Managing Your Money After A Life Changing Injury

life changing injury

Life can change in a moment. You might never see it coming, but you’ll never forget it happening. If disaster strikes and you’re left with a life-changing injury, things can become very difficult for you. You might not be able to work in your usual job anymore. Or maybe you’re not able to work at all. Perhaps you have a lot of need for care now that you never considered would be necessary in life?

Every story like this can be heartbreaking to hear. But when it’s happened to you, panic can set in quite quickly. Aside from the physical difficulties you might now face, there might also be financial difficulties ahead. As you begin to realize that you can’t maintain your income anymore, you know that things have to change drastically. That’s when you might start to have regrets about how you’ve managed your money in the past.

Savings And Investments

Now is the perfect time to clarify exactly how much cash you have in reserve. If you have been able to put aside savings, then you may need to start drawing from the pot. Find out when your investments can be made available to you as cash sums. Check to see if you will be financially penalized for accessing them now if they’re not yet matured. Hopefully, you won’t have to dry up all your reserves. But right now you need access to cash to help you get better.

Expenses

By now, you’ve probably had a few doctors and specialists give you a prognosis. Your long-term prospects should be considered when it comes to your ongoing expenses. You might require continuing therapies like counseling and physio. You might even have to undergo some surgery in the future. While your medical insurance should cover all that is coming now, there may come a time when you need more than they’re willing to pay out. This is why it’s important to calculate what you will require for the long term.

Whatever you do, don’t short-change yourself. This is your physical health, mobility, and happiness we’re talking about. You should prioritize these things when it comes to making projections and budgeting. It’s important you work on adapting to your new situation and show that you’re making an effort to get on with life as best as you can. Your goal might be to get back to work so you can earn a living again. Rushing this, or restricting your access to services that might help you due to cost is not a good idea. The more you do now, the better for your future.

Are You Owed Any Money?

If you’ve been injured at work, chances are you might have a claim against your employer. Accidents shouldn’t happen and are often caused by someone else’s negligence. It’s not fair that you should be suffering and picking up the tab if it wasn’t your fault. Websites like https://www.pothitakislaw.com/ can show you how to start a claims process if you think you might be awarded compensation for what has happened to you. Always keep detailed notes and records of all events, conversations, and purchases you’ve had to make.

Changing Your Cost Of Living

There is frugality, and then there is pushing your budget as hard as it can go. Your employer will only offer you the full salary for a short time. Then you might be eligible for sickness benefits. These are often no more than a half day of pay paid once per week. Check all of your insurance policies. Some will have a little cover to help you out. They might only apply to covering payments for loans or other finance. Of course, every little helps when you suffer a significant income drop.

The next thing to do is to contact everyone you pay regularly. Anyone you owe money to should now help you manage repayments or agree to write off the loan. You might find some ideas at websites like https://www.sample-resignation-letters.com on how to do this. You can sometimes ask a lawyer to assist you with this, especially if you have no assets or savings. Some of your creditors might ask for evidence of your medical condition and prognosis before they agree to help you out. Have this ready to send across to each one if necessary.

Whatever you can live without for the next year, sell it. This will help to raise much-needed funds to cover the costs you’re likely to incur. If nothing else, it will certainly help to keep food on the table and a roof over your head. If you don’t adjust your lifestyle and spend to match your income, you might find yourself in serious financial trouble. Live for the money that is coming in now. You can always relax a little if some cash comes in or you’re able to retain a wage at work.

Change Is Upsetting

Making so many changes in your life when someone else has caused pretty major ones to your body already is tough. It’s upsetting, and you might find it’s getting you down. Don’t cut yourself off from friends and family. You need a really good support network right now and for the foreseeable future. Acknowledge it’s a rough time, but persevere. You’ll soon see the good in people as they rally to help you. Their support is exactly what you would offer them should the roles be reversed here, so never turn it away.

One of the toughest things to overcome is acceptance. You don’t have to resign yourself to this frugal life forever. Just stick with it for now until your situation can change again. You might find your physical condition can improve. If nothing else, you should be able to adapt so you can gain some more independence. Working hard on it now might be just the thing to do if you want it to pay off later. This might include investing in more physio and adaptations for your home.

What has happened is difficult to cope with. The journey ahead is likely to be hard at first. Make sure you’re on top of your finances and getting the support you need.

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