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As adults living in a developed country, most of us have had to drive in an emergency. It might mean taking a sick person to a doctor, taking a sick beloved pet to a veterinary clinic, or even evacuating when under the threat of a hurricane or a fire. 

The high death toll or Hurricane Katrina was partly due to it occurring toward the end of the month, a time when many impoverished residents of the affected area could not pay to fill up their gas tanks. 

Driving is not a right; it is a privilege. