How do you drive?

[chickiet]

OK - in keeping with the other recent surveys...

How do you drive - do you us any type of adaptive controls or do you drive "normally"?

If you drive normally, can you feel your feet - and if not, how do you know where they are and what they need to do?

If you drive with adaptive controls, how difficult was it to get used to them, etc?


I tried driving several months ago - but the numbness in my feet coupled with proprioception issues resulted in me missing the pedals or having my foot fall off the pedal (too close to the edge). In other cases I either hit the gas or brake way to hard/quickly, or not hard enough.

Given the DC area traffic and my issues above, I decided to stop driving for the present time.

I've considered hand controls, but want to wait for a while (I haven't figured out how long that is yet) to see if I get enough improvement in my feet to where I can feel them (advice of my neurosurgeon - if you can't feel your feet you shouldn't be driving - - and if you choose to drive, you'd better not let your insurance company know).

I am currently 9 months post op (second surgery), so I think/hope there's still time for more improvement.

Chris

[Tmasgio]

At first driving was difficult and I could feel the pedals but not as deliberate as before the surgery. Then for a time my right foot would cramp up because of the constant tapping on the brake or gas pedal. I guess my nerves did not like that motion or sensation.

Where I am right it is good. I can drive normally and it feels fairly normal. It took over a year but I am good where I am at now with it.

[Joel]

I drive normally, but I'm probably one of those people whose insurance company would not be happy with the situation. I can feel the pedals sort of--evidently enough to drive OK. I find myself occasionally checking where my foot is. I definitely cannot drive a stick shift.
Joel

[rugger8]

Driving with numb feet/legs at first was quite a challenge, but once you get used to where your feet are relative to the pedals it gets much easier. I too have the problem of my foot falling off the pedal or getting to close to the edge once in a while. It also took a few months before I was comfortable driving with anybody else in the car. Now four years post-op I don't even really think about it and my right foot is still numb.

Knock on wood but I haven't had a problem finding the break pedal yet!!

[billanschell]

I can't feel the bottom of my feet on the pedals, but I can feel the sides. Proprioception (awareness of where they are, apart from actual touch sensation) is virtually gone. My solution: Whenever my right foot is on the gas pedal, I'm constantly tapping the side of it against the brake pedal so I always know where my foot is with respect to the brake. That leaves me prepared for sudden braking. And when my foot is actually on the brake, nothing bad is likely to happen. For that reason, I feel like a safe driver.

I had to quit driving our manual after a small accident that resulted from not knowing where my left foot was (that's my more challenged side). Now my only major issue driving is when I'm stopped on a steep hill (Seattle has many) and need to get to the gas quickly before I slide backwards into the car behind me. I either use my emergency brake or keep my foot on the gas as I wait. Mainly, though, I find routes to avoid the hills.

--Bill

[stevieray]

Driving can be a bit sketchy. I have the most problems driving my wife's car, or any car different from my own. Sunday I was backing in a tight parking space on a hill, and my foot got stuck between the accelerator and the brake after I goosed it a little. Thankfully gravity kept me from drifting back into the car behind me. Embarrassing with a car full of family & friends.

I drive a stick and sometimes hit the brake when I put in the clutch. For the most part I tap the pedals to get my bearings and do just fine.

[8338]

Glad you brought this up!
After my operations I was driving normally because I didn't want those muscles getting lazy. But I also have times when my foot likes to spasm and it would jump off the brake unto the gas and I had a couple of close calls. That's when I decided to drive with hand controls. I don't even think about them! My brain is just trained to drive that way now. I drive all over the place and driveht this up. a lot of people at times. If others want to drive my vehicle they can just drive normally, the hand controls are just an extension of the brake and gas. In my area they cost around $1000.00 but when I bought a new jeep in 2003 there was quite a brake on them. If anyone is thinking of them and it will make them independent I say go for it. After all, they made it possible for me to go to work everyday and for my husband not to have to drive me everywhere.
Barb

[badtazz]

I had to learn to drive, my wife's driving was killing me. I just figure I was driving so much before (50,000 miles a year) that my legs are trained. I was kind of scared at first, but I learned fast. I know what Bill means by the hills in Seattle, I have had alot of experience with them. Part of the reason we moved to the country was to get away from the traffic. It really hurts if I'm in the car for long. I'm surprised no one has mentioned the medications being an issue. I don't tell my doctors I'm driving. They may not approve.
Jeff

[mak164]

I learned to drive some years after my SCT and never had a problem until recent years, despite numbness in my feet. I then had several incidents where my left foot became trapped between the clutch pedal and footwell. It was related to a particular pair of shoes I had, which had beading round the top, and if my foot slipped off the pedal the beading (plus the weakness in my ankle) made it difficult to withdraw my foot. I had to stamp on the brake and stall the car before I could extract it.

Consequently I am now not licensed to drive a manual car (since my wife grassed on me to the GP However, I now drive an automatic without any problem. But I got rid of the shoes just in case.

[chickiet]

Thanks, all for your posts.

It sounds like there's a lot of numb-footed drivers out there! I'm just to nervous to do it

Barb - thanks for your insight on the hand controls - they are less expensive than I had thought, and I'm glad to hear that the transition wasn't too bad. I'm going to give it a bit more time and then maybe I will give it a try.

To the rest of you numb-foots out there - be careful!!

Chris