This is the first year that a whole week has been devoted to the very serious issue of drowsy drivers. November 5th through the 11th was declared National Drowsy Drivers Week by the National Sleep Foundation to awaken the public to this major problem. Out of 56,000 crashes attributed to drowsy drivers, there were 40,000 non fatal injuries and 1550 deaths. These statistics could actually be considerably higher because many people will not admit that they fell asleep at the wheel while driving. This may also be the case in the statistic of 47% of truck drivers interviewed admitting to falling asleep at the wheel. I would venture to say that the percentage is much higher.

Fighting to stay awake is one of the most uncomfortable and unpleasant feelings one can experience. It is self imposed torture.

I recall working a second job between the hours of 11 PM and 7 AM. This was after a full days work. This position required you to be fully awake and alert in the event of an armed robbery. I had to sit at a table and just wait and watch. No mental stimuli or anyone to talk with. I have never slept on a job before but I must say this is the closest I ever came. It was sooooo hard to stay awake. That is when I began drinking Mountain Dew to stay awake and subsequently developed an allergy to caffeine. I would have given anything to just be able to lie my head down for a minute or two, but I could not.

I also recall driving home from a trip to Palm Springs one summer evening. I could hardly keep my eyes open. I was slapping my face, singing, and blasting the air conditioning on my face. All I wanted to do was close my eyes, just for a moment. Thank goodness I didn’t. That moment could have cost me my life or someone else’s. Of course, the easy answer would have been to just pull off the road and take a short nap. But, I, like most people, am always in a hurry and didn’t want to take the time to stop. I also didn’t feel very secure stopping in a rest area. You are too vulnerable to predators, the human kind, unless you can keep the element of surprise on your side. This is hard to do if you are alone and asleep. This is when an Electronic Watch Dog might come in handy. Anyone coming within 20 feet of you would activate an alarm that sounds like an angry German Shepherd. It would wake you and startle and hopefully run the predator off. At least it would give you time to get your self defense product and your cell phone.

Sorry, I digress and I may sound paranoid, but my motto is ‘Be Safe, Not Sorry’. I try my best to be two steps ahead of any predator and hope you will too.

Back to the drowsy driving. It seems there is no evidence that proves listening to a loud radio, driving with your windows wide open, chewing gum, slapping your face or doing jumping jacks by the side of the road will keep you from falling asleep at the wheel. A couple of cups of coffee (if you are not allergic to caffeine) and a short nap can help.

There have been talks about constructing a vibrating drivers seat in vehicles that would activate when a driver nodded off. A special vehicle lane that would cause enough vibration to awake a sleeping driver, a dashboard mounted camera that measures the number of times a drowsy drivers eyes close in the nighttime and then sets off a warning alarm, and there is even talk of using rumble strips on the shoulders of major highways that would produce a noise/or vibration that would wake a drowsy driver. This idea, however, is running into opposition from cyclists who believe it would endanger them. These possible remedies seem expensive and unproven.

The clear and present danger of drowsy driving must be addressed not just for one week every year, but each and every day. People have to be responsible for themselves. If they are sleepy they need to STOP driving until they are no longer sleepy or use whatever device they choose to keep them awake.

There is a simple device that could wake a driver as they nod off. It is called the Nap Alarm. It runs on a battery and fits over the drivers ear. If the drivers head starts to nod the alarm goes off waking the driver and any passengers in the vehicle. It is an inexpensive and simple way to stay awake and avoid an accident that could result in serious injury or death.

Don’t become a statistic, if you feel sleepy or suffer from narcolepsy, take the appropriate action, please for your sake, your families and everyone on the roads sake.