According to the people behind the sleep-disorder Web site www.sleepapneainfo.com, 31 percent to 41 percent of commercial vehicle crashes involve sleepiness. That's tens of thousands of truck crashes due to tired drivers. How can you minimize your risk of being involved in a sleepiness-related crash?
Most importantly: get enough sleep. According to psychotherapist Nancy B. Irwin, most people need between 7 and 8 hours of sleep per night-and they need it regularly.
"If they do not consistently get this, they suffer sleep deprivation, which can manifest in physical exhaustion, emotional exhaustion, blurred vision, depression, nodding out at the wheel, shortness of temper, loss or increase in appetite, skin discoloration, etc." Skin discoloration might not be your greatest concern, but being alert at the wheel is-so try your hardest, as a matter of course, to put in enough sleep hours.
Easier said than done? There are ways to sleep better. Dr. Diane Roberts Stoler advises eating a potato before bed.
"Potato is a natural serotonin uplifter," says Stoler. "It helps with mood and sleep. Therefore, you sleep more soundly and wake up more refreshed."
So eat the tubers, but shut off the tube. "To get a better night's sleep, allow your body to go into the shut-down mode an hour before retiring by turning off the TV-or at least the news!" says Irwin. "The last thing you need to do is fill your head, which is trying to relax and decompress, with soldiers in Iraq, rapists on the loose, etc. If you must watch TV, make it light, funny stuff. Nothing heavy before bed."
And don't think a drink or two will take the edge off.
"Alcohol is the enemy of sound sleep," says Dr. Kathleen Wilson, author of Your Husband's Health: Simplify Your Worry List. "A person may use alcohol to fall asleep," and end up "wide-awake in the middle of the night with rebound-brain excitability after the alcohol has worn off." If you still want a couple of suds, drink with a meal, advises Stoler.
But even doing all the right things, you might end up still feeling sleepy during the day. If this is the case, it's time to look for other causes than too few hours in bed. Excessive sleepiness may be a sign of depression or dissatisfaction.
Or the problem might be physical. A University of Pennsylvania study found that long distance truck drivers have higher incidence of sleep disorders than the general public. These include sleep apnea, narcolepsy and sleep walking.
If your bedmate has complained about your snoring or twitchiness, or if you frequently wake up unrefreshed and with headaches, look for a sleep clinic in your area-a sleep disorder diagnosis and subsequent treatment could make you the safest driver on the road.
