Driving after dark

[Yvette]

Hey everyone, I'm 9 months out and still have a hard time night driving. I'm wondering if this is going to be a permanent side effect. You'd think if it was going to get better, it would have by now. Any thoughts? Yvette

[Brendalu]

Yvette,

I am the exception and not the rule, at twenty six and a half months out I cannot drive at night and I now have a restricted license.  I scare myself, I can't imagine what it does to the other people on the road!!
Brendalu

[nancyann]

Hi Yvette:  I do drive at night, but go slower.   I started having difficulty when my eyesight started going & needed glasses, PRIOR to my AN surgery.
Take care,  Nancy

[Omaschwannoma]

I'm almost three years post surgery and do drive at night, but like Nancy, go slow and keep it only in my town as I'm more familiar with the side street destinations.  I do have trouble and can see where this would be very hazardous if I were to drive in unfamiliar territory.  For the most part, I only drive at night if asked to work in the evening. 

[tony]

Daft suggestion - but a nightime breakdown or flat tyre
has an entirely different meaning if you cant walk easily in the dark
make sure the car has spare torches blankets etc
or life could really get complex
Best regards
Tony

[Gennysmom]

I could drive if I wanted to more than I do, but I think the roads are safer with me having limited time on them.  I think part of it is your comfort zone.  I drive the back roads at night, don't like it if it's raining.  Haven't had a breakdown yet, but have AAA and a cell phone, so not too worried! 

[Dantheman]

I don't feel as comfortable driving at night. I can...but I drive much slower. I try to get my running around done in the day light.

Dan

[Yvette]

Thanks for the responses and advice everyone, very helpful! That's so true Jennysmom, rain makes it so much worse. Did anyone's night time driving improve over time? Yvette

[Brendalu]

I tried driving last night because I didn't have a choice.  I got pulled over not three miles out.  I explained the situation to the police officer and he got a ride to the hospital (my granddaughter is having multiple seizures wihtout the doctors knowing why) for me and a ride home and got my car home for me!  We have great police officers here.  I don't drive in the rain at all.
Brendalu

[marie]

Three weeks ago my sister and I drove from northwest Arkansas and south central Kansas to Arizona.  She had never been to the Grand Canyon, so I drove that leg so that she could look at the scenery.  We got  into the park before dark (but not much before).  We got a few pictures and then headed out onto the scenic road that follows along the east rim of the canyon.  I GOT TO DRIVE IT IN THE DARK!.   I white-knuckled it  all the way back to Flagstaff.  We had been told by a ranger that it was only 24 miles to a small town.  We never found it.  Anyway, we made it safely, but I still hate to drive in the dark.

[Gennysmom]

Brendalu, I hope your grandaughter is OK!  Is she in that 8-12 range where things like this happen, or is it something more?  I have a friend who's daughter has "absent" seizures, and they say she'll grow out of it. 

I drove in the dark the other night after reading this thread, it was not raining, so I have to say I do OK because there's less scenery to overstimulate my senses.  I was on a familiar road so I was fine, might feel different if I didn't know where I was.  I like it when I can just concentrate on what's going on in front of me. 

[Boppie]

I drive okay at night but I don't like going and coming from the car in busy parking lots.  I am afraid I'll get hit or bumped or someone will mug me because I look vulnerable.  So I avoid trips at night unless they are absolutely necessary. 

I have lots of friends in their 60's and 70's.  We just don't drive after dark as a rule.  Eyeglasses glare and eyes get tired in headlight traffic.  I think age equalizes us in many ways.  Is age a "hidden disability?"

[kippy6]

I'm sorry you are having this problem. Many years ago, I took Accutane for acne. I know one of the side effects of the drug was trouble driving at night (night blindness) because Accutane is high in Vitamin A. It's a strong medication, so I had to have blood tests every month to make sure my body was tolerating the medicine okay.

I'm just wondering if someone did some blood work on you (CBC), if they would find a level that is a little off, and then maybe it could be corrected? Do you have an internal medicine doctor? I got one a couple of years ago, and love her. She is my family practice doctor, but internal medicine doc's go to school longer than the normal family physician, and (in my personal opinion) you benefit from that.

Just a thought.

[Yvette]

Great info guys. And bloodwork's normal. Exactly on again Jennysmom, I hadn't realized that all the daytime visual stimulation IS a "stressor". It's true. A dark, familiar back road where I am the only car is the most peaceful for me. No one improved over time? I guess I should expect to remain this way:-(  Take care Brendalu! 

[Battyp]

Brendalu hope your grandaughter is doing better.

I limit my driving to the day time unless I have someone else in the car and are on familiar roads. My last eye visit the eye doctor put an antiglare material on my glass which does help cut down on the headlight/light glare. The other night I drove with my son to the community college for a lecture, while there it rained. I could not see the road lines on the way home and he kept screaming. Of course driving the wrong way through the do not enter signs didn't help him  LOL  Next time he drives.

M