Does driving overstimulate you?

Hi all, 

Just wondering about peoples thoughts on this! 

I've been finding that driving can often be a bit overstimulating for me. I overall enjoy it, the freedom it gives me is second to none, plus its a good place to scream at my loudest when I need to because no one can hear on the motorway. But i've found that just sheer volume of visual information is sometimes a bit much. Especially when it comes to the constant things ongoing in the mirrors that I can sometimes get distracted by when i need to focus on what's in front of me. This is especially during the dark, headlights in mirrors etc are so distracting and uncomfortable for me. 

Obviously driving for long times is tiring for anyone, but even my normal commute home (35-45mins) at the end of the day really just takes out what little energy I have left after work. Any one else feel like this? 

Thanks,

Euan.

Parents
  • i've found that just sheer volume of visual information is sometimes a bit much

    I don't know how anyone can drive using a sat nav, I struggle with this even as a passenger.  I think using these is a requirement now in order to pass your test. 

  • Yes my instructor said it has to be on. I find them distracting

    And after it being silent for a while it makes me jump when it suddenly speaks.

  • It's also "the same information served in different formats at the same time" that I find too much. My partner's car displays the temperature pop up on the screen when it is changed on the dial. No need! The dial already displays the temperature.  He also has about 500 things on his dash display too. The sat nav screen repeats information in different ways on different parts of the screen.

  • Took me ages to work round the electronic handbrake. Now, it's second nature to me.

  • Those smart dashboards drive me insane, too. Especially when I make one finger-touch too many. Suddenly there's a Zoom function in my sat nav.

  • I hired a car a couple of years ago. It was making the "bong" noises all the time, oh there's something behind you, oh you should be changing gears now... oh... No. I'm driving you, not the other way around :)

    This thing had an "electronic handbrake". The lady at the car hire place was telling me that you need to have your foot on the foot brake to disengage the handbrake. I said to her, well how are you meant to do a hill start then? I've only got two feet. No it will automatically do that for you. What? No thanks.

  • The screen in my learner car bongs all the time warning of getting too close to people

    There's the sat nav too and tells me when to turn on the headlights lol 

    The dash is full of stuff I don't know about and understand whereas my grandad has a really old fashioned car and it's so much better no gadgets or bleeping:) 

  • I would love a horse and cart ^^

  • absolutely this. people get excited about "new features". I just see it as more things that are going to inevitably break in a way that requires ever more specialism to repair.

  • Horse & cart!

    The more tech in a car, the more there is that needs unnecessarily fixing. 

  • my car is coming up for 20 years old. in many respect it's too modern for me (displays too many messages about things not working, electric windows, etc), i ripped out the double height CD/Radio/Sat Nav unit thing and replaced it with an old cassette deck I'd kept from the 90s :) I don't know what I'm going to do when this one dies, there's no way I want anything more modern.

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  • my car is coming up for 20 years old. in many respect it's too modern for me (displays too many messages about things not working, electric windows, etc), i ripped out the double height CD/Radio/Sat Nav unit thing and replaced it with an old cassette deck I'd kept from the 90s :) I don't know what I'm going to do when this one dies, there's no way I want anything more modern.

Children