The Signs of Drowsiness and How You Can Combat It.

While driving distracted or intoxicated are a couple of the reasons that people get into fatal accidents, the effects of driving drowsy is often underestimated. Sleep affects every part of one’s life as well as one’s safety. Driving while drowsy is just as risky as driving intoxicated. Weariness impairs your senses, slows your reaction time and can lead to deadly accidents. However, there are times when it is unavoidable.

Recognize the signs of drowsiness and how to combat it

• Difficulty focusing, frequent blinking and heavy eyelids.
• Trouble remembering the last few miles driven; missing exits and traffic signs.
• Yawning repeatedly or rubbing your eyes.
• Trouble keeping your head up.
• Drifting from your lane, tailgating, or hitting a shoulder rumble strip.
• Feeling restless and irritable.

Many people do not realize how sleepy they are, but driving requires a set of skills that are significantly reduced when you are sleep deprived. Studies show that drowsiness can cause:

• slower reaction time
• impaired judgment and vision
• decline in attention to important signs, road changes and the actions of other vehicles
• decreased alertness, preventing you from seeing an obstacle and avoiding a crash
• increased moodiness and aggressive behavior
• problems with processing information and short-term memory
• microsleeps—brief 2 to 3 second sleep episodes

Like alcohol and drugs, sleep loss or fatigue impairs driving skills such as hand-eye coordination, reaction time, vision, awareness of surroundings, decision-making, judgment, and inhibition.

Are you at risk?

Special at-risks groups for drowsy driving include young people, shift works, commercial drivers, people with undiagnosed or untreated sleep disorders, and business travelers. However, any driver can experience fatigue at one time or another. Your risk for drowsy driving increases if you are:

• Sleep deprived or fatigued
• Driving long distances without proper rest breaks
• Driving through the night or mid-afternoon.
• Working more than 60 hours a week
• Working more than 1 job and your main job involves shift work.
• Driving with even small amounts of alcohol in your system.
• Driving alone or on a long, rural, dark or monotonous road.
• Taking sedating medication such as cold tablets, antihistamines, or antidepressants.
• Experiencing jet lag or reduced sleep as a result of travelling across many time zones.

Before a trip, do the following to reduce the risk of falling while you are at the wheel:

• Get enough sleep – most adults need 7-9 hours, and most teens need 8.5 – 9.5 hours, to maintain proper alertness during the day. Make this a priority especially if you know the night before that you will be making a long trip the following morning.
• Arrange for a travel companion – someone to talk with and share the driving.
• Avoid alcohol and sedating medication. Check the labels for any possible side effects or ask your doctor.

Countermeasures that should be taken while driving and experiencing symptoms of drowsiness.

• Recognize the symptoms of drowsiness and signs of fatigue.
• Stop driving and take a nap. Find a safe place to take a 15-20 minute nap (more than 20 minutes can make you groggy for 15 minutes or more after waking.)
• Consume caffeine – the equivalent of two cups of coffee can increase alertness for several hours, and usually takes about 30 minutes to enter the bloodstream. Try consuming caffeine before taking your short nap to get the benefits of both.
• Chew gum, potato chips or ice cubes to keep your mouth busy. This stops yawning, which stops the dozing off. Just make sure you keep chewing, even if your mouth gets tired of chewing. The crunching action of the ice or chips will keep you engaged but not distracted from the road. This is a trick taken from truck drivers and has been known to work very well.
• Let a passenger take over the driving.
• Change the car setting from cruise control as well as your seat position to one that you are not used to but still allows you to drive safely. Be sure not to place your seat into such a position that the airbag will injure you if deployed. But make sure you have good visibility of the road and the mirrors. When you get used to it, change the position again.
• Set the car temperature lower a little cooler than you’d ordinarily like. But not cold, as your body and brain need to stay warm enough to function well. Set the vents to blow on your face. Also try wiping your face and neck with a wet cloth or wet wipe. This can be refreshing and may help you to feel more invigorated.

Don’t put the safety of yourself or others at risk by taking the wheel when you experience symptoms of drowsiness. Make a wise decision and get the rest you need to complete your journey safely.

Sources:

Drowsy Driving www.sleepfoundation.org

How to Stay Awake While Driving www.wikihow.com/Stay-Awake-when-Driving