Driving Information - GA

General Blog
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I am a person who likes to be knowledgable; therefore, I wanted the TRUTH on the driving law(s).

Below are some useful links about driving in GA, given our medical conditions. I inquired with a 'disability' organization (as well as, with another 'well informed' person whom deals with disability) about whether I could legally drive or not and I was told "it's a tricky situation" because IF your doctor has NOT told you that you can't drive, then it's not illegal to drive BUT it is illegal IF your doctor HAS told you not to drive.

http://www.dmv.org/ga-georgia/disabled-drivers.php

http://www.dds.ga.gov/FAQs/Index.aspx?FAQCategoryID=28

http://www.dds.ga.gov/drivers/DLdata.aspx?con=1744060376&ty=dl

http://www.dds.ga.gov/drivers/DLdata.aspx?con=1743810739&ty=dl

http://www.dds.ga.gov/docs/forms/DS-287.pdf

Anyone who's had an AVM to leak or burst has experienced a hemorrhagic stroke (whether you had / have 'noticable' effects or not); therefore, I pulled & posted the following from a stroke site:

http://www.strokeassociation.org/STROKEORG/LifeAfterStroke/RegainingIndependence/Driving/Driving_UCM_311016_Article.jsp

How can I tell if I can drive?

Talk to your doctor or occupational therapist. He or she can tell you about your stroke and whether it might change if you can drive. You’ll also get a professional opinion based on experience.

Contact your State Department of Motor Vehicles. Ask for the Office of Driver Safety. Ask what requirements apply to people who’ve had a stroke.

Have your driving tested. Professionals such as driver rehabilitation specialists can evaluate your driving ability. You’ll get a behind-the-wheel evaluation and be tested for vision perception, functional ability, reaction time, judgment and cognitive abilities (thinking and problem solving). Call community rehabilitation centers or your local Department of Motor Vehicles.

Enroll in a Driver’s Training Program. For a fee, you may receive a driving assessment, classroom instruction and suggestions for modifying your vehicle (if necessary). These programs are often available through rehabilitation centers.

Ask your family if they have noticed changes. Those around you may notice changes in your communication, thinking, judgment or behavior that should be evaluated before you drive again. They often have many more opportunities to observe changes than others do.

What are some warning signs of unsafe driving?

If you or someone you know has experienced some of these warning signs of unsafe driving, please consider being tested.

  • Drives too fast or too slow for road conditions or posted speeds
  • Needs help or instructions from passengers
  • Doesn’t observe signs or signals
  • Makes slow or poor distance decisions
  • Gets easily frustrated or confused
  • Often gets lost, even in familiar areas
  • Has accidents or near misses
  • Drifts across lane markings into other lanes

Hope this helps inform anyone whom was wondering.

Take care everyone!!!

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Just read this. Someone has been following me to write down what exactly to not do. Unfortunately I can’t use the bleeds as an excuse. I’ve been driving like this since 1981 (when I first got my license at 16 years old) but didn’t have my first bleed until 1987.

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Having someone follow you and take notes is an awesome idea! (I am ‘stubborn’ and extremely independent’ therefore, not driving has been HORRIBLE for me. I miss just hopping in my vehicle and just going wherever & whenever I choose.)

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Thanks for posting this Cindy. Upon being admitted to the hospital when my AVM was first diagnosed I was told by my neurosurgeon that I could no longer drive. These were his orders due to the fact that when I was first brought in I was in pain and didn’t know where I was or who anyone else was for that matter. I’ve since had SRS for my AVM but because of the location have been told by my specialist that I still do not have clearance to drive. I’m looking forward to the day that I’ll be able to once agaiin as being 25 and having to be supervised and driven places is kind of a pain. On the bright side, I’m alive to be annoyed with this situation :slight_smile: … Good luck everyone.

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Dr. LaRoach at Emory has told me not to drive and has reported me to DMV and other doctors have have said no way in this world and they roll their eyes. My darling daughter, who is only looking out for my welfare as well as other people on the road has taken my keys away and has recently sold my car. Sucks so much I just want to scream out loud until no more sound comes out. I am a prisioner in my own home. I am not sure why I have received this sentence without even doing a crime but here I am. On a positive note I received my electric wheel chair today and now all I have to do is learn hown to menover it around with out smashing into every thing. I have already rund unto the walls, dining room tanle and completly smashed 2 waste baskets. My driving skills will return shortly and I will be able to go to the store when I want, not having to wait a week for someone to have the time to take me to the store. YEH!!!

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Rolling their eyes = they don’t realize how ‘imprisoned’ it feels to not be able to go whenever. I understand the safety concern of everyone involved.
Your wheelchair = keep ‘playing around’ with it and you’ll get it ‘down to pat’. Good luck!

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Thanks Cindy; It always helps to you that we are not alone.

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Yes, it does. I would ‘accept’ this better if I got to drive as I normally did prior to my AVM surgery… LOL.

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Hi all. I’m not sure if what i am going to say is the right subject, I found out I was having “Micro seizures” due to the scar tissue. Ma. Driving Law says I had to take a prescription Med. to drive.
Only I found this out 16 yrs after surgery.:slight_smile:

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Cindy:
I had been driving for 43 years years and before my daughter took my keys away, and I ordered a new key from the dealer, I was able to sneek out and do some grogery shoping, drug store, dry cleaners, get my nails done etc: my daughter packed me up from my home of 25 years in Marietta, GA and sent me up north to a little town between Detroit and Port Huron so that my 85 year old mother and my brothers and sisters could take care of me. Not only did I come up with an AVM, elpipicy, severe sleep disorder memory loss and COPD, I was forced to move, have my car sold, live in a condminium with the absolute nosiy neighbors you could ever imagine and my sisters tell their teen age kids not to listen to what I say, I don’t anything.

I to was a superwoman

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Thank you, Stephen & Mary.
Stephen: 16 years after = oh my, wow. (Doctors don’t seem to tell us these things… and I am greatly ‘bothered’ by that. Although each person & case is different, I have (sadly) learned the majority of what I know through my own initative & efforts.)
Mary: Are you coming back to GA? I totally understand the family thing. I, too, got moved out of my home. Although relatives may mean well, they do not understand nor know what is best for us. I long very much to just go home (to ‘my home’, which I now must find another place to call my home since I am really ‘homeless’ - without the place I called my home - now). I haven’t drove in the past 6 months and REALLY miss driving. To my knowledge, I have not experienced any seizures; however, the stories of others that had their ‘first’ seizure (no matter what type) has absolutely scared me. (I contemplate whether i would have the ‘energy’ to drive back if I did ‘sneak’ off again, as well as the potential of having a seizure during my solo ‘outing’. I’m a ‘stubborn’ girl so one day soon i’ll get so ‘peeved’ & say ‘bump it’ and just go do it again.)

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Cindy:

I just went back to Georgia last weekend to visit and my home has been sold, My daughter drove me by my old house and they were not taking care of the garden which I just loved and spent many, many hours just looking and wonder at the beauty of my mother nature. It was very tranquel. My little slice of heaven. We had to leave, I could not hold back the tears any longer. I am now a resident of Michigan.

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Your place in GA = Aw.
Your daughter still lives in GA?

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yes, she lives in Decalb.