Use These Tips To Figure Out if You Are Driving Tired, Know What to Do When You Are

While police officers have alcohol and even drug tests at their disposal, and they have radars to trap speeders, they have no effective tool to catch regular vehicle drivers who have been on the road for too long or are driving tired.

In the case of professional drivers who are behind the wheel of a vehicle that is meant to carry more than fifteen passengers including the driver or freight above 26,000 lbs (11,793 kg), there is a dedicated device meant to stop a driver from staying behind the wheel for hours on end.

Such devices do not exist for passenger cars, and it is presumed that each driver has enough discipline, self-knowledge, and self-awareness to know when to stop. Sadly, reality contradicts us, and we have people falling asleep behind the wheel when they are miles away from home.

That last part happens because of the way that our brains are wired to work, and it involves not thinking about the task at hand when you know the road by heart.

It is why people end up driving for hours, only to crash near their home, or why some people have managed to ding their car's bumper after a long drive in the fence next to their usual parking spot. They are just too tired to be able to control their vehicle properly and precisely in a situation like this, and it shows.

There are several things that you can do to identify if you are driving tired, and you should make a rest stop, as well as several things that you can do while driving long distances or at hours when you are usually at home and asleep to prevent unfortunate situations.

While we will present them all, it is still up to you to have self-discipline, recognize the signs, and act accordingly. Leave the "it can't happen to me" attitude for the movies.

It is crucial to know the signs of driving tired. The first of those is constant yawning, as well as feeling the need to rub your eyes. Another sign is the difficulty in concentrating on the road, as well as fidgeting on the road, on your seat, or even both.

You know the kind: when you see the vehicle in front of you going slightly to the left or slightly to the right, with occasional corrections, some more sudden than others – it means three potential things: tired driver, drunk driver, or distracted driver.

It may also be a combination of the two, or even the three, so keep your distance from such vehicles, and call the police right then if you see them increase their swerving on a straight road or if they are driving more erratically than before.

Another sign of tired driving involves your mind wandering to various thoughts, all unrelated to driving, failing to continue to focus on keeping your speed in check (driving slower than allowed for no reason), and not being able to remember what vehicle was last behind you, where are you going, or where is your next turn? The one in the middle is a big red flag, and the latter and the former are signs that you are not paying attention to driving.

Unintentionally ignoring the navigation system's prompts is another sign that your mind is not on driving. Doing so can have consequences for the rest of your life, and a fatigue-related crash is 50 percent more likely to result in death or severe injury, according to statistics quoted by GEM.

Feeling tired, anxious, desperate to go home or reach your current destination, as well as an inexplicable need to hurry are also signs that your body is tired and that your mind is out of options on how to signal the urgency of taking a break or doing whatever it takes to end the drive.

If you do not remember where you are going, what you are doing on the road, or having issues recalling how you got to where you are driving, it means that fatigue has taken a toll on you already, and you must stop and take a break, and even consider looking up the nearest hotel on your route and getting a night of shuteye.

Now, you might say that the place you are going has a bed for you to sleep in for free and that you are busy and do not have money to spend on a hotel.

While that may be true, can you afford to crash your car and then continue your journey? Can you live with yourself if you know that crash killed or severely injured somebody? If the answer is no to either of those, you should find a place to get some sleep.

With the signs out of the way, and hopefully well ingrained in your mind, it is time to present a few solutions to the problem.

The first solution is to plan your trips in accordance with your schedule, including your sleeping schedule, and to get enough sleep before driving off. Ideally, you should have a minimum of seven hours or so of sleep before setting off for a long drive. Do not go driving at night after a day of work to get a head-start on your vacation.

Second, be sure that everything in your vehicle works as it should, as this will make you even more tired and stressed while you drive, and using a problematic vehicle for a long-distance trip is a danger in itself, even without including being tired in the mix.

Third, you should try to limit distractions while driving long distances – so refrain from listening to audiobooks, making phone calls, or listening to music.
The latter two might help in a pinch, which involves blasting music through your car's speakers if you are tired – this works for 15 or 20 minutes but will tire you out for more. People have fallen asleep to loud music before; your body just ignores it past a certain point.

There is also the option of calling a friend (using a hands-free device or your vehicle's built-in connection), informing them of your situation, and asking them to stay on the line with you and keep you alert. It may not always work, but it may be better than nothing.

Both proposed options may work if there is no rest stop in sight and no restaurant, gas station, or whatever establishment that you can use to pull over, wash your face with cold water, get a caffeinated beverage, and continue your journey for up to an extra hour or so.

I have successfully used all the above tips and tricks while driving, and they also work well with occasionally opening the driver's window, getting cold air from the air conditioning system, and even singing along to the radio.

The fourth idea is to remember that the effect of caffeine, in the form of coffee, usually works for two hours in a regular person, but you will feel even more tired when it is gone, so do not count on a road trip-refreshing strategy.

Energy drinks will make you feel like you are alert and even twitchy, and being tired and twitchy will lead to potentially making mistakes while driving. Proceed with caution. If such a beverage is needed to keep you awake when you're at the wheel, something is seriously wrong.

Messing with caffeine should not be taken lightly, as it will ruin your sleep for the rest of the night, make you tired the next day, and have your heart work like mad until the effects wear off.

Obviously, people who suffer from heart problems must steer clear of caffeine on long trips and avoid driving while tired, as a heart attack may happen without any prior notice.

Last but not least, your best bet is to take frequent breaks, even if you had enough sleep the previous night, usually once every two hours or 100 miles (ca. 161 km).

A five-minute break might get you feeling energized afterward, and we recommend exiting your vehicle, taking a brisk walk around it, looking into the horizon, getting hydrated, and eating a sandwich or a healthy snack while you are there.

Using a few warm-up movements, such as stretching or basic aerobics, is a fantastic way to relieve the stress on your neck and back muscles after two or several hours in the same position. Do not take your break sitting in your car, even if it is cold or hot outside.

Avoid heavy meals while going on road trips, particularly combinations of fatty foods with plenty of calories, as these will make you feel tired right after the meal or shortly after driving away from the restaurant.

Beware of eating too much sugar while driving, as it may lead to a momentary "sugar high," as falling off from one of those may lead to drowsy driving.

Ideally, you should be aware of your body, realistic of your capabilities, and remember that you must get to your destination alive and in one piece.

Remember that endurance racing involves changing drivers every three hours, and even then, they get tired even if they are trained athletes, and there are no pedestrians, trucks, or surprise hazards on the tracks that they use.