Car Accident step by step guide Part 1: What do you believe?

You are in a car accident...what do you do?  The best thing you can do is to know what and what not to do BEFORE the car accident.

For the next several weeks we will discussing this in a step by step process.



The first thing you need to know....do not listen to your friends or family or believe what you have heard.  

Myths are usually enjoyable..you get some smile out of them. Urban legends are even better. UNLESS the Myths are about your car accident and your back injury.  I truly believe the myths were started by the insurance companies to deny your claim.

Information provided by:  Car Accident Facts:

Myth #1:   Your car has little or no damage how could you have hurt your back?  Some of the smallest car accidents have caused the biggest injuries.  I thing Insurance Companies have decided if your car isn't "hurt" than how can you be?  

Bumpers on most of our cars these days were designed to tolerate some impacts without damage. What the studies have been finding, is that although your car does not look damaged, the force of the other car hitting yours is now moving into your body, the bumper tolerates it, but the force still has to go somewhere, and you are where it goes.So, do not allow damage to your car or LACK of damage in any way inform whether you are injured. If you need treatment for back pain after a car accident, your pain is real and you should get the help you need.

Myth #2:  I had my seat belt on (didn't get thrown from the car) how could you have injured your back?

Well, it does actually, the seat belt is designed to prevent you from being thrown against the steering wheel which used to cause tragic injuries and it prevents you from being thrown out of the car.However, when you are in your seatbelt, and you are in an accident, you are often thrown against the belt. The seat belt sort of acts like a brick wall, when the accident occurs you are thrown against it, it tightens, and your body keeps moving around it, causing shoulder injuries, bruising and damage where the seat belt tightened against your body, and whiplash symptoms as your neck was not restrained.

Myth #3:  You weren't hurt right after the car accident, it's now three weeks later and you are claiming a back injury.

Your pain and your injury are just as real as the person who went to the hospital in an ambulance after a car accident. Injuries in your muscles and ligaments and tendons for unknown reasons can take a long time to show up.

Myth #4:  You are just "sore" take a pill (Advil, Ibuprofen, etc.) and it will go away.

Unlike other injuries you may have experienced, most small accidents can take up to 3 months with steady treatment before your pain starts to change. Ibuprofen can make the day a little more tolerable, but it's not actually a medicine, and can not help your muscles heal and repair their injuries.

Listen to your body, not the insurance companies, or friends, or family or whoever is trying to tell you that you aren't hurt because of any of the above.  Go to a trusted Doctor to find out exactly what is wrong.  Back injuries can cause many problems that you may not recognize as being a back injury (tingling or numbness of the legs, trouble breathing, etc).  LISTEN TO YOUR BODY!!  A back injury, no matter what the reason that caused it, can change your life forever.  It will change it more drastically if the injury isn't discovered and/or treated soon enough.  

Not all back injuries are the same.  Not all "identical" injuries will be received the same...what may cause one person "little" pain may cause another extreme pain.  Only you know your body and only you and your Doctor can treat your back injury.  Be honest, be patient and work your treatment.

In every blog in this step by step process I am going to tell you to contact an Attorney!  You need someone who will fight for you.  Stay tuned for the next step.

If you are hurt in a car accident, NO MATTER WHAT YOUR INJURIES ARE, consult an Attorney!  The best way to heal is let someone else fight your battle with the insurance companies and it is a BATTLE!!  



Like Zeisler & Associates, Attorney at Law, PC on Facebook or visit their website.

Pueblo Office: 113 W. 12th Street  (Map it)

Colorado Springs Office:  422 E. Vermijo Ave., Suite 412 (Map it)

Being honest with your Doctor

Attorney's can only fight for you if they know the truth.  They need documentation from your Doctor to fight so you need to tell your Doctor everything. 

When you are involved in a car accident there are many spokes on the wheel that moves forward to help you recover and receive the compensation you deserve. 


