Top Factors That Determine the Cost of PTSD Treatment

You might have PTSD after a horrific accident. According to Market Watch, long-term PTSD treatment can cost as much as $10,000. If you are seeking auto accident damages, don't forget to include your PTSD treatment cost in your auto accident damages. Below are some of the factors that will determine the cost of your PTSD treatment.

Treatment Options

PTSD treatment has multiple goals. For example, your treatment should help you cope with the condition, prevent reoccurrence, boost your self-esteem, and minimize the severity of your symptoms. As such, doctors have multiple ways of treating PTSD. The major treatment options include:

• Psychotherapy – The treatment involves psychological, rather than medical, treatments such as cognitive-behavioral therapy. 
• Counseling – A trained therapist helps you to recognize and work through your problems.
• Medications – The medication targets specific symptoms, such as anxiety. 

Each treatment option will cost you. In many cases, you will need multiple treatment options, which increases your overall treatment cost. You may need an expert witness to justify a wide range of treatments so that the liable party can compensate your treatment bills fully.

Your Symptoms

As mentioned above, one of the major goals of PTSD treatment is to help you deal with the symptoms. As such, your symptoms' varieties determine the treatment you deserve, which affects the cost of treatment. For example, some PTSD victims suffer from sleep problems, so they need treatment for their sleep disorders. Other symptoms of PTSD symptoms you might have to deal with include:

• Anxiety
• Memory problems
• Concentration problems

Note that you might not experience all PTSD symptoms. However, the more of the symptoms you experience, the more money you might need to deal with them. Your medical records should include your symptoms so that you can justify why you needed treatment for them.

Medications

Doctors also use various drugs to treat PTSD. A good example is antidepressants, such as fluoxetine and paroxetine. Some patients also benefit from mood stabilizers, such as tiagabine and lamotrigine.

The type and duration of medication determine your overall medication cost. For example, available research shows that PTSD patients should take antidepressants for at least one year. Any duration less than that increases the risk of a relapse. Again, you must justify your need for the medications and their duration to get the compensation you deserve.

Severity of Illness

As with other forms of illnesses, people experience PTSD in different severities. For example, some people have PTSD but can still practice self-care. Others experience severe forms of the disease that limit their day-to-day functioning. Some people even begin to engage in self-destructive behaviors, such as drug abuse.

Severe forms of the condition might call for intensive and extensive treatment. The more varied your treatment is, the higher your medical bills might be.

Treatment Duration

Lastly, your treatment's duration also matters. As mentioned above, PTSD treatment takes various forms, and they all last different durations. For example, according to the National Institute of Mental Health, psychotherapy treatment typically lasts 6 to 12 weeks, but the duration can be longer than that. In some cases, you might need treatment for years.

Don't forget that you should reach your maximum medical improvement (MMI) before submitting your demand letter to the liable party. The MMI is the point at which your doctor fully understands your condition and doesn't expect a significant change in your recovery. You can only understand the full cost of your treatment once you have reached MMI.

Walsh & Associates, PC, can help you pursue all forms of accident damages, including costs related to PTSD treatment. Contact us for a free initial consultation to determine how to get you the compensation you deserve.