Dangers of Drowsy Driving and How to Avoid It

Last week, we all set our clocks forward an hour–some of us are still trying to recover from the trauma.

Daylight savings time puts drivers in Texas at risk of drowsy driving. The time change disrupts our natural sleep cycle, and later sunsets encourage us to stay up later than usual. This isn’t a great combination, and we really start to feel it on our morning and evening commute.

While many drivers are vigilant against the risks of distracted and drunk driving, people often take drowsy driving less seriously. While it’s normal to feel a little tired after a long day of work, drowsiness can become extremely dangerous for drivers. Let’s take a look at what drowsy driving is, why it’s so dangerous, and what to do if you’re injured in an accident with a drowsy driver.

What is Drowsy Driving and Why is it Dangerous? 

Drowsy driving occurs when a driver has inadequate sleep, which may cause him to fall asleep behind the wheel. It’s actually just as dangerous as distracted and even drunk driving and has almost the same effects. For example, drowsy driving causes:

• Difficulty maintaining focus,
• Slowed reaction times,
• And “micro-sleeps,” which cause you to completely lose control for short, broken-up periods while driving. 

Although this type of incident is preventable, it is unfortunately common in the US. In fact, the NHTSA records around a hundred thousand drowsy driving-related crashes every year. This is because, regardless of everyone’s knowledge of the risk, people do not put enough emphasis on the consequences related to it. 

What Factors Contribute to Drowsy Driving?

Several factors can make people drowsy or sleepy, including: 

1. Lack of Sleep – Unsurprisingly, not getting enough sleep the night before is the most common reason for drowsy driving accidents. Due to personal responsibilities, including work or study, it’s hard for people to have complete hours of sleep. 
2. Sleeping Disorders – Some people have sleeping disorders, making it difficult for them to get well-rested at night, resulting in drowsiness the next day. 
3. Alcohol – People under the influence of alcohol have slow reaction times and are prone to sleepiness, increasing the risk of road accidents when driving. 
4. Medications – Some drugs like sleeping pills, over-the-counter medicines, and prescription drugs have side effects, including drowsiness or grogginess the following day. 

How to Prevent Drowsy Driving

Keep yourself or your family safe from the dangers of drowsy driving. 

• Prioritize sleep, especially if a road trip is on the spring break schedule. 
• Do alternate driving to avoid fatigue, especially on long travels. 
• If you’re sleep-deprived, you’d better grab a taxi to work or school or have someone drive for you. 
• Do not drive if under the influence of alcohol. 
• Pull over and take a nap if you need to! A 15-minute power nap can actually improve focus and greatly reduce drowsiness more than an hour-long nap, which causes you to go into a deeper sleep that’s hard to wake up from.

Remember, safety is always the top priority. But, even if you do everything right, you can still be injured by a drowsy driver. When that happens, call Shaw.  

Injured by a Drowsy Driver in Texas? Call Shaw!

Getting injured in a literal blink of an eye is truly painful. If you or your loved one had experienced drowsy driving injuries due to other people’s negligence anywhere in Texas, you could be entitled to compensation for things like:

• Ambulance Costs,

• ER Treatment,

• Surgeries,

• Medical Bills,

• Pain and Suffering,

• Property Damage,

• Missed Work,

• Wrongful Death,

• And More.

We can help you find out for free.

Call Shaw at 800-862-1260 today or use the live chat to schedule your free case evaluation with one of our experienced personal injury lawyers. No fees, no obligations, just expert legal advice. Carabin Shaw has been a trusted name in San Antonio and across Texas for over 32 years because we put our clients first.

We look forward to serving you.