Migraine

I think we all know that there are dangers to driving with a Migraine, as our judgment can be impaired, our visual perception may be altered with aura, pain itself distracts us, and dangers to driving with some Migraine medications in our systems as well. This week I looked at some of the legal consequences to driving with a Migraine or with Migraine meds. Please take a look at Migraines & Driving Don't Mix.

- Megan

I believe very much in having a Plan B in place when it comes to migraine and driving. I won't drive within a couple of hours of taking meds. I also make sure I've got a place to "crash" if I think it's unsafe to drive, so I can wait until I'm okay and safe again. I'm also not afraid if asked to go somewhere to mention that I've got a migraine or have taken meds and I'm not safe to drive, so they will have to. Just a little planning, and knowing where you can do, what you can do, and who you might call for help can give a lot of peace of mind when dealing with all this.

Oh yes!

And Meg makes a great point with the court case referance too - you can get a DUI for the meds you take - script or not - it warns you on the medication not to "operate heavy machinery" which includes a car!

I always have DH drive if I'm having a Migraine or took medications for them.

Great article Megs!

I also have chronic pain issues and also have (currently well controlled!) double depression- dysthymia and major depressive disorder along with Migraine disease.

These conditions have implications for both my cognitive and physical abilities to drive a car or to operate heavy machinery. Those conditions also can affect my driving ability due to either symptoms, pain flairs, or medications used in their treatment.

So....

I take a very simple view regarding driving. It's not Migraine-specific, but it works very nicely for Migraine too! Of course, this isn't medical advice- just my own personal rule of thumb! It takes some explaining, and thus, it's going to look like a long scary thing... but it's really not- just need to provide the background1

The Jamie theory on driving: It's a 2 parter, so bare with me!

1) I desperately want to go to grad school. In order to do so, I will need to take a standardized test (Like the GRE, LSAT, MCAT, SAT) and do very very well on it. If I wouldn't be able to think clearly enough... would be distracted by either pain, or the meds, ...have brainfog, or other concentration problems,...or having trouble seeing correctly or difficulty processing information... or possessing enough energy to physically take this test, and ace it, I have no business being on the road.

2) I ride a unicycle. It's all about balance and coordination and feeling how movement of one part of my body affects staying upright, and absolutely being physically able to , in a split second, adjust my physical position on the unicycle to avoid a serious accident. This takes cognitive ability and physical ability, and putting them together in rapid succession.

I learned the hard way last year, having just gone up on my gabitril and not completely comfortable yet with the side effects, deciding to go for a ride anyway. Lost story short, I wound up in the ER that night with a mild traumatic brain injury after I was not able to physically or mentally be "in the moment" and was on autopilot while I was riding my unicycle. I fell backwards- something that I had never done that in 17+ years of riding!!- and hit my head on the concrete. I had NO BUSINESS being on a unicycle without being able to use my reflexes.

And if I have no business being on a unicycle, where realistically, the only person I'd hurt would be me, I have absolutely NO right to be behind the wheel of a car where my lack of reflexes or mental acuity could kill both me and other innocent people.


And here's the theory!!
Thus. If I don't think I could get that high score I needed for grad school, or I shouldn't be on my unicycle, I will not get behind the wheel]

A Migraine would definitely cause at least one of those two situations to occur. Thus, I have a great way of checking myself before I do something dangerous.

Wow, this is a really good point. I never thought of it this way. I know that have had a hard time driving when my pain gets really bad. This actually scares me a little.... I need to figure out what I can do to stay a little safer.