I have written about what you should tell your Attorney when you are involved in a car accident.  We are going to talk about what you should tell your Doctor.  

Don't "hide" anything from your Doctor.  What they don't know can come back and hurt you.

1.   Previous injuries:  You may not think it is important to tell your Doctor that you were in a car accident 10 years ago because your injuries are healed BUT if they are not aware of your past injuries than they can't diagnosis you and decide a proper treatment for you.    

2.   Injuries since the accident:  If you are injured after your car accident you do not want that to cause problems for your current case.  Let your Doctor know of all injuries you sustain after the car accident so they can adjust your treatment.

3.   How's your marriage?  Are you divorced or getting divorced? Your emotional frame of mind will be a factor on your healing process.  Depression is common after injuries.  Your Doctor needs to know your emotional state to work on your physical state.

In order for Insurance Companies (no matter how you were injured) to avoid paying you...they have to find reasons not to.  Don't let any of those reasons be something that could have been avoided had you been honest and forthcoming with your Doctor.  And, don't think that your history cannot be discovered because to avoid paying your settlements Insurance Companies DO THEIR RESEARCH!!  

Let’s be honest….to everyone who is attached to your injury. This includes your Doctor, your Attorney, your family…everyone.  You cannot heal until your Doctor knows what to help with.  You cannot move forward until you are honest. 

Let’s talk about prescription drugs, non-prescription drugs, smoking and alcohol intake.  You may think keeping those secrets from your Doctor is a wise move BUT your health and your life may be determined by your secret.  Doctors prescribed what they do; medications, physical therapy, etc. by what they know…they only know what you tell them.  Tell them everything even if it means getting a lecture about it.  Your life depends on it!

Like Zeisler & Associates, Attorney at Law, PC on Facebook or visit their website.

Pueblo Office: 113 W. 12th Street  (Map it)

Colorado Springs Office:  422 E. Vermijo Ave., Suite 412 (Map it)

Car Accident Myths and Facts

Myths are usually enjoyable..you get some smile out of them. Urban legends are even better.  UNLESS the Myths are about your car accident and your back injury.  I truly believe the myths were started by the insurance companies to deny your claim.





Information provided by:  Car Accident Facts:

Myth #1:   Your car has little or no damage how could you have hurt your back?  Some of the smallest car accidents have caused the biggest injuries.  I thing Insurance Companies have decided if your car isn't "hurt" than how can you be?  

Bumpers on most of our cars these days were designed to tolerate some impacts without damage. What the studies have been finding, is that although your car does not look damaged, the force of the other car hitting yours is now moving into your body, the bumper tolerates it, but the force still has to go somewhere, and you are where it goes.So, do not allow damage to your car or LACK of damage in any way inform whether you are injured. If you need treatment for back pain after a car accident, your pain is real and you should get the help you need.

Myth #2:  I had my seat belt on (didn't get thrown from the car) how could you have injured your back?

Well, it does actually, the seat belt is designed to prevent you from being thrown against the steering wheel which used to cause tragic injuries and it prevents you from being thrown out of the car.However, when you are in your seatbelt, and you are in an accident, you are often thrown against the belt. The seat belt sort of acts like a brick wall, when the accident occurs you are thrown against it, it tightens, and your body keeps moving around it, causing shoulder injuries, bruising and damage where the seat belt tightened against your body, and whiplash symptoms as your neck was not restrained.

Myth #3:  You weren't hurt right after the car accident, it's now three weeks later and you are claiming a back injury.

Your pain and your injury are just as real as the person who went to the hospital in an ambulance after a car accident. Injuries in your muscles and ligaments and tendons for unknown reasons can take a long time to show up.

Myth #4:  You are just "sore" take a pill (Advil, Ibuprofen, etc.) and it will go away.

Unlike other injuries you may have experienced, most small accidents can take up to 3 months with steady treatment before your pain starts to change. Ibuprofen can make the day a little more tolerable, but it's not actually a medicine, and can not help your muscles heal and repair their injuries.

