Could My Eyes Be Causing Driving Anxiety?

Do you get particularly stressed or anxious while driving? Do you dread getting behind the wheel, feel short-tempered or feel excessively tired after even a short journey? If so, your eyes could be the cause of your problem.

Many people can become nervous or anxious while driving. The reason for this is the exposure to visual stimuli. While we are surrounded by visual stimuli all day long, when we are driving, the effects are much more significant. Things are moving past us at speed, requiring our eyes and brain to work together much more quickly to determine what we are seeing and to react to it if necessary. We also need to use much greater concentration as our safety, and that of people around us, relies on us being focused and interpreting the things that we see correctly.

Some of the visual stimuli present when driving include:

•           Other vehicles/road users

•           Traffic lights and road signs

•           Pedestrians

•           How light or dark it is

•           Weather conditions

•           Other hazards such as fallen trees, debris or animals in the road, damage to the road itself

Failing to successfully see, analyze and react to visual stimuli can be extremely dangerous. Unsurprisingly, the pressure to respond appropriately can be extremely stressful at the best of times, especially when you are on roads that are unfamiliar, or you have distractions like other people in your vehicle. However, the effects are even more compounded when you have binocular vision dysfunction – also known as BVD.

What’s BVD and how do I know if I’m affected?

Binocular vision dysfunction is a condition that is caused by misalignment of the eyes. Our eyes are supposed to work together in perfect synchronization; bringing the image perceived by each eye into alignment to create a single, clear image. However, if the muscles around the eye aren’t working as well as they could, or the messages sent from the brain to the eyes to tell us what to look at aren’t getting through clearly, this doesn’t happen. The result is that the images aren’t aligned in the same plane and we could potentially end up with blurred or double vision. The other problem is that the constant strain of trying to bring the eyes into alignment puts pressure on the trigeminal nerve which runs between the brain and eyes. This pressure causes a range of symptoms which are known as key characteristics associated with BVD.

Signs and symptoms of BVD can vary significantly between patients. However, they can include some or all of the following:

•           Persistent headaches or migraines

•           Double vision

•           Blurred vision

•           Severe sensitivity to light

•           Eye fatigue

•           Closing or covering one eye to try and see more clearly

•           Difficulty reading, such as losing your place, skipping lines or becoming confused about what you have read

•           Dizziness, especially when you are in large and/or loud places

•           Anxiety, again in large open spaces or crowds

•           Panic attacks (as above)

•           Finding it harder to drive in the dark than normal

If you are experiencing any of these symptoms, and especially if they are worse when you are driving, you may be affected by BVD. Our experienced and knowledgeable eyecare team can carry out an assessment to confirm a diagnosis and help you to find a treatment that relieves your symptoms and enable you to drive with confidence again. Please contact The Dizziness and Headache Optometry Center in Santa Barbara, California at (805) 626-3400 to schedule an appointment.

 

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