How to Take Care of Your Wellbeing When You Are Being Sued
Being named in a lawsuit is one of the most stressful experiences you can be in, especially if you are not covered for damages by an insurance plan. Medical practitioners, for example, could have their entire livelihood ruined by such a lawsuit, never mind how much it costs their practice or their personal savings.
When such lawsuits come your way, you need to keep a level head and fight them. It will not help to allow the stress of the situation impact your health or your business.
Hire the Right Law Firm
You need a law firm that has years of experience fighting cases in similar situations as yours. In the medical practitioner example, you will want to look for a firm like the Healthcare Fraud Group, who have over 400 trials and arbitrations between them and have won 1000s of dismissals, acquittals, and declinations of prosecutions.
You want a firm that knows the ins and outs of your industry so that they can provide a custom defense that will help you best. It is this specialization that is key because a great attorney can be useless in the process if they are not familiar with the law you need them to be. The point is, even if you already know a great lawyer, you will still want to hire a specialist to be on your case for the best results.
Once you have the right people on your case, you will then want to follow these steps to take care of your mental health and wellbeing:
How to Take Care of Your Wellbeing
Now that you have the legal situation covered, and only need to provide the information and follow through the steps your attorney lays out for you, now is the time to care for your wellbeing:
1. Don’t Engage with the Plaintiff
If there is one thing you should not do, both for your mental wellbeing and for your case, is engage with the plaintiff. Don’t talk to them, their families, or friends. Don’t talk about the case at all. If it does gain media attention for any reason, don’t read it. Engaging will only hurt your case and run amok with your mental health.
2. Know Your State
If you are seriously struggling, then taking time off work is in the best interest of you, your workplace, and those you work with. If you are stressed, on-edge, and generally not mentally there when you are working, you can cause even more damage to your reputation and to patients, clients, or co-workers. There is no shame in taking leave if it will allow you to process what is happening, heal, and come to terms with it.
3. Make Your Home a Safe Space
Get it clean, make it comfortable, fill it with delicious, healthy food, and even try aromatherapy with the right candles or diffusers. Do whatever it takes to make your home a safe space. If possible, try adopting a few mindful hobbies during this time to keep you busy and focussed. Start gardening, for example, or tap into your artistic side to give yourself a creative outlet that will take your mind off of the issue.
You need to be able to emerge stronger from this situation if you are to ever get back on track with your career. If your mental health dictates that means taking a step back, then so be it.
4. Create Contingency Plans
Some people feel better when they know there is an acceptable back-up plan in place. What can you do in the worst-case scenario to protect yourself? Rather than try to answer this question yourself, it is better to get in touch with professionals. A financial advisor, for example, your lawyer, and others who can help you prepare for a new future.
5. Seek Out Clinical Guidance
If you are truly struggling, or if the stress has emphasized other mental health issues, then seek out a therapist or counselor. They are legally obliged to adhere to confidentiality laws and can help you stay strong and come out of this situation.
Seeking out this help can also be beneficial after the lawsuit. Even in the event that the case was dismissed, being sued does take its toll on your own confidence and trust in others. Seeking help to overcome these feelings and thoughts can help you truly move past the incident and become stronger for it.
It does not serve any purpose to allow the stress of the situation to hurt your quality of work. If your abilities slip as a medical practitioner because you are stressed about the lawsuit, you could be opening up the risk of another malpractice suit coming your way. Using these tips to care for your mental health and wellbeing will help you emotionally through this difficult time, and it will also allow you to preserve your reputation and continue working admirably.