Listen to your body, not the insurance companies, or friends, or family or whoever is trying to tell you that you aren't hurt because of any of the above.  Go to a trusted Doctor to find out exactly what is wrong.  Back injuries can cause many problems that you may not recognize as being a back injury (tingling or numbness of the legs, trouble breathing, etc).  LISTEN TO YOUR BODY!!  A back injury, no matter what the reason that caused it, can change your life forever.  It will change it more drastically if the injury isn't discovered and/or treated soon enough.  

Not all back injuries are the same.  Not all "identical" injuries will be received the same...what may cause one person "little" pain may cause another extreme pain.  Only you know your body and only you and your Doctor can treat your back injury.  Be honest, be patient and work your treatment.

If you are hurt in a car accident, NO MATTER WHAT YOUR INJURIES ARE, consult an Attorney!  The best way to heal is let someone else fight your battle with the insurance companies and it is a BATTLE!!  If you haven't read my blog about what goes into a personal injury case click HERE.


Like Zeisler & Associates, Attorney at Law, PC on Facebook or visit their website.

Pueblo Office: 113 W. 12th Street  (Map it)

Colorado Springs Office:  422 E. Vermijo Ave., Suite 412 (Map it)

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Breast Cancer.  Those two words will take your breath away.  Those two words will make you stop what you are doing.  Those two words.....kill.

We in Breast Cancer Awareness Month (October 2012) and there are some facts that just need to be known:  Thank you to BreastCancer.org for this information:

• About 1 in 8 U.S. women (just under 12%) will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of her lifetime.
• In 2011, an estimated 230,480 new cases of invasive breast cancer were expected to be diagnosed in women in the U.S., along with 57,650 new cases of non-invasive (in situ) breast cancer.
• About 2,140 new cases of invasive breast cancer were expected to be diagnosed in men in 2011. A man’s lifetime risk of breast cancer is about 1 in 1,000.
• From 1999 to 2005, breast cancer incidence rates in the U.S. decreased by about 2% per year. The decrease was seen only in women aged 50 and older. One theory is that this decrease was partially due to the reduced use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) by women after the results of a large study called the Women’s Health Initiative were published in 2002. These results suggested a connection between HRT and increased breast cancer risk.
• About 39,520 women in the U.S. were expected to die in 2011 from breast cancer, though death rates have been decreasing since 1990 — especially in women under 50. These decreases are thought to be the result of treatment advances, earlier detection through screening, and increased awareness.
• For women in the U.S., breast cancer death rates are higher than those for any other cancer, besides lung cancer.
• Besides skin cancer, breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among American women. Just under 30% of cancers in women are breast cancers.
• White women are slightly more likely to develop breast cancer than African-American women. However, in women under 45, breast cancer is more common in African-American women than white women. Overall, African-American women are more llkely to die of breast cancer. Asian, Hispanic, and Native-American women have a lower risk of developing and dying from breast cancer.
• In 2011, there were more than 2.6 million breast cancer survivors in the US.
• A woman’s risk of breast cancer approximately doubles if she has a first-degree relative (mother, sister, daughter) who has been diagnosed with breast cancer. About 15% of women who get breast cancer have a family member diagnosed with it.
• About 5-10% of breast cancers can be linked to gene mutations (abnormal changes) inherited from one’s mother or father. Mutations of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes are the most common. Women with these mutations have up to an 80% risk of developing breast cancer during their lifetime, and they are more likely to be diagnosed at a younger age (before menopause). An increased ovarian cancer risk is also associated with these genetic mutations.
• In men, about 1 in 10 breast cancers are believed to be due to BRCA2 mutations, and even fewer cases to BRCA1 mutations.
• About 85% of breast cancers occur in women who have no family history of breast cancer. These occur due to genetic mutations that happen as a result of the aging process and life in general, rather than inherited mutations.
• The most significant risk factors for breast cancer are gender (being a woman) and age (growing older).

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