Is Long Covid limiting your ability to drive?

Posted by cyclones30 @cyclones30, Jan 10, 2022

I've had a lot of head issues since April 2020 when they think I had Covid and didn't know it. (never got tested then since it was early in the game) Vision issues that have since gone away, daily headaches and tingling scalp, numb spot on top of my head, and all get worse if I drive. Anyone else experience anything similar?

When I'm feeling a little better I can drive 15 min to an hour one way and get by. When my head is not having it...I can't go 10 min. This makes it a HUGE pain for just about anything. (groceries, work, hobbies, visiting family/friends, etc)

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@marcslifer

I've been on a blood thinner (eliquis) for years. Apparently none of them work on micro clots.

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Look into Dr. Vaughn therapy. I think they have to be paired with anti platelets.

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Brain fog & spells of overwhelming fatigue have kept me from driving. I had a couple of bad experiences where I was stuck & couldnā€™t drive home. Once I sat in my car for an hour, then was able to drive. The other time, my symptoms kept getting worse. Someone finally drove me home, and it took me three days to recover. I donā€™t drive anymore. My husband drives me everywhere I have to go. Itā€™s awful. Iā€™ve lost my independence, but Iā€™ve crashed a number of times when weā€™re out, and wouldnā€™t have been able to get myself home. Fortunately I donā€™t work & my children are adults. I canā€™t bear the thought of living like this for the rest of my life, and am counting on my treatments to help.

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I may have posted on this feed already. Honestly canā€™t remember. Thank you brain fog 🤬. So to answer your question, no I cannot drive and I wonā€™t even try. My balance is so off that sometimes I feel like I am walking on a fishing boat. Iā€™m afraid that I would get into a car accident. This is hindered my life so much because I have to find somebody to take me to all my appointments such as weekly physical therapy, tests, doctors, etc., I hate having to rely on other people and I always feel like a bother. Luckily my sisters have been helping me but they have to drive 70 to 80 miles one way just to get to my house. On three major highways in California. They take turns driving me . So I try and schedule my appointments on the same weekday every week and if I have to have multiple appointments that week I will try to get those on the same day or on the day after. My sisters will just spend the night then.

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I too can not drive after 18 months. My vision is slowly getting better, but there are too many cars and idiots on the road to risk a car crash. Being driven everywhere makes scheduling a nightmare. But itā€™s what has to happen right now. Thank god my Mother (who is 76) can drive me where I need to go.

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The other day I was feeling great!!! A gorgeous sunny day, light breeze, singing along with great music while out for a walk (Spotify 70's Road Trip), lots of energy; life is good! Ya, we've all been there...
I was driving to an appointment, still feeling on top of the world, windows down, still grooving with the 70's when I almost ran into the car in front. Then I got lost on a route I take all the time. Another very near miss and disorientation.
I had been feeling so good that I forgot that I can't drive and listen to the radio at the same time. My brain can not multi-task. Even though the route and the music was familiar, I couldn't pay attention to driving with the distraction. I learned this early on in Long Covid, but didn't remember. It's like Ground Hog Day; I get to learn the same thing over and over and over.
So much for that great day!
Next spring I can hide my own Easter eggs.

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Canā€™t drive when Iā€™m dizzy ( duh!) and canā€™t THINK to drive on fatigue days!!

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@rinadbq

The other day I was feeling great!!! A gorgeous sunny day, light breeze, singing along with great music while out for a walk (Spotify 70's Road Trip), lots of energy; life is good! Ya, we've all been there...
I was driving to an appointment, still feeling on top of the world, windows down, still grooving with the 70's when I almost ran into the car in front. Then I got lost on a route I take all the time. Another very near miss and disorientation.
I had been feeling so good that I forgot that I can't drive and listen to the radio at the same time. My brain can not multi-task. Even though the route and the music was familiar, I couldn't pay attention to driving with the distraction. I learned this early on in Long Covid, but didn't remember. It's like Ground Hog Day; I get to learn the same thing over and over and over.
So much for that great day!
Next spring I can hide my own Easter eggs.

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Same here. I can have no distractions while driving. Multiple near misses and disoriented to place on very familiar routes. I need quiet and remind myself multiple times where I am going.

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I can drive for short distances. Sometimes I get dizzy from focusing on too many things, but as long as I don't take major roads or drive during rush hour I can usually make it work. What gets me is driving for long periods of time. Anything over an hour at the wheel is likely to give me a migraine or make me exhausted. When I first got long covid I almost fell asleep on a longer drive (3 hours) and I decided that was it for me. It's been a year now so I thought I would be okay to go longer distances, but I had the same experience. It's frustrating because I'm just out of college and I can't go visit my friends who moved to other cities. šŸ™

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@rinadbq

The other day I was feeling great!!! A gorgeous sunny day, light breeze, singing along with great music while out for a walk (Spotify 70's Road Trip), lots of energy; life is good! Ya, we've all been there...
I was driving to an appointment, still feeling on top of the world, windows down, still grooving with the 70's when I almost ran into the car in front. Then I got lost on a route I take all the time. Another very near miss and disorientation.
I had been feeling so good that I forgot that I can't drive and listen to the radio at the same time. My brain can not multi-task. Even though the route and the music was familiar, I couldn't pay attention to driving with the distraction. I learned this early on in Long Covid, but didn't remember. It's like Ground Hog Day; I get to learn the same thing over and over and over.
So much for that great day!
Next spring I can hide my own Easter eggs.

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Okay, the last line?? MWAH-Ha! Only LH ā€˜ers can truly get how funny/ not that is. ( I guess not all; some donā€™t have this)
I had long tucked away my adaptation to dizzinessā€¦ hadnā€™t happened in months? ? (Like Iā€™d rememberā€¦) Three days ago: nailed. Cannot drive, and I so wanted OUT. I get you. But just got to say, your post was a much needed laugh.

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I had to let my driver's license expire because of blurred, double vision. This disease has robbed me of my life.

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