We’re always told to look on the bright side, reach for the stars and look for the silver lining. I found that my naturally optimistic nature was shaken to the core when I was faced with a situation where I simply couldn’t find an upside. When my daughter was seriously injured in a car accident, no amount of positive self-talk was going to make a bad situation better.

A drunk driver injures my daughter

A drunk driver going at high speed plowed straight into my daughter’s car. Seeing her lying in a hospital bed with serious injuries was devastating. I was so worried about her that I didn’t even think about the other driver, although I knew in the back of my mind that he should face the consequences of his actions. I couldn’t seem to gather my thoughts, although I knew I needed to make some difficult decisions.

Failure to act

Findings published in the Journal of Neuroscience showed that focusing on negatives instead of looking on the bright side can be a healthy response to change. The scientists found that participants given bad news showed higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol and were better at processing the bad news and taking action.

I couldn’t pretend everything was fine

I soon realized that I couldn’t keep pretending that everything was fine. I was feeling angry, worried, sad and vengeful and putting on a brave face was just too difficult. This was when I decided to talk to a personal injury attorney from whenyouneedus.com and see what steps needed to be taken if I wanted to file a personal injury suit.

Taking action

My attorney helped me to see how important it was for me to go ahead with the lawsuit. I had a very strong case because the other driver was so clearly at fault and it wasn’t difficult to prove this. My daughter had not been to blame in any way for the accident that left her bleeding on the side of the road.

When I had spoken to the attorney, I felt I had taken one step in the right direction. Knowing that he was dealing with all the practical steps, like gathering together all the documents and reports that could support the case, freed me to focus on my daughter and her needs.

Life is paradoxical

My biggest realization during this time was that we can’t ignore the “dark side” of life and pretend it doesn’t exist. With my sadness, there was joy as I started seeing my daughter’s recovery. With the destruction that had happened, I saw growth in both my daughter’s life and my own.

My daughter needed counseling for the trauma she experienced. And it took time for her rehabilitation, but my lawyer had all the details and costs at hand to claim proper compensation for what had happened to her. He was going to make sure that she was fully compensated for what she had to go through.

As a natural optimist, I am inclined to focus on what’s possible and sometimes not take into account the messy process of trying to get there. It took my daughter’s accident to completely rip the rug out from under me.

I had to face the fact that there was a possibility that she may not recover fully from her injuries, no matter what kind of positive spin I tried to put on the situation. It was only when I was able to face up to the downside that I developed the courage to do what I needed to do.