Good morning, all!
I need to post an amendment to the reply I sent yesterday to @centre. I was in a lighthearted mood. I made my two accidents, possibly caused by my PN, sound like fun. They weren't fun. Each rattled me to the bone.
After that first accident, when my foot clipped the gas rather than pressing the brake, I ended up hopping the curb and smashing the front end of my Honda into a neighbor's tree, totaling my Honda (the damage wasn't so bad, but the Honda's age made the cost of body shop work impractical), left me with many sleepless nights, wondering if foot numbness (my PN) had caused me to press the gas and was the accident a sign that it was time to quit driving.
I had a similar string of sleepless nights last February when, instead of braking, I drove my new ("new" to me) Jeep into the rear-end of a city bus: Was this Signal #2 that it was time for me to quit driving?
I am still driving. But I am more careful than I ever was about my foot placement, not only that I have my foot on the correct pedal, but also that I am applying appropriate pressure.
Has my PN made me a better driver? No. That would be wishful thinking. Am I a more attentive driver now that I know I have PN? Yes!
I am posting this amendment to yesterday's rather lighthearted post to assure you that I take being a driver with PN very seriously, as I would encourage all others to do, too.
Ray (@ray666)
Ray - I never doubted how shook up you had to be. We know people of all ages have driver error risks and/or make poor decisions about getting behind the wheel. Younger people can have medical events too. People already have opinions about “senior” drivers, whatever age that is. We know we’ve been dealt a blow to our driving skills, but like you say, are more aware than ever and focus extra hard when doing the things most prone to mistakes or having potential dangers. We don’t ever want to hurt innocent people, and we definitely want to continue our privilege of being able to drive independently. I know I irritate other drivers (and my passengers) by parking real slowly, giving myself more time to slow down when approaching red lights and stop signs, and keeping proper distances between me and the car in front. I obey the laws, I don’t go under the speed limit or pose dangers that way. I’ve gotten over the angry drivers who have no clue as to why I can’t be aggressive drivers like them, and who have no idea that my priority is keeping everyone around me safe while I’m still legally capable of driving. I just hope they don’t cut me off or do things that force me to need to slam on brakes or make moves my PN would prefer to have more time to plan for. I’ve dealt with older folks refusing to stop driving. I pray I have my faculties to understand, swallow my pride, and have a support system in place when it’s time to turn in my keys. I think we know the huge challenge is that many folks don’t have all of those 3 things when it’s time.