Are you allowed to drive?

screamer

I am a big petrol head and had just bought my first car to learn to drive in when literally 4 days later I started having seizures. I was gutted, but now 7 years on, I love being a passenger. I still love cars, even more so I'd say than before, and sometimes it bothers me that I'm not allowed to drive, buyt at the same time I really can just sit back and watch the world go by. It's bliss sometimes, and I'm so used to being a passenger now that learning to drive isn't even on my list of things to do if I have an operation.

Good luck to anyone who has this problem. I thought I would lose a bit of my independence but it made me more keen to go on planes and trains instead! :-)

cifpower

I have bi-polar and had to apply for a medical licence. I was given a 3-year restricted one.

[Deleted User]

Atomised wrote: »

My consultant said I can learn to drive and there's been no further deterioration.
I feel good and bad about this! My next check is in three months so i'm thinking "what if I need treatment and it means I have wasted £3k learning to drive etc?"
I hate living in limbo but maybe it is time I started taking chances.

Way to go you :j

Yes anything might happen to stop you driving in the future, but dont let that stop you learning now (unless you really cannot afford it)

I spent about £3000 in 10 months learning to drive and drove alone for only about 9 months. Do I regret it spending it, no way. It was an achivement and if I can only drive off and on or never again it's an achivement that I earnt just like my eduction and I feel good that I did it regardless of the fact I am now not allowed to drive.
Everyone who learns to drive may at some point have to give it up for health reasons or never drive because they can not afford a car/insurance etc.

Dont make decisions on what might happen only on what is known otherwise we'd never leave the house let alone learn to drive. Go for it.

chopperharris

As many as 1 in 3 drivers on the road shouldnt be.

This includes of course those with unroadworthy cars ,no insurance , but doenst include alchoholics whom first thing in the morning are well over the limit...thats pretty scary.

My wife would love to drive , but doesnt want to get an op to stop minor seizures , which in all right might actually get worse after the op.Her siezures range from nocturnal to partial and ocasional full.She is however not an arrogant person that feels hard done by enough to EVER consider driving , and feels in her case the legislation is wrong ..... she can go long enough without one to legally get a licence , yet have absences for months on end aferwards.

Theres drivers out there with diabetes , heart problems , glasses as thick as your thigh and those that drive at 40 on motorways and pull into traffic without looking yet their doctors dont report them .... nor do the police do anything if you call them about erratic driving.

Theres also those that drive with gps in the a zone of their windscreen , I have even seen a tv hooked up to the rear view mirror and a guy driving watching the footy.....whats the medical excuse there that they should have their licence removed?

Epilepsy can be triggered by lights (including patterns of car lights and leds), food and drink additives (some can prevent absorbtion of meds including diet drinks), alchohol , stress , temp , infection and medicines....theres a lot of variables , therefore a lot to consider so medical testing should be very heavy.....after all you could wipe out a whole family , perhaps your own.

However the more you read about "I just started having seizures without reason or warning" , I was taking lessons , or just bought my first car then you have to think how many times can this happen at the wheel of a car at 70mph everyday without warning?

[Deleted User]

Atomised wrote: »

I have hardly left the house in the past so you can tell the type of over anxious person I am. I can afford lessons , test , car and insurance but feel as if I am tempting fate.

I know how you feel. I'd gone more than 3 yrs seizure free and honestly felt it was gone. As soon as I was on the road and free to drive it was back, felt like someone had it in for me, then that of course it would be back its sods law, just when I spent all that cash,bought the car etc. If something is going to happen to stop you it'll happen if you learn or not, you not learning wont stop it happening.

As for the poster above, I agree. The law said I could drive and I did, when I felt 'off' I didnt drive, off being sleepy, headache, too much coffee & never had so much as a sip of alchol etc. I know I took extra precutions with my driving in the knowledge that IF I was to have a seizure I would not only kill myself but others too. I was the one who phoned the DVLA after not trusting my docs advice, I could have carried on driving on his advice but because I'm aware of my disablity I did not.

The DVLA advice on medical rules for drivers are based on extenisve resarch and most other developed countries are almost the same. What they do need to do is ban all alcohol not giving a limit up until which you are 'ok' to drive, Make people reake driving lessons after a certain age and after an extensive period of not driving and ensure drivers from other countires are driving to UK standards not on those from countries with limited standards.

starnight_2

I started learning to drive just over 18 months ago, my mental health deteriorated until I was hospitalised. I know my instructor very well and they told me I couldn't drive until I got an ok from the docs etc etc. I'm going on Tuesday to talk to him as driving really gave me some independence and something to look forward to. IF this is the case I then have to inform DVLA fo my diagnosis etc, though I will be getting a letter from my doc beforehand to say I have been sable on my meds for more than 3 months.

I miss learning to drive, I'm a single parent and although buses are reasonable enough. I find it hard to get to my mothers house and other family members when I want to visit them, add this onto the anxiety I feel when surrounded by strangers can make public transport a very stressful time for me.

Trialia

woodbine wrote: »

It varies from area to area,in manchester i get the pass due to my epilepsy,however my wife gets HRM dla but doesnt qualify,in other areas she would.on the plus side in manchester we get free tram and local train travel with the pass which other areas dont get.

Actually, that's wrong. In Manchester if you are on HRM you're automatically entitled to the bus pass - I am, and I have one under that qualification clause. Your wife should reapply, perhaps there was some information missing from her original application that caused them to reject it.


I can't drive - fibromyalgia syndrome, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome hypermobility-type, rapid-cycling bipolar disorder and narcotic painkillers. Given if I turned the wheel too sharply my wrists would dislocate, I wouldn't even apply, because I know they won't let me.

savetilibleed

chopperharris wrote: »

My wife would love to drive , but doesnt want to get an op to stop minor seizures , which in all right might actually get worse after the op.Her siezures range from nocturnal to partial and ocasional full.She is however not an arrogant person that feels hard done by enough to EVER consider driving , and feels in her case the legislation is wrong ..... she can go long enough without one to legally get a licence , yet have absences for months on end aferwards.

I know someone like that as well. He considers that although his epilepsy is controlled very well he doesn't feel safe enough to be driving, even though he doesn't get seizures per se.

chopperharris wrote: »

Epilepsy can be triggered by lights (including patterns of car lights and leds), food and drink additives (some can prevent absorbtion of meds including diet drinks), alchohol , stress , temp , infection and medicines....theres a lot of variables , therefore a lot to consider so medical testing should be very heavy.....after all you could wipe out a whole family , perhaps your own.

This is true - in about 5% of PwE their seizures can be triggered by the light petterns you mention. Grapefruit and grapefuit juice can affect the levels and side effects of some medications - I know this to be true for Tegretol as it is now mentioned in the P.I.L. that comes with each container of Tegretol and Tegretol Retard.

System

I don't *think* i'd be allowed to drive as i would need to be stable for 6 months (and not suicidal) which is why i haven't pursued driving lessons

savetilibleed

I heard today about a person who I gave some advice to about her epilepsy a couple of weeks ago. It seems she drives! When I spoke to her I certainly didn't have any impression at all that she was fully controlled. I was appalled. Had I known at the time I'd have told her the errors of her ways. It was discussed briefly at a meeting today. I have printed the leaflet from Epilepsy Action on Driving and the Law.