate spiking. What helped me more than anything was a therapist who specifically did EMDR for trauma. It's not magic and it takes a few sessions to kick in, but it was the first thing that actually made me feel like my brain wasn't permanently broken. Please look into it if you haven't.

    • 7
      bright-seal-430

      Please be careful if your adjuster is being super friendly and calling to "check in." That's often them trying to get a recorded statement or nudge you toward a quick settlement before you know the full picture of your injuries. The anxiety and PTSD stuff you're describing? That's a real ongoing cost and adjusters will absolutely downplay it.

    • 1
      steady-traveler987

      How long did it end up taking in your case?

  • 10
    genuine-swan-284

    Oh man, reading about you calling out for him and not getting an answer... that part gutted me. I'm so sorry you went through that. I hope you're being gentle with yourself. A year might feel like a long time but that was a serious traumatic event.