My worst addiction could kill my kids or yours
3000 deaths each year are attributed to talking and driving
I don’t drink when I drive.
I don’t smoke dope or do drugs when I drive (or any other time for that matter).
But I do have an even more dangerous habit. Like nearly all moms in my neighborhood, I talk and drive. All the time.
I think I don’t. I say I don’t.
But I do.
Yesterday, I was reading the New York Times’ magazine’s cover story about a young man who killed a woman because he was talking on his cell phone.
Mr. Hill was so engrossed in the call that he ran a red light and didn’t notice Linda Doyle’s small sport utility vehicle until the last second. He hit her going 45 miles per hour. She was pronounced dead shortly after, reported the NYTimes. When a policeman asked Mr. Hill what color the light had been. “I never saw it,” he answered.
Imagine living with that the rest of your life?
Imagine if you killed your kids or someone else’s?
The NYT reported that drivers who use cell phones are four times as likely to cause a crash as other drivers, and the likelihood they will have an accident is the same as a person with a blood alcohol level of .08 percent.
Worse than drunk driving
What was interesting in the article was the chart above.
See how most people admit to driving and talking on their cellphones at the same time as saying they’re good drivers.
After reading this article, I hopped into the car to do some shopping.
Just like a smoker lighting up, I reached for my phone. And I felt deprived and jittery going without.
Did I have really have to make a call? No.
Multi-tasking has spread to the car. I talk to the kids, drive, listen to the radio and often talk to a friend … because it has become so natural to multi-task in every other part of my life. My excuse? I’m busy. I work hard at my desk so as soon as I get in the car, it is time to switch off work and talk to friends.
On the way home from the store yesterday, I nearly had to amputate my hand to stop dialing.
The same thing happened today.
Today is day two of my pledge to stop driving and talking (to anyone other than my lovely children in the back).
Like an alcoholic, it is one day at a time.
It is hard. I feel deprived. But I am trying.
Follow the debate on Twitter by using the #DistractedDriving hashtag.
Visit the Government’s Distracted Driving website.
Photo source: http://www.whereistheoutrage.net/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/cell_phone_driving.jpg
Update: Since writing this post, I’ve improved. I am not perfect and I occasionally reach for the phone in the same way that I used to reach for a cigarette.
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Filed Under: Featured
About the Author: Julie Power is a writer and editor with experience in both the United States and Australia. After living in the United States for 16 years, she recently returned to live in Sydney with her husband and twin boys (9 years old).
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Yes! It would be great to have fewer people in the car on the phone. The graph is telling. New business idea — rehab facility for driving cell phone addicts.
Love that graph.
I am on day 3 of not talking while driving.
This morning was easier but it does make me feel sad and lonely in the car … esp. after kids get out.
thanks for your comment.
[...] I am on day 20 of not talking on my cell while driving. Since I wrote My Worst Addiction I’ve made a big effort to concentrate on the road and my kids, and ignore my [...]