Written by Chris Gilyard, MA on December 08, 2019
Imagine lightning striking a tree. Often times the blast from the lightning will start a fire and even blast limbs free. Obviously, damage is done to the outside of the tree, but less obvious is the harm done to the inside. Sap heats to the point of boiling. Possible harm is done to the tree roots. It may take weeks or even months to begin to see the extent to which the tree was damaged—to see leaves fall off, limbs begin to die, and basic functions of tree life drastically impaired.
Imagine now, not lightning, but electricity “striking” a person. For some survivors, those with a higher voltage injury (for instance, someone who comes in contact with a highline wire), the power from the electricity usually causes an entrance and exit wound.
Just like the tree, there are visible wounds, such as burned and damaged skin and tissue, and possibly even amputations. Of course, there can be internal damage as well—heart problems, nerve damage, memory loss, cataracts, and chronic pain to name a few. While the injury is not strictly thermal in nature, the energy behind the electricity causes burns all the same. Some electrical injury (EI) survivors deal with issues similar to those who experience thermal burn injuries.
A second group of EI survivors who have only recently begun to be identified are those who make contact with a lower electrical current, such as a household appliance. Usually these kinds of injuries do not leave external burns, but the energy that enters the body sometimes causes devastating, though unseen, damage, similar to the damage done to the inside of the tree. This group of low-voltage survivors report symptoms such as memory loss, joint pain, skin sensitivity, change in body temperature (cold and hot), headaches, and sensitivity to light.
Most EI survivors, both high and low voltage, internal and external burns, have had their bodies damaged and compromised by the energy and heat of electricity. Sometimes the burns are outside, sometimes they are not. Sometimes they are just an inside-out burn. And, as always, the road to recovery is paved with issues that affect the physical, psychological, emotional, relational, spiritual, and financial aspects of life.
There can be overwhelming pressure on the burn care professionals who treat electrical burns. The electrical injury field is in the throws of redefining the issues and solutions associated with the treatment of electrical injuries. It is common for EI survivors to be misdiagnosed, misunderstood or mis-referred for follow-up care. Oftentimes even professionals don’t know what to do with the survivor and their problems.
In the article, “Electrical Injury and Electrical Shock,” Michael Morse, PhD, and Jennifer Morse, MD, refer to a low-voltage shock as diffuse electrical injury (also called by other names such as electric shock syndrome or post electric shock syndrome). They propose that low voltage injuries are becoming more recognized and documented, but say, “This injury still flies under the diagnostic radar of modern technology.”
Both doctors agree that the atypical symptoms of the low voltage EI survivors are least understood and need a great deal of further study. Because EI survivors are still evaluated under the old “standards” of electrical injury treatment, which do not recognize the validity of low voltage shock, many EI survivors are labeled as crazy, lazy, milking the system, and malingering. Sadly, many “inside-out” burn survivors are left feeling isolated and lonely.
Many EI survivors are at treated burn centers and thereby enter the burn survivor community. However, because their injuries and symptoms are different from thermal burns, they often times feel “alone in the crowd.” Bringing greater awareness to EI issues will bring a greater sense of understanding and belonging to EI survivors. For burn survivors who have the support and resources that are available to us today, it is both a responsibility and privilege to pass these gifts on to others.
If you or someone you care for has been affected by an electrical injury, there are resources available to you. The Phoenix Society has resources and can connect you with other survivors of electrical burns. “Lightning Strike & Electrical Shock Survivors International” is a website specifically for survivors of electrical shock and lightning strike. The website www.electricalinjury.com, by Michael Morse, PhD, and Jennifer Morse, MD, discusses the complexities of electrical injuries in easy-to-understand terminology. The University of Chicago Electrical Trauma Program is a group working toward a better understanding, improved diagnosis, and treatment of electrical injuries, more information on which can be found at http://etrp.bsd.uchicago.edu/mission.html