In Collins v. Union County Jail 150 N.J. 407, 409, 696 A.2d 625 (1997), the Supreme Court of New Jersey held that psychological trauma could constitute a permanent loss of a bodily function. Collins, an inmate in the Union County Jail, was sodomized by a jail guard, thereafter suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, but no permanent "physical" injuries. Id. at 409-11, 696 A.2d 625. Collins suffered from "nightmares, flashbacks, difficulty in sleeping, sudden outbursts of crying, screaming in his sleep, a severe loss of self esteem, and an inability to trust others." Id. at 415, 696 A.2d 625. The Collins Court paid special attention to the legislative history of the Act, and concluded that "the Legislature could not have intended that the verbal threshold provision of the Act would bar all psychological claims caused by a rape simply because there was no residual physical injury." Id. at 422, 696 A.2d 625. Thus, psychological and emotional injuries are assessed in the same manner as physical injuries when such injuries stem from a violent physical assault. Id. at 423, 696 A.2d 625.