Narcolepsy Behind the Wheel

Driver education can be defined as learning the rules of the road to lower driving risk and to overall be a safe driver. Many high school students have the opportunity to take a drivers ed course to hopefully prevent driving hazards including fatal car accidents. The importance of understanding the rules and dangers of the road can save thousands of lives. Driving safely means understanding that no one owns the road, they only own the car. Successfully sharing the road acknowledges the safety hazards that will save lives.

An average of 6 million passenger car accidents affects the United States every year resulting in more than 38 thousand deaths per year. The national highway traffic safety admission states only 62 percent of drivers have taken drivers ed before obtaining their license. Drivers’ education is crucial because being on the road may require defensive driving skills which help a new driver obtain through a course and not a life threatening or fatal accident. Defensive driving is a set of safe responses to potential hazards while driving. Creating a law that requires all aspiring drivers to take a driver’s education before gaining a license course will reduce the number of car related deaths significantly. In high school I took a driver’s education course and passed my written test but failed the driving test. I failed to yield at a green light while driving with oncoming traffic, without my instructor I could have been severely injured or dead. I am grateful that I failed my test the first time because I learned from that incident and became more aware of the dangers of the road. I retook my course and successfully passed the following year.

I have never been involved in a car accident however my mother unfortunately has had a major car accident. My mom never took drivers ed when she was learning how to drive in high school, my grandfather taught her. Imagine its your senior year of college and you are coming home early with your roommate to surprise your parents and you never make it home. My mom lived four hours away from her hometown and fell asleep on the way home. She fell asleep for one minute and spun off the road car nose down into a watery ditch. She and her roommate were not discovered until 30 minutes after the initial accident and had to be airlifted to the hospital. Her roommate had to relearn how to walk again due to the injuries her spinal cord sustained. My mom had to have her tongue sewn back together as well as major knee surgery. She was later diagnosed with narcolepsy which was ruled as the cause of the accident.

Narcolepsy is a rare sleep disorder that 200 thousand people in the United States. Narcolepsy causes sudden attacks of sleep, hallucinations, and sudden loss of muscle tone. Narcolepsy isn’t well understood but has been known to involve genetic factors and abnormal signaling in the brain. In drivers ed I learned about sleep disorders that can lead to fatal accidents and identifying the signs and symptoms of those disorders. My mom may have been able to better identify her drowsiness had she taken drivers ed before obtaining her license. She still has narcolepsy and is medicated for it now but if she ever feels tired while driving, she pulls over and takes a nap. She acknowledges that her sleep disorder can be fatal for herself and other if its not managed properly. Taking preventive steps will help people become more aware, confident, and safe drivers for a better driving future.

I have taken the extra step to get tested for narcolepsy and pull over if I ever feel drowsy while driving. I do not have any indicators that show I have narcolepsy however it is recommended I test again in a few years. I can become a better driver not only watching myself but others while on the road. Defensive driving can go a long way for yourself and others to safely get all drivers to their destinations. iPhone has an option to put your phone in driving mode so that you don’t receive notifications while driving. I utilize this feature which helps me reduce the urge to grab my phone and look at the notification. A one second notification is not worth losing your life over. I hold high hopes that other drivers will try these preventative steps to save their loved ones.

Thank you for allowing me to share my mother’s driving accident. I hope that as you read this, you gained a better understanding of narcolepsy and how it can affect your driving, as well as being a safe driver overall.