Daydreaming while Driving

[Mikearoo]

I was driving to work, and i did something i seem to do a lot, is start daydreaming. My mind wonders somewhere else, but i am still able to drive, and im not even paying attention. Im looking straight ahead, but i dont see the road. I only notice this when i come out of the daydream, and i dont really remember making that turn, or that the light turned green and im already down the road.

This one time i actually fell asleep while driving at 5:30 am (i was working) The turn I made onto this curvy road, lined with houses and cars was the last thing i remember, and i made it to the end of the road, through all of the curves, houses and cars and ended up hitting a tree.

I guess my point is, our robotic responses blow me away. That we do something so much, even so important as driving, but to a certain point, you can do it without having to think about it.

[GratefulHippie]

i know the feeling. its a bit of a drive back to my apartment from downtown, and i've done it so many times now, there are mornings i wake up and don't really remember getting home. and it wasn't because i was drunk!

[HoodooOperator]

i do this everyday.

[troo]

It's pretty cool and a little scary. I do it constantly. I live about 10 miles out of town and the last 6 or so I never remember, not the curves, stop signs, anything. I only notice when I snap out of it (seeing a cop, an idiot driver, etc.) Wild how the brain works.

[GratefulHippie]

i would have been a psychologist if i was any good at math and science. i love knowing why people do things.

[ziggyandthemonkeys]

hippienaustin said:

i would have been a psychologist if i was any good at math and science. i love knowing why people do things.

www.pubmed.com

[kdogg]

Gotta love good old auto-pilot.

Years of pizza delivery honed mine quite well.

[spankymcdoogal]

Haha. Glad I'm not the only one.

Sometimes I'll be home and not remember if I took backroads or the interstate...

[bamabelle]

You guys think that's bad....I went to college 4 hours away from home....just long enough to make it close enough to come home 1 or 2 weekends a month and of course ALL holidays....

After the first quarter...most drives home I would remember like the first 30 minutes of the trip and the LAST 20 minutes of the trip and NOTHING ELSE in between! And that was with NOTHING to drink (or other enhancements !) I would just ZONE and let my internal autopilot take over I guess....VERY SCARY.....since this trip was NO interstate and LOTS of backroads, mountain roads and LOTS of turn offs.... Everytime I zone for even a few minutes while driving now it reminds me of those days....

[areyoukind]

the other day on the way to school (its an hour drive)
i had been eating corn a little more than usual during the day;
and on the way to school too

i got off the highway and was just zoning out... then i realize i don't even know where i am
i was on a road that i shouldn't have been on, but didn't make any turns...
so i got to a road which name i recognized and turned, and wound up back at the highway
so from there i kinda had an idea of how to get back... so i did and was 15 minutes late to class

[Meg]

^^^that's scary - you could have ended up anywhere - maybe that is what happens to those people that go missing

[razzledazzle]

I seem to be having the same problem but at a different time. I daydream while laying in bed trying to fall asleep. My mind races and races with all these thoughts and it takes me hours to fall asleep.