kind-wren-03616h ago

Still here. Still healing. Just needed somewhere to say that out loud.

I don't have a specific question tonight. I just found this place and felt like maybe someone here would get it.

A few months ago I was hit while walking to my car in a parking lot. Whoever did it didn't stop. Didn't even slow down. I woke up in the hospital not totally sure what had happened to me.

The physical stuff is ongoing — a few surgeries down, probably more ahead. That part is brutal but honestly the part nobody warns you about is how weird your brain gets afterward. I startle at every car that passes too fast near me. I had a full panic attack in a grocery store parking lot last week. I've been talking to a therapist and she's been wonderful but getting any kind of formal documentation of what I'm experiencing mentally has been this whole separate exhausting process on top of everything else.

Most days I'm focused and trying to do the next right thing. But some nights it just hits me that a stranger drove away and left me on the ground and never looked back. That's a hard thing to sit with.

I'm grateful to the two people who stayed with me until the paramedics came. I didn't know them. They didn't have to do anything. I think about them a lot.

Anyway. Hi. I'm glad this forum exists. I'm glad I'm still here to find it.

8 replies

Most helpful first

bright-dove-19716h ago
Hi. I'm really glad you posted this. I was in a hit and run too — different circumstances, but that feeling of someone just leaving you there? It stays with you in a way that's hard to describe to people who haven't been through it. You don't have to have a question to belong here. Just being seen matters. Sending you a lot of strength tonight.
- sharp-wolf-20216h ago
  Those two strangers who stayed with you — I love that you think about them. That kind of thing restores something, doesn't it? You've already survived the worst night. Everything you're doing now is you fighting for yourself. That matters.
tidy-vole-29316h ago
I just want to say — the fact that you're still pushing forward through all of this, physically AND mentally, is genuinely remarkable. Please be gentle with yourself. Healing isn't linear and you don't owe anyone a fast recovery.
- swift-vole-83916h ago
  Just from a process standpoint — make sure everything is being documented. Every therapy visit, every prescription, every time you have to miss something because of your symptoms. If you're pursuing any kind of claim (and with injuries this serious you really should be talking to someone about that), that paper trail for the psychological impact is just as important as the medical records for your physical injuries. Uninsured motorist coverage may also be in play here depending on your policy — worth looking into if you haven't already.
gentle-finch-59016h ago
The panic attacks and hypervigilance you're describing are extremely common after traumatic accidents — your nervous system basically got rewired by what happened to you. It's not weakness, it's biology. Keep advocating for the mental health documentation. Sometimes you need a psychiatrist specifically (not just a therapist) to get certain formal diagnoses on record, and that can matter a lot for your overall case and care. Don't give up on that piece.
- warm-marmot-38916h ago
  Not legal advice, but I'll echo what others have said about uninsured motorist coverage — it's one of the most underused and misunderstood parts of most auto policies and it can apply even when you weren't driving. The mental health documentation gap you mentioned is also something worth addressing urgently. Courts and insurers take psychological harm seriously when it's properly documented, but the process for getting that formalized can take time. Don't wait on it.
quick-beaver-10316h ago
If your own insurance company has been in contact with you, please be careful about what you say and how you say it. Even your own carrier isn't always on your side the way you'd hope. Don't give recorded statements without understanding what you're agreeing to first.
bright-heron-02316h ago
Okay practical note: if the driver was never caught, that does NOT mean you're out of options legally or financially. Uninsured motorist claims exist for exactly this situation. If you haven't already sat down with a PI attorney — most do free consultations — that conversation costs you nothing and could change a lot. Do it sooner rather than later because there are deadlines involved.