I had never listened to Reznor’s band Nine Inch Nails until Johnny Cash did a cover of Reznor’s song Hurt. Reznor makes you understand the desperation of a drug addict.

You realize that the addict’s entire life revolves around drugs and pain.

A few weeks ago, one of my clients died of a possible overdose on painkillers. She was under 30 years old and had just received a settlement for injuries from a serious car accident. Her lawyers worked hard to make sure she would be taken care of for the rest of her life. Her life only lasted only a month after her settlement.

I had spent only a few hours with her but feel a sense of loss. I had met her family and can’t imagine the pain they are in now.

I also feel sorry for her lawyers. The case took years to settle and they grew close to her while the battle went on. They worked hard to get a good settlement and even harder to make sure that she would have lifetime income.

Many lawyers go the extra mile for their clients like these did. Although their effort was extraordinary, I often see good lawyers make that effort.

I get angry when people stereotype injury lawyers as “ambulance chasers” who are only out for themselves. Just like any kind of prejudice or slur, it is based on half baked information and observation of a few bad apples. Just like in any occupation, there are good people and bad.

I know there are lawyers who would have sold out her case cheaply. She was not well educated and would not have really known what her case was worth. There are some who would have settled the case but not really cared what she did with her money. It took a lot of extra time and effort to set up a trust on her behalf and the lawyers did not get any money to do so. They did it because they wanted her to have a long and happy life.

That is why it hurts them to see her die so young.

I understand how she became dependant on pain killers. Her accident caused her to be in terrible pain and she needed medicines to get through the day. It was a struggle for her to walk and she needed someone to help her go to the bathroom.

Everyone is certain that she did not kill herself on purpose. Even with her injuries, she was upbeat, positive and had her life in order. Painkillers are hard to regulate and I suspect she just accidentally took too much.

I see a lot of injured people get hooked on pain medicine trying to overcome an injury. Their lives then revolve around that addiction and they start to look for any means, legal or illegal, to get their hands on those drugs.

If anyone has a way to avoid a tragedy like my client, I am open to hearing about it. She was in pain and medicines were available to make her feel better. It is hard to blame her doctors for giving them to her. She was not taking illegal drugs so locking up pushers or passing more laws is not an answer. Her family loved her and her lawyers cared for her too. She had coped with many bad breaks but ultimately got a bad break that killed her.

I keep reading about government cutbacks in programs to treat addicts. I’m sure those programs are an easy target for cuts. Treatment can be expensive and many addicts will fall off the wagon. There is no simple or easy answer.

There may not be an answer at all but I think we have to keep trying to find one. When someone is taken too soon, it is not just a loss for the individual, it is a loss for all of us.

We all feel the hurt.