Your senior might find herself wrestling with one of these issues around driving and being safe while driving. If she does, it’s better that you have a solution in place already.
1. Weather Conditions Create Problems
Weather poses a unique problem for your senior in particular. Changing weather and dangerous weather can be distracting for your senior. If she’s having any trouble with controlling her vehicle, anything that makes the driving surface unpredictable can be incredibly dangerous. You and your senior might want to compromise about her driving if the weather is expected to be bad.
2. New Routes Are Uncomfortable
New or unfamiliar routes are difficult enough for drivers to handle. If you add distractions from anxiety and other health issues to that mix, your senior might find it particularly troubling to drive in unfamiliar locations. It can help to use a GPS device, although some drivers find the automatic instructions to be difficult to follow.
3. Traffic Poses Unique Difficulties
Traffic, particularly extremely high traffic, can also pose a problem. Some locations might have traffic concerns at all hours of the day, not just during rush hours. If your elderly family member finds it to be troubling to drive in highly congested areas, she might want to pay attention to both locations and to the time of day when she plans out some of her trips.
4. Time of Day Makes a Difference
Time of day has other contributions to make to driving difficulty, though. Dawn or dusk can be a problem for your senior if her vision isn’t what it used to be. Sometimes even driving at night can be a problem, regardless of lighting. Talk to your senior’s eye doctor about whether her vision is up for driving at various times of day.
5. Your Senior’s Health Issues
Your senior’s own health conditions can influence whether she’s able to safely drive. Her physical strength, her blood pressure, and other aspects of her health can make driving more difficult or sometimes impossible. It’s vital to know what the warning signs are and what your senior can and should do when she’s not feeling her best.
If your elderly family member is open to compromise, it might be time to hire home care providers in order to do at least some of the driving for her. She may start to realize that rather than clipping her wings, this allows her to be more mobile than ever.
If you or an aging loved-one are considering Senior Care in Los Angeles, CA, please contact the caring staff at Canaan Home Care today!
1-844-CANAAN-1 (1-844-226-2261)
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