{"id":604,"date":"2024-01-14T22:50:18","date_gmt":"2024-01-14T22:50:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\/blog\/?p=604"},"modified":"2024-02-29T21:50:43","modified_gmt":"2024-02-29T21:50:43","slug":"drowsy-driving-is-dangerous","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\/blog\/2024\/01\/14\/drowsy-driving-is-dangerous\/","title":{"rendered":"Drowsiness and Driving: A Dangerous Combination"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/AdobeStock_276604490-1.jpeg\" alt=\"Bearded man sitting in car while yawning\" class=\"wp-image-605\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\/what-is-sleep-apnea.html\">Sleep apnea<\/a> often leaves you feeling extremely tired throughout the day. This can be more dangerous than you realize, especially if you\u2019re getting on the road. Driving while drowsy could easily lead to an accident, thus putting yourself and others in harm\u2019s way. Here\u2019s a look at what makes drowsy driving so unsafe and how you can help yourself stay alert behind the wheel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Exactly Makes Drowsy Driving So Dangerous?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>It has been estimated that roughly 21% of car crashes that result in deaths can be linked to a drowsy driver. There are several reasons why driving while tired can be especially hazardous:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Drowsiness makes it more difficult to pay attention to potential obstacles while you\u2019re driving.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Being tired can affect your reaction time, which can make all the difference if you suddenly need to hit the brakes or swerve out of the way.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>When you\u2019re tired, you\u2019re less likely to make good decisions. As such, you may be more prone to taking unnecessary risks on the road.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If you\u2019re especially drowsy, you may even end up drifting off. Needless to say, falling asleep at the wheel even for a short amount of time can easily result in disaster.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has found that drowsy driving can be just as dangerous as drunk driving, if not more so.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Can You Do About Drowsy Driving?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>To keep yourself and others safe, you should take whatever steps you can to minimize your chances of driving while drowsy. Sometimes it could be as simple as adjusting your sleeping habits; getting 7 to 9 hours of slumber on a nightly basis could go a long way toward helping you stay as alert as possible when you\u2019re awake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, if your drowsiness is linked to sleep apnea \u2013 which can disrupt your sleep multiple times throughout the night \u2013 then going to bed earlier may not be enough on its own. To get the quality rest you need, you should have your sleep apnea diagnosed and treated as soon as possible. Don\u2019t hesitate to get in touch with your doctor or a sleep dentist to discuss your concerns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sleep apnea is often treated with a CPAP machine, but many patients find this option too noisy or uncomfortable. In some cases, you may qualify for a personalized oral appliance. You can wear this device when you go to bed so that it can reposition your jaw, thus keeping your airway clear and reducing the risk of your breathing being interrupted while you\u2019re asleep.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Drowsy driving is definitely not a habit you want to get into, as it can easily have fatal consequences. Take whatever steps are necessary to make sure that you\u2019re well-rested so that you can stay safe whenever you\u2019re on the road.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">About the Author<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr. Deborah A. Romack went to the Baylor College of Dentistry and graduated with honors in 1998. She has completed multiple courses about obstructive sleep apnea and snoring, and she is a proud member of the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine. She can help patients with sleep-disordered breathing improve the quality of their slumber with personalized oral appliances. To schedule a consultation with Dr. Romack at Weatherford Dental Sleep Medicine, visit her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\/contact-us.html\">website<\/a> or call (817) 594-3806.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sleep apnea often leaves you feeling extremely tired throughout the day. This can be more dangerous than you realize, especially if you\u2019re getting on the road. Driving while drowsy could easily lead to an accident, thus putting yourself and others in harm\u2019s way. Here\u2019s a look at what makes drowsy driving so unsafe and how [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-604","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Drowsy Driving | Sleep Apnea | Weatherford Dental Sleep Medicine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Are you feeling drowsy during the day thanks to sleep apnea? If so, you could be putting yourself in danger whenever you drive.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\/blog\/2024\/01\/14\/drowsy-driving-is-dangerous\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Drowsy Driving | Sleep Apnea | Weatherford Dental Sleep Medicine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Are you feeling drowsy during the day thanks to sleep apnea? If so, you could be putting yourself in danger whenever you drive.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\/blog\/2024\/01\/14\/drowsy-driving-is-dangerous\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Weatherford Dental Sleep Medicine Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-01-14T22:50:18+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-02-29T21:50:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/AdobeStock_276604490-1.jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"drromack\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"drromack\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\\\/blog\\\/2024\\\/01\\\/14\\\/drowsy-driving-is-dangerous\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\\\/blog\\\/2024\\\/01\\\/14\\\/drowsy-driving-is-dangerous\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"drromack\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/ca149c2ebc44633e5ec8d1ebe9c00ee0\"},\"headline\":\"Drowsiness and Driving: A Dangerous Combination\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-01-14T22:50:18+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-02-29T21:50:43+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\\\/blog\\\/2024\\\/01\\\/14\\\/drowsy-driving-is-dangerous\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":556,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\\\/blog\\\/2024\\\/01\\\/14\\\/drowsy-driving-is-dangerous\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/02\\\/AdobeStock_276604490-1.jpeg\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\\\/blog\\\/2024\\\/01\\\/14\\\/drowsy-driving-is-dangerous\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\\\/blog\\\/2024\\\/01\\\/14\\\/drowsy-driving-is-dangerous\\\/\",\"name\":\"Drowsy Driving | Sleep Apnea | Weatherford Dental Sleep Medicine\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\\\/blog\\\/2024\\\/01\\\/14\\\/drowsy-driving-is-dangerous\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\\\/blog\\\/2024\\\/01\\\/14\\\/drowsy-driving-is-dangerous\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/02\\\/AdobeStock_276604490-1.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-01-14T22:50:18+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-02-29T21:50:43+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.weatherfordsleep.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/ca149c2ebc44633e5ec8d1ebe9c00ee0\"},\"description\":\"Are you feeling drowsy during the day thanks to sleep apnea? 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