![]() Maybe you’ve just finished a long shift in work or you’ve had some late nights with little sleep because of a new baby in the house either way there’s an increased chance that your driving is going to be more impaired than you suspect. The big danger of driver fatigue is that you might not always recognise the symptoms until it is too late. The Road Safety Authority have recently launched a new awareness campaign highlighting the dangers of driver fatigue: You might think that fatigue is something that you are more likely to experience during long-distance driving, but it can have just as much of an affect over shorter distances, especially if you aren’t getting enough sleep. The latest statistics show that one in five driver deaths in Ireland have driver fatigue as a contributory factor. What that equates to in terms of number of drinks is difficult to say as it varies hugely from person to person but to give you a rough idea, it's in the region of 1-2 pints of beer or 2-4 glasses of wine, which is quite significant. Studies show that being awake for more than 20 hours results in an impairment equal to a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08%. Studies have shown that driving when your body is tired can be just as dangerous as getting behind the wheel while drunk! To a degree, drowsiness is similar to alcohol in the way it compromises driving ability by reducing alertness and attentiveness, delaying reaction times, and hindering decision-making skills, yet more and more of us nowadays have lifestyles that contribute to driving while drowsy. If you are able, make sure to sleep in a cool, dark room.įor more information about drowsy driving, visit the Drowsy Driving Prevention Week ® section of our website to learn more.If I asked you how many times you'd driven whilst drunk in the last 12 months, you'd probably be quite offended and hopefully the answer would be never! However, if I were to ask if you have driven whilst extremely tired or whether you have struggled to stay alert at the wheel in the last 12 months there's a good chance the answer would be very resounding yes!.Avoid caffeine in the late afternoon and evening.Set a relaxing bedtime routine, such as listening to calming music, reading a book or taking a warm bath.Make sure to turn off electronics one hour prior to bed-no texting!.You can also use the following techniques to better help you fall asleep at night. The National Sleep Foundation recommends 7-9 hours a night for adults, more for teenagers. The best way to prevent microsleep is prioritizing sleep and making sure you get the right amount of sleep you need to feel refreshed and alert. If you find yourself with wandering thoughts, drifting into other lanes, or cannot remember the last few miles you drove, pull over to the side of the road to rest or ask someone else to drive. It is important that you make sure that you are alert before you get behind the wheel. If you are driving at a high speed, the likelihood of a severe crash increases. Microsleep can lead to dangerous crashes, or running your car off of the road. ![]() Episodes can happen while you are driving a vehicle or operating other heavy machinery and this is when microsleep becomes precarious. If you are sleep deprived, or if you have a sleep disorder, you are at higher risk for microsleep. ![]() During an episode, you may appear to be awake, and even have your eyes open, but your brain does not process information. Microsleep can occur at any time of day, not just at night. As the name implies, microsleep occurs so quickly that people who have an episode might not even realize they have fallen asleep. Simply put, microsleep is when you fall asleep for a period of several seconds. You may be unfamiliar with the term, but microsleep is quite common and can be dangerous if it occurs while you are driving a vehicle. SleepFirst™: National Sleep Foundation’s Drowsy Driving Safety Campaign ![]()
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