I do read this site most days but have never asked a question before. I have posted many replies.
I am just coming up to 70 and have to renew my driving licence. I have had RD for 30 years now and learnt to drive when I was diagnosed as I knew that walking would be a problem and it still is. Rheumatoid Arthritis/Disease does not appear on the DVLA list of medical conditions. I did however inform the DVLA when I first had my licence and at that time my then Consultant advised me to only drive for an hour then rest and continue. I still drive exactly as my driving instructor advised. I do not drive when I am not capable. I have printed off a three double sided page to fill in for medical conditions. I only suffer from RD nothing else. My question is have other people had trouble renewing their licence?
We have sunshine here today which is a delight. Take Care.
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Recorder500L
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I believe you can drive unless you have been told not to by a specialist and only have to tell the department is they say you are physically unable. I drove no problem with RA, diabetes etc, there are ground rules for diabetes eg test your sugar before you drive and every two hours on a long journey, but I think your consultant at that stage made up a little " rest after an hour" rule . Maybe the consultants these days would have a completely different view after all those years of treatment. I certainly would ask the hospital but I've never been told not to drive. I so agree it's something that helps so much to get us around with RA xxxx
Thank you for your reply allanah, I totally agree without the use of my car, I would never go out independently. I have never been advised by my present Consultant not to drive, most of the time I am physically able, and when I'm not I do not drive. I will give the Rheumy department a ring tomorrow to see if I have to declare the RD. Take Care.
No...been doing it for a few years now...never had any problems.
I have no mobility problems & have never mentioned my RD.
I presume they only include conditions that affect your ability to control your vehicle under all conditions. There is a separate section re eye sight.
If you apply on line & you have a Passport you can tick a box giving permission, & the photo on your Passeport is transferred to your Driving licence...saving you the bother of having a new photo taken.
I presume that only works for a British Passport.
Don’t forget to return your present licence by post as soon as you reply
I recently renewed mine & got my new licence in the post 48 hours later.
Thank you for replying to me. It is a difficult one, I do not have any adaptions to my car. Arthritis is a medical condition the DVLA has on their list of medical conditions but not RD. There are times when I wouldn't drive, when it is really difficult to get up and dress - I would never get in the car and drive. Other times I am good and can easily manage to drive. My eyes are good, I do wear glasses but my eyes are tested regularly. It is just the question as our medical condition is not stated, do I mention it? Take Care.
I think maybe its osteoarthritis or severe joint damage that would stop you driving in you could say do an emergency stop. If you can do that I cant see a reason not to drive. I've never been told or had to declare it.
I think you only gave to declare if yourviwn consultant says you cannot drive. But people with very severe disability drive declare their adoptions to the car and are fine.
My understanding is as long as you have not had any adaptations to your car and you have been told by a doctor that you cannot drive you are fine to renew your licence.
Thank you for your reply J1707, I will most certainly send off my licence for renewal. I love driving and my family and friends say that I am an excellent driver, I will just check to see if RD has to be declared with Rheumy. Take care.
They’ve had my driving license since last February and still can’t decide if I’m keeping mines they’ve been to my doctor, their medical board and are waiting for my consultant to get back to them,I think it’s because I lost my class 1 taken away on medical grounds,I have RA and Angina
I think that’s what it must be although my hands swell and lock sometimes making it hard to drive,I just want to get a decision I’ve got my consultant on Tuesday so I’ll ask her to reply promptly if she can
I checked on the DVLA website when I was diagnosed with RD (last year) and it appears that so long as RD doesn’t effect your ability to drive, you’re OK to continue driving and you don’t have to inform DVLA. However, if your GP or consultant raises objections or restrictions on your driving, you do have to inform DVLA. Just remember that if for any reason you don’t feel fit or able to drive (including because of the medication that you’re on) you shouldn’t, and if I regularly felt unsafe driving then I would let DVLA know. Without meaning to frighten anyone, if you drive when you’re unfit to drive then it could come under the heading of “dangerous driving”. So long as you’re sensible I don’t see a problem.
Thank you for your reply, your answer is how I had read the DVLA website. My medication does not make me feel ill or dizzy. I only take medication for the RD. Take care.
Your right about being fit to drive.. my employer scoffed at me when I had a day off work because of fatigue I’m a danger as I can’t concentrate and my reactions are lot slower. I can’t look after the children at school when I have fatigue. It’s like I’m behind a glass shield and the world is muffled.
I am really surprised at how many people have RA/RD and can drive, especially given it is supposed to affect the hands principally. In fact, everybody on here with it seems to be able to drive, yet some are severe cases. I certainly could not even when in a good phase - it goes in flares. When it first arose, my hands were virtually paralysed and I had a frozen shoulder which curtailed almost all activities where a shoulder was used.
At the moment, it could be described as about 90% better than when it first arose. However, I still get sudden cracks or stabs of pain which have made me scream and let go of anything I might be holding. If I were driving, without any doubt I would just let go of the wheel. Even at the best of times, such as now with a 90% improvement, I would not have a good enough grip on the wheel to drive even in the absence of pain. Also, I wonder how people with RA in the shoulders manage because I could not handle the gears or do they drive an automatic.
Coincidentally, today I started taking Fenofexadine which is an anti histamine. I had extreme difficulty getting it. It was prescribed by an NHS chest clinic for a severe tree pollen allergy but I could not get it from the GP despite a number of requests. I have noticed that coincidentally it relieves the pain in my hands completely and also improves flexibility no end. I was particularly good today and I took the higher dose of 1.8 because the pharmacy said the lower dose is out of stock.
Also, I have been particularly alert today. Lately, it has been hard to keep awake in the afternoons at work but I felt so much better today. Over the counter anti histamines make me drowsy but Fenofexadine seems to wake me up. It is all very odd.
Thirty one years ago before I was first diagnosed with RD, I didn't drive but walked the children to school, shopping and cycled. I returned to work part time in the April and was diagnosed in the December 1989. At that time my Consultant told me to learn to drive otherwise I am not going to be able to continue to work, in an Office sat at a Computer. I worked in various Offices for the NHS until I retired. During 2008/2009 I took a year out (unpaid) as I was so poorly with RD and stayed indoors for more or less a whole year. I could barely walk, dress, wash but with the help of hubby and I asked my GP to be referred to a top Consultant in Rheumatology. Many a time whilst working I could not drive my car, so my hubby left his trained career as a Technical Engineer and went self-employed as a property maintenance and gardener so that he could take me to work (snowy weather) and when I could not drive; which was often.
I am suffering with a flare at the moment. My children have married and we have grandchildren whom live a distance from me which includes a ferry journey. They have stayed with us for the half-term - wonderful, loved it. But I am shattered, I can barely get around the house and at the moment certainly cannot drive my car. I ironed there duvet covers and could not move my right arm for a week. My driving Instructor knew I had RD and told me how to sit in the car, mirrors, how to use my legs to help my feet.
I have had 31 years of what my Consultant terms as chronic RD, I wear finger splints on my fingers, very wide deep shoes for my damaged feet. However when I feel capable I like to drive my car even it is only to Church or to visit a friend. My car is a 2013 number plate and has only done 23,000 miles and that is mainly when my hubby has driven us to visit our family.
As always, I do feel for your suffering, I have been there many, many times. Take Care.
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