Treat sleep disorders: Contact a health care provider if you are experiencing symptoms of a sleep disorder such as daytime sleepiness, trouble sleeping, or snoring.Understand your medications: If you take prescription or over-the-counter medications, learn about the side effects and whether they can cause drowsiness.If you struggle to get enough rest, consider improving your sleep hygiene. Sleep well before you leave: The best way to prevent drowsy driving is to get consistent, high quality sleep.Before you hit the road, consider taking precautions to prevent driving drowsy. ![]() Ideally, if you’re feeling tired it is best to avoid driving altogether. Caffeine may be even more helpful at improving alertness when combined with a short nap. Slowly sipping one or two cups of coffee, rather than drinking them all at once, may help sustain the effects of caffeine. After waking up from a long nap, avoid performing tasks like driving until sleep inertia has worn off.Ĭaffeine may also help you stay alert if you get drowsy while driving. It can make you feel disoriented, slow your reaction times, and make it dangerous to drive. ![]() If you need a longer nap, be sure to give yourself time after waking up so that you don’t drive with sleep inertia, a temporary groggy sensation that occurs after waking. A brief nap of about 20 minutes may help you to feel more alert. If you get drowsy while driving it is best to pull over at a safe, well-lit place such as a rest stop. What to Do When You Feel Tired on the Road This means that familiar or monotonous drives may lead to drivers feeling sleepy behind the wheel. Task-related fatigue may happen when a person is either over- or under-stimulated while driving. Long drives can also cause sleepiness because of the effects of task-related fatigue. This may help explain why many accidents occur during the late afternoon or between midnight and 7 a.m, times when people naturally feel more tired. Research suggests that people may become drowsy when they drive at times of the day that don’t align with their circadian rhythm. Combining one of these drugs with alcohol may further increase their sedative effects.ĭrowsy driving can be caused by sleep loss or poor quality sleep, but some people may find themselves tired behind the wheel despite getting plenty of rest. Individuals who take certain medications: Many medications can cause drowsiness, including antihistamines, opioids, benzodiazepines, and muscle relaxants.People with other sleep disorders: Other sleep disorders, like narcolepsy and chronic insomnia, can cause drivers to fall asleep behind the wheel and increase the risk of accidents.Drivers with OSA are two to three times more likely to be involved in a car crash. People who have obstructive sleep apnea (OSA): OSA affects sleep quality and causes daytime symptoms like sleepiness.Medical professionals: Long work hours and night shifts put some medical professionals at a heightened risk of drowsy driving.Around 14% of long-haul truckers average less than five hours of sleep a night. Commercial drivers: Individuals who drive for a living are at an increased risk of drowsy driving. ![]() Shift workers – people who work night or early morning shifts – are at a heightened risk of drifting off while they drive. Shift workers: Individuals who work rotating shifts or night shifts may face a variety of sleep problems, including poor quality and insufficient sleep.Busy schedules and early school start times combined with age-related preferences for staying up late leave many teens sleep deprived. Teenagers and young adults: Numerous factors make drivers under the age of 24 more likely to be involved in accidents related to drowsy driving.Like insufficient sleep, poor quality sleep can also cause daytime fatigue and cognitive problems that may hamper safe driving.Ĭertain groups of people may be more likely to drive drowsy and experience the consequences of this dangerous habit. Losing a night of sleep or building sleep debt after several nights of insufficient sleep can affect alertness and make driving unsafe. Some drowsy drivers may not be getting enough sleep, while others have poor quality sleep that leaves them feeling sleepy the next day.Įxperts recommend that adults over the age of 18 get seven to nine hours of sleep every day. From sleep disorders to working a night shift, there are many reasons why people drive while tired.
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