My cousin drove drunk with me in the car and now I can't stop shaking — what do I even do?

I was in almost this exact situation a few years back — passenger in a car where the driver made a terrible decision. The guilt and confusion you feel even when you're the one who got hurt is so real and so weird. You didn't do anything wrong. And yes, the shaking and replaying it over and over is totally normal right after something like this. It took me a couple of weeks before I could sit in a passenger seat without gripping something.

Please don't skip follow-up care for the concussion. Urgent care is great for initial triage but a mild concussion diagnosis really warrants a visit to a neurologist or at minimum your primary care doctor within the next few days. Symptoms can evolve — headaches, light sensitivity, mood changes, trouble sleeping — and you want those documented properly. That documentation also matters if you end up dealing with any kind of insurance claim later. The neck pain especially shouldn't be ignored; whiplash from an impact like that can linger for months if you don't start addressing it early.

Whatever you do, don't give a recorded statement to any insurance company — his OR yours — until you understand your rights. Adjusters are trained to get you to minimize your injuries, especially in those first few days when you're still in shock and might say something like 'I'm okay, just a little sore.' Those words can follow you through the whole claim.

To answer your question directly: yes, you can typically make a claim against your cousin's auto liability insurance even as a family member. The insurance covers the vehicle and the driver's negligence — your relationship to him doesn't disqualify you. What matters is that you were an injured passenger. Keep every receipt, every medical record, every pharmacy trip. Even write down your symptoms in a notes app each day — dates and details matter more than people realize once things get into the claims process.

I just want to say I'm really glad you're okay. Like physically here and okay. Please be gentle with yourself right now — you went through something genuinely scary and your body and brain need time to catch up. Don't rush back to normal.

Three things: see a real doctor about that concussion this week, take photos of every bruise and the stitches before they heal, and don't post anything about this on social media. Those are the three most practical things you can do right now. Everything else can wait until you're feeling more stable.

I know it doesn't feel like it right now, but you walked away. The anxiety in cars will get better — especially if you talk to someone about it, even just a few sessions with a therapist who does trauma stuff. A lot of people find that the fear peaks in the first couple weeks and then slowly settles. You're not broken, you're just responding like a human who went through something really frightening.