Boom, Crash! In a split second it happens. I was not expecting it, nor could I have prepared for it. When you are in an accident, time flies. It goes by in a split second. For the person driving the other car, it takes less than a second to lose focus and crash. People do not grasp the gravity of the situation. If your coffee spills, let it spill. Your phone buzzed? Check it later. Or don’t. And watch your life and others disintegrate in front of your eyes. Once a person is distracted, it only takes less than three seconds on average to crash. That means even a glance at your phone could be fatal. In a world full of technology, this is exacerbated even more. Today, almost ninety seven percent of all new cars come equipped with a touch screen. In 2015, my mom and I got T- boned in the middle of an intersection. The light was green, and as we went to cross it, a car shot through the intersection and slammed into the front of our van. The smoothie I was drinking went flying. The straw end poked straight into my eyeball. Or at least that is what would’ve happened, if I wasn't wearing glasses at the time. Instead the straw flew up into my eyebrow, gashing it open. My mom and I got off easy with only cuts, bruises, and whiplash. The only reason we walked away was because we had a bigger car and my mom wasn’t distracted and was able to swerve a bit to lessen the damage. The car ended up totaled. The other person's car was totaled as well, he had minor cuts and whiplash. We later found out he was distracted. Pressing one button to answer a call caused a minor accident. Imagine if he took more than one second. The damage to both property and lives would be irreversible. However just because there was not much physical damage to our bodies, did not mean there was none. Our mental health for years was impacted. Even getting in a car was causing panic attacks for me. Every time a car got too close to me I would freak out. It also would cause me to get nervous in intersections. People often do not realize how deep the mental trauma goes after an accident. People can have Post traumatic Stress disorders for years to come. It may just be when in a car, or it could be a nightmare in the middle of the night. Up to thirty three percent of people experience some sort of trauma induced stress disorder within the months following an accident. With over six million crashes annually in the United States, this number is extremely high. It is so important to remember that when driving you are responsible for not only yourself, but others on the road and in your car. October 2023 my friends and I were at school, when we heard the news. A couple of kids in our grade took a curve too fast and went flying into a tree at ninety miles per hour. It was scary waiting to find out who it was. We found out it was two sisters and another kid. All three of them were people I had classes with. It really was scary because we didn’t know the extent of their injuries. For several days no one heard any updates and the time of waiting was terrifying. We found out the girls had broken legs and ribs, but the boy had several internal injuries and a broken neck. It really shook our community. People started driving a lot slower and making sure they were careful. It’s horrible, but traumatic experiences can shape how a person views situations and tasks. The fear we face in adrenaline inducing scenarios causes our brain to be chemically altered. Severe PTSD can be brought on even if it is not directly correlated to a situation you have experienced. The prefrontal cortex has been scientifically proven to be impaired by traumatic events. People may have flashbacks, suffer panic attacks, or even sustain heart damage from events. Another issue of distracted driving is fees and fines. If you are the person who caused an accident, your car insurance goes up significantly. Rates increase by around forty five percent if there is property damage. Overall distracted driving is a major issue for not just people doing it but others driving on the roads. Any one driving next to or behind you could be distracted. Be careful out there, it’s like a warzone.