Without revealing my precise age, I will just say I am an old guy. That really hit home when I renewed my driver’s license last week. It was the first time I required eyeglasses in order to pass the test. No problem! The problem was when I realized the license would not expire for 10-years and that I might expire before the license does. It also brought to mind whether I would know when to stop driving; what are the warning signs and will I recognize them in myself?
That inspired some research to answer the question, when do I stop driving? I don’t have family nearby who might notice the warning signs and help me make that decision, or more likely try to make the decision for me. I found a lengthy article written by Carol Abaya, nationally recognized as an expert on the sandwich generation, aging and elder/parent care issues. In an article on the CareOptions website, Carol suggests these warning signs:
• Are there any vision deficits?
• Night blindness?
• Problems with peripheral vision?
Any one or combination of these elements means trouble. Additional indicators might be:
• has difficulty following directions
• stops abruptly without cause
• drifts into another lane
• does not signal when turning or changing lanes
• does not check blind spots before changing lanes
• fails to obey traffic signs
• drives on the wrong side of the road
• has difficulty seeing pedestrians and other vehicles
• turns improperly from one lane to the next or going around corners
• ignores or coasts through stop signs
You might want to go to Carol’s website at http://www.sandwichgeneration.com, where you can get the complete article on when to stop driving.
Take care!
Bob Meister is a certified care resource specialist who has been studying America’s aging demographic and has been involved in caregiving and health care since 1989. He can be contacted by email at church7@cox.net.