After you’ve begun the process of pursuing plaintive damages through a personal injury lawsuit, it can be good to sit down and plan out the time in your busy life that the suit is going to take.
Even if your injury has made it impossible for your to work and lead an active lifestyle (hopefully only temporarily), it is far healthier to only allow yourself a limited amount of time to deal with the stress of a lawsuit, and devote the rest of your time to getting well, and spending time with friends and family. Besides, after you’ve retained the services of a competent South Bend personal injury attorney, most of the leg work will be done for you.
Here are a few tips for keeping your life moving through the process of a lawsuit.
1. Know Your Responsibilities.
During your conversations with your attorney, keep a pen and paper (or laptop) handy, and take notes. Your attorney may ask you to procure some medical documentation or insurance claim information after the accident, as hospitals and companies may be unable to release these documents to anyone but you. Keep a list of the things that you’re responsible for tracking down. If you have to make multiple inquiries to get what you need, keep a phone record of who you’ve talked to and what they told you.
2. Set Aside ‘Lawsuit Time’.
You’ll want to respond to any correspondence from your attorney as promptly as possible (and you can be sure that he or she will do the same for you), so that you can keep abreast of any new developments.
If you’re not working, go ahead and take whatever calls and respond to emails right away, but if you are working, set aside time during the lunch hour to respond to any email or voicemail you may receive that day. This can be helpful for not only fitting time for the suit into your busy workday, but also for only allowing yourself a small amount of time to think about it. You’ve got a competent legal team working for you, and they’ll get you the best compensation possible.
Don’t worry about this more than you have to.
3. Set Aside ‘You Time.’
Perhaps your injury has left you unable to be as active as you want to be, but there are still a number of ways to continue to develop yourself as an individual, which is an important part of any healing process. Maybe there’s a book you’ve always wanted to read, but didn’t have time, or you’ve always wanted to take up a musical instrument.
Learn a new recipe, and cook it for your friends. If you always feel like you haven’t had enough time to keep up with friends or family members, take time to write to them, and plan a lunch date. Often, an accident can leave you with emotional injuries as well as physical ones, and it’s important to focus on being as well as you can be, while your attorney fights to get you the reparations you deserve.
