Weird Experience while Driving

deedster · Post by **deedster** » Thu Nov 17, 2005 12:40 pm

Has anyone else experienced this? I have had a few episodes lately (mainly at night) where I will be driving down a street I have driven on for 20 years and suddenly it will seem unfamiliar. Like I am someplace else and not sure where I need to go. This only lasts for a few seconds and is not like zoning out when you go from point A to point B without remembering the in-between. This is very unsettling and I’m wondering if it is connected to the OSA. I have had my titration study but have not received my CPAP yet.

Any thoughts?

SLEEPYCD · Post by **SLEEPYCD** » Thu Nov 17, 2005 1:27 pm

Deedster,
That sounds pretty scary, can't wait for you to get on CPAP!!! I hope you will find that after some CPAP therapy, you won't have that problem anymore. Last May, I fell asleep at the wheel 3 times on the way to work on a Saturday. Thank God, it was Sat, instead of a weekday, otherwise with all the traffic, I would have killed myself and others!!! Needless to say, the hospital rescheduled my Sleep Study ASAP. IT SCARED THE **** OUT OF ME!!!! Now after being on CPAP, I never get sleepy at the wheel and am feeling GREAT!!!! Keep us posted and if you have any questions, this is the place to come for answers. PEOPLE ON THIS SITE ARE THE GREATEST!!!!!
CD

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Thu Nov 17, 2005 4:53 pm

Sure sounds like one of the symptoms of OSA to me.

Might go to the ASAA site and ask the pompus guru there . If they don't throw you out first .

:twis ted:

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Thu Nov 17, 2005 4:56 pm

why are you so mad at the asaa website

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Fri Nov 18, 2005 4:48 am

While we all kknow that OSA can cause many strange things, the first thing that entered my mind while after reading you note is are you going from young to mddle aged? I am and I find I do this occationally myself, but I drive a lot in my work. But I do it at home to, go into another room to do/get/ something and forget why I went in and for what.

deedster · Post by **deedster** » Fri Nov 18, 2005 10:30 am

Guest,

Yes, I guess you could say I'm "middle-aged" (but I don't). This is not like forgetting, it's more visual, like you are in a foreign country you've never seen for a few seconds. It's very disorienting, but a least it doesn't last long. I have a follow-up with the Neurologist the first part of December and I will ask him about it.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Fri Nov 18, 2005 3:14 pm

I too sometimes get disorientated when driving at night. I blame it ageing, not on OSA. Now I try to not drive after dark. However, being retired I usually have that choice. It's a wierd sensation when it happens, like 'where am I?'

Goofproof · Post by **Goofproof** » Sun Dec 18, 2005 9:44 pm

At least you aren't as bad as me, I drove a 150 ton Haulage truck nights. 800 Horse power, I would fall asleep about every 300 yards, but I never lost it. It got scary. You wouldn't think you could go to sleep at 120DB, and bounceing all over the cab, but you can.

SheilaB · Post by **SheilaB** » Sun Dec 18, 2005 9:58 pm

Hello Deedster,

Yes, I have experienced something that sounds almost like what you are describing. It happened many years before my OSA diagnosis. Shortly after the experiences I was diagnosed with hypo-thyroidism and began meds. Several years later I began to experience the same thing again. After that I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia. People with fibro said it related to soemthing they call "fibro fog". Since my diagnosis with OSA in June of this year, and starting CPAP immediately, I have noticed a reduction of my symptoms that were related to fibromyalgia and a reduction of my "out of body" experiences. I will tell you though that the frist couple of weeks I used CPAP, it was almost like my body went into zombie mode, then it improved dramatically. The good news is I never had a wreck during these experiences so evidently I could still drive. A few times though I would "come to" and realize I had missed my turn. More often that not though, I was on route the same as everyday but just could not recognize where I was for a few seconds. It is terrifying. Hopefully the better quality rest you will receive from using your CPAP machine will help. Good luck.

popcorn machine · Post by **popcorn machine** » Mon Dec 19, 2005 12:38 am

Deedster,

Very reminicient of a panic attack... be glad they are short lived.

dnelms · Post by **dnelms** » Mon Dec 19, 2005 12:46 pm

I've been on CPAP since 1993 and it was an incident of going to sleep that finally forced my hand to get a sleep study done. When you are driving your kids and they tell you to wake up, time to get something done. But I have the same "black outs" that you described. You will not know what hit you once you get a few nights sleep under your belt with the CPAP machine.

harikarishimari · Post by **harikarishimari** » Mon Dec 19, 2005 4:37 pm

Mr. Deedster, you can read about "petit mal seizure". Maybe you have something like that and do not know it. I have a friend, not in this country, that had petit mal seizures. She would be asleep, but only for a few seconds, even when walking or running or driving. When she wake up, she would be confused and did not know where she was, and not even know that she was asleep, even for only a few seconds. Maybe Mr. Goofproof had petilt mal seizure, and do not even know it. Ask your doctor if maybe you have that. It is not like being sleepy and going to sleep. It is very different.

Weird Experience while Driving

Weird Experience while Driving

driving experience