An Accident Insurance Lesson from Down on the Farm

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Back in 2007, I was injured by our dairy cow. Her name was Gentle. And, for the two years up to July 7th that we had her, she was very gentle. On this particular day, however, she decided that she did not wish to go to the barn for milking time. I was behind her, when she turned to face me. The next thing I knew, I was lying on the ground, she above me on her hind legs. She came crashing down on my left cheek, with her hoof sliding off onto the ground. Upon sitting up, intense pain took over. It was an incredible pain. I’ve given birth to four children, all with no pain medication, and this pain made childbirth pale in comparison.

Our friend and neighbor was a First Responder, and he came to check me out. He then radioed for an ambulance. I figured that the paramedics would look me over and tell me I’d be fine. Instead, I was loaded into the ambulance and taken to the ER. I was in pain but didn’t think that I needed to be in the hospital. (Yes, my optimism overshadows many things in my life!)

I hadn’t been to the hospital since I was 3 years old and had pneumonia. It was quite unnerving, this ambulance ride and ER visit. At this point, I figured they’d look me over more thoroughly, and then I’d go back home.

I hadn’t seen my face. There was no way that I was going back home that night. 

My face was swollen beyond belief. When I did see it, 4 hours later, I couldn’t believe it. I couldn’t even cup my hand over my cheek, it was simply too large. 

A CT scan revealed no broken bones, miraculously. But, I had to stay overnight in the ICU for observation.

The next day, I was released and went home to heal.

Healing took a LONG time. The swelling in my face took months to finally completely subside. Due to the swelling, I couldn’t see clearly as one eye was actually higher than the other. No driving. Headaches that were constant and so very painful. I was very slow-moving for quite some time.

But, gradually, I began to heal. 

One of the hardest parts of this whole experience? The massive medical bills that we acquired. I did not have health insurance, so the bills were all ours to pay. That was pretty painful to our budget.

Oh, how I wish that I had known about AFLAC insurance back then. If I had an AFLAC accident insurance policy, the bills would have been easier to handle. While the physical pain lasted for months, sadly, the financial pain lasted for much longer.

I’ve read that 1 in 8 people seek medical attention for an injury. With the average cost of a broken leg just under $24,000, how would you pay that bill, should your child take a tumble and break their leg? With an AFLAC accident insurance policy, you will have help paying for emergency care, as well as treatment-related transportation and lodging. Benefits are paid for things like x-rays, physical therapy, appliances, emergency treatment and more.

Who should consider an AFLAC accident insurance policy? Everyone, especially parents with accident-prone children as well as active adults (athletes and adventure-seekers).

For most U.S. companies, fall marks open enrollment season, a time when workers can review their employer-sponsored benefits offerings and choose the health insurance policies that best meet their financial and health care needs. This is the perfect time to assess your insurance needs, and take out an AFLAC policy.

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.