ADHD and Driving: Ways to Be Safe
One of the most exciting things for any teenager is when they
turn 16 and obtain a drivers' license. While nerve wracking for
any parent, it is still an important rite of passage for any
child. However, those parents who have teens with ADHD are often
even more concerned, and adults with ADHD need to learn skills
to be even more careful when driving.
Statistics show that in 2000, about 18 percent of individuals
who died in automobile accidents were between the ages of 15 and
19. In two thirds of those tragedies, the youth was found to not
be wearing a seatbelt. ADHD affected teens were found to have
almost four times the number of car accidents as teens without
the ADHD diagnosis. They were also found to have accidents
resulting in bodily harm and they are three times more likely to
be pulled over and cited for speeding.
After looking at the statistics, it may be a first reaction of
parents with an ADHD child to not want them to drive at all,
however unrealistic that desire may be. It is not that the ADHD
teen should be restricted from driving, but much more important
for family members to be much more involved in the learning
process.
Many states have goen to the Graduated Driver Licensing System,
or GDL, in order to minimize these statistics. In the first step
of the program, the teen obtains a lerners permit, when a
licensed driver must be in the car at all times. This allows
parents to work with the ADHD child in learning skills to make
for more safe driving. By practicing often, skills become more
routine and easier for the ADHD affected individual to remember.
The next step is the provisional license, where the teen must
exhibit more responsible driving behavior before becoming a
licensed driver. The ultimate reward of obtaining the drivers'
license may be a force that will help the ADHD driver to be more
safe.
ADHD provides challenges to drivers of any age. It is important
that routines are followed and skills are practiced so that
drivers with ADHD are able to deal with symptoms even when they
are behind the wheel of a powerful vehicle.