Amputation or the loss of an extremity or limb will have a profound impact on your daily life. It can take quite some time for someone to physically recover from the initial trauma or surgery. Readjusting to daily life will also be a challenge.
From assistive technology to changes in your lifestyle, there may be many adjustments you need to make following the loss of a limb or extremity. Many people also discover that an amputation will have a significant, negative impact on their financial circumstances. Specifically, it can reduce their income. How will the loss of a body part potentially affect your career?
1. You may have to change jobs
If you perform a physical job, you may not be able to continue working in the same profession after the loss of a body part. Losing a leg would be a major hardship for someone who works at significant elevations on construction sites, while losing a hand might mean that a chef can no longer cook food in a quick and professional mirror. People often have to move to lower-demand and therefore lower-paid jobs after using a body part.
2. Your mental health may struggle
Your job performance is a reflection of both your physical and mental well-being. While you may try to maintain a positive attitude following your injury, it is common for people who experience an amputation to struggle with depression and other mental health issues afterward. Those psychological consequences could affect your job performance or even your overall personality, making it harder for you to achieve your career goals.
3. You may miss a lot of work
Even after you heal from the initial trauma, there will be ongoing physical care needs related to your amputation for the rest of your life. People may need to miss work for medical appointments and physical therapy sessions.
They may also find that their symptoms leave them unable to attend work on certain days, forcing them to take frequent leaves of absence. Not only will missing work mean losing wages, but it may also slow your career progression or put you at risk of termination.
Identifying and attempting to quantify the impact an amputation will have on your career can help you pursue appropriate compensation for this catastrophic injury.