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Driving

NAS75423

My 16 year old cousin has Phelan-McDermid syndrome so he is on the spectrum and would love to drive. He won’t be able to drive due to his abilities we don’t know what to do as we can’t change his mind.  Has anyone came across this before or have any alternatives? We were thinking when he’s old enough to drive that we would take him out to somewhere safe where there is no one about and let him attempt to drive to show him that he can’t drive. Does anyone have any other ideas?

  • Ultimately it’s a question of his motor skills and whether he suffers from seizures. If his hand eye coordination and reaction times are good then with enough help he probably can learn to drive. If he has seizures though he’ll almost certainly never be allowed to drive.

  • Have you got access to online theory and hazard perception practice tests as well? Would showing him that he needs to pass that as well help him understand if you think he would struggle with those as well as physically driving a car. Finding a large open safe space could help as well or maybe you could find a driving instructor who is willing to do that with the safety net of dual controls if you think he may get the car out of control. It’s hard to know exactly what to suggest really without knowing him and how the Phelan-Mcdirmid syndrome has affected his motor skills and learning ability

  • I think taking him out somewhere safe is a good idea. The most important thing is that he doesnt feel any pressure on him. Driving for those of us on the spectrum is one of the most difficult things to do. There are so many things to think about at once, controlling the car, the unpredictable behaviour of other drivers, road signals etc. It is the ultimate sensory overload. 

    Im 34 and still cant drive but thats not to say your cousin wont. The fact that you know he is autistic now will really help. No one knew I was autistic when I tried to learn to drive

    Also there are specialist spectrum trained driving instructors now as well who may be able to help. If you google autistic driving instructor you might find someone