Driving

[349740jf]

Hi eveeryone

I was diagnosed with Asperger's a few weeks ago now but was expecting it in the run up to final diagnosis.

I've been reading the forums for a wee while now and have read a lot of stuff that I can relate to.

Just wondering though, how many people here drive and how you find it. I've been driving for nearly 17 years but have no patience at all on the road. My journey to work is around 20 miles but is probably my easiest one as I know where I need to be at certain times. I find that if I'm driving anywhere else I just get stressed out a lot by queues and traffic lights etc. I get irritated easily and then eventually just feel like crying.

The psychologist mentioned that she'd seen it before with traffic lights as people on the spectrum may become agitated at knowing something is going to happen but not knowing when.

Sorry for the long post, just wondering if anyone else has this problem and how you cope with it.

 

[Ronin82]

That's an Aspie thing? I thought I was just impatient.....

I often get frustrated in traffic, especially if I have to be places at certain times. My city is notorious for heavy traffic at all times, so I tend to be either REALLY early for stuff to account for traffic jams (preferable) or I may be late. My way of coping with traffic stress is music, and not holding back on yelling at stupid drivers. If people irritate me, i will hit my steering wheel or the door below the window, and yell profanities. However, i find that good music keeps me more mellow than no music, so I have an MP3 player that stays in my truck, full of all my fave tunes. Also, enjoying the scenery while stuck in traffic, or letting my mind work on certain problems keeps me occupied. I tend to read license plates and bumper stickers compulsively, so i may mentally manipulate letters/numbers/analyze stickers while waiting. Mindfulness practices seem to help to a certain extent, but I have some serious road rage too, and a real problem with speeding.

Traffic lights are fun...I pretend I'm in a drag race, if I'm in the front of the line, waiting for the light to turn green so I can try to out-accelerate the vehicles beside me, but only when its safe to do so!! We have some really stupid lights out here that make you wait for no good reason, and those are very irritating, but I just stay patient and put the gas pedal to the floor when it finally turns green. Apparently, driving like a race driver in my pickup truck makes me feel less anxious and pent-up. Not something I would recommend, but going fast makes up for having to stay still for unknown periods of time.

 

[garnetflower13]

I don't drive as much as I used to, but I used to get very angry and impatient at other drivers, especially now when everyone is texting or talking on phones and not paying attention. I used to use music to calm me, and also speed but only on highways in the wee hours. Abstaining from road rage was a real challenge; I used to shock myself sometimes.

 

[clg114]

I do not think it is a Aspie thing, I think it is because there are so many drivers out there doing really, really stupid things. "Most people"are paying attention anything and everything except driving. The Aspie drivers are probably the safest drivers.

 

[garnetflower13]

I remember once I was waiting for an opportunity to pull out of a parking lot, and there was really heavy traffic. When I saw that there was an opening after this one car, I started to pull out but the car slowed down and I realized that the woman in it was talking on her cell phone and not even realizing that she was slowing down, so engrossed was she in her conversation. Because of that, she allowed a lot of oncoming cars to block me there for another ten minutes. I was furious! I have zero patience when people do stupid things in traffic. Another time my husband was driving on the highway and it started to rain hard. We noticed the driver in front of us weaving unsteadily on the road, so we passed her. Unfortunately she was then behind us, and when traffic slowed down, she ran into the back of our car because she was talking on her cell phone. Fortunately no one was hurt.

 

[Judge]

Here road rage gets people killed. Good incentive to control your emotions, no matter how stupid other drivers can be.

Maybe age has mellowed me out as well...

 

[Destination Unknown]

I am mildly impatient while driving. People getting in the way sometimes get to me. Retired people with nowhere to go and all day to get there. People that have no snow driving abilities. The one that always gets me is that 9 out of 10 times when someone is going extremely slow, the vehicle has a handicap plate, or a tag hanging from the mirror. Doesn't make me mad, it's more of a game of find the wheelchair symbol.
Stop lights not working properly really bug me too. Luckily I know the guy that sets the controls on all the lights around here, so if there is a problem of one sort or another I can text him and he gets it fixed.

 

[Kupu2]

I get irate by people blatantly ignoring road rules. I cannot handle people driving by instinct as opposed to road laws. I spend a LOT of my driving time verbalising what others are doing wrong and cursing them (to myself).

I have spatial difficulties. I freak out if travelling down a highway with trucks beside me. I leave big gaps between me and the driver in front, but idiots duck into my precious gap.

 

[clg114]

I get irate by people blatantly ignoring road rules. I cannot handle people driving by instinct as opposed to road laws. I spend a LOT of my driving time verbalising what others are doing wrong and cursing them (to myself).

I have spatial difficulties. I freak out if travelling down a highway with trucks beside me. I leave big gaps between me and the driver in front, but idiots duck into my precious gap.

I agree. My depth perception is not good, so unless it is very heavy traffic, I like to leave a couple of car lengths between me and the car in front of me. It never takes very long for someone to jump into my space, forcing me to back off again. This always leaves me muttering under my breath.

 

[Judge]

I have spatial difficulties. I freak out if travelling down a highway with trucks beside me. I leave big gaps between me and the driver in front, but idiots duck into my precious gap.

Me too. I can't bear to be on the freeway with two semis on both sides of me. Not to mention my car is quite low to the ground, and at short distances some drivers may not even see me in their mirrors or peripheral vision. And my depth perception declines driving at night.

 

[wanderer03]

Hi eveeryone

I was diagnosed with Asperger's a few weeks ago now but was expecting it in the run up to final diagnosis.

I've been reading the forums for a wee while now and have read a lot of stuff that I can relate to.

Just wondering though, how many people here drive and how you find it. I've been driving for nearly 17 years but have no patience at all on the road. My journey to work is around 20 miles but is probably my easiest one as I know where I need to be at certain times. I find that if I'm driving anywhere else I just get stressed out a lot by queues and traffic lights etc. I get irritated easily and then eventually just feel like crying.

The psychologist mentioned that she'd seen it before with traffic lights as people on the spectrum may become agitated at knowing something is going to happen but not knowing when.

Sorry for the long post, just wondering if anyone else has this problem and how you cope with it.

I'm a truck driver and generally enjoy driving. I do get road angry once in a while but generally it is relaxing to me.

 

[Kupu2]

Hi eveeryone

I was diagnosed with Asperger's a few weeks ago now but was expecting it in the run up to final diagnosis.

I've been reading the forums for a wee while now and have read a lot of stuff that I can relate to.

Just wondering though, how many people here drive and how you find it. I've been driving for nearly 17 years but have no patience at all on the road. My journey to work is around 20 miles but is probably my easiest one as I know where I need to be at certain times. I find that if I'm driving anywhere else I just get stressed out a lot by queues and traffic lights etc. I get irritated easily and then eventually just feel like crying.

The psychologist mentioned that she'd seen it before with traffic lights as people on the spectrum may become agitated at knowing something is going to happen but not knowing when.

Sorry for the long post, just wondering if anyone else has this problem and how you cope with it.

Sorry, I just reread your post and realised I can very much relate to your feelings at the traffic lights. And in queues. It is almost like I have an expected plan of being on time, a route laid out and it must go according to plan. Missing a set of lights, having someone do something illegal (driving) in front of me, detours etc all cause a rising panic that often eventuates in involuntary tears, hands rising in frustration and rapid heart beat.

I keep vowing to learn to control myself, but gets the better of me.

 

[Destination Unknown]

Hi eveeryone

I was diagnosed with Asperger's a few weeks ago now but was expecting it in the run up to final diagnosis.

I've been reading the forums for a wee while now and have read a lot of stuff that I can relate to.

Just wondering though, how many people here drive and how you find it. I've been driving for nearly 17 years but have no patience at all on the road. My journey to work is around 20 miles but is probably my easiest one as I know where I need to be at certain times. I find that if I'm driving anywhere else I just get stressed out a lot by queues and traffic lights etc. I get irritated easily and then eventually just feel like crying.

The psychologist mentioned that she'd seen it before with traffic lights as people on the spectrum may become agitated at knowing something is going to happen but not knowing when.

Sorry for the long post, just wondering if anyone else has this problem and how you cope with it.

I love drivers that sit in the right turn lane when nothing is coming and don't turn. Not much you can do about it.
In the little car I used to drive, I found that several times semi's wouldn't move over to let me on the interstate. The car had one of those little weeny horns that wasn't good for anything. Eventually I rigged up 2 sets of air horns on the car under the hood. It was loud like a train. That was my coping mechanism. I drive a smaller car now, and need to get those horns on it.