Driving (me crazy)

Other than the death of my mother, taking my father's car keys away changed my life more than any other single event. Though my father had been successfully driving for seventy-five years (at this point he was about ninety-one), during one of my visits his neighbors told me that his driving had deteriorated significantly, and that he was now a danger to himself as well as to other drivers .  I had no reason to doubt them-his vision had been getting worse, and when he went to the eye doctor to investigate, the doctor diagnosed him with macular degeneration...

I asked him to please give me his keys and not drive anymore.  "Like hell I will!!!" I responded that I was concerned about his safety-but what I couldn't tell him was that his neighbors had already alerted me to his diminished driving skills. If he knew that they had exposed him, it could easily escalate into an all-out war between him and them.  "Leave me alone!  There's nothing wrong with my driving!" he screamed...

My father finally did turn the keys over to me, but not without endless discussion and some fairly bitter arguments.  In fact, he only gave in because I wouldn't give up-but there was no win in this situation.  He was annoyed by the elder bus service I contracted for him ("They're never on time!"), and the temperature in the desert climate of Palm Springs often rose above 100º, forcing him to be outside in extreme temperatures that sapped what physical strength he had left. But he didn't care-he was a fighter, and he was  determined to fight until the end...

When are you turning into a bad driver?  If you have trouble timing the approach of other cars when you're in an intersection, or sometimes fail to see them altogether, then it's time for, at minimum, an online refresher course.   If you're taking medication, be aware that any prescription medication can impair your driving, some more than others.  There's a great website, http://roadwiserx.com/ that will tell how your meds can effect your driving.   Glasses aren't always enough to make the difference in your driving-a 60 year-old needs ten times as much light as a 19 year-old.  As you age, doing a majority of your driving during the day makes a lot of sense.  If you find yourself forgetting your destination, mixing up the gas and brake pedals, or having difficulty seeing traffic signs, you might have some kind of cognitive impairment.  There's an online course at https://www.drivesharp.com/aaaf/index that could help cut your crash risk. But first you've got to ADMIT it...and get the help the you need, both for you, and your family's, sake...

Check out my website: http://www.jamielegon.com to see an excerpt from my book, follow my blogs, or to contact me directly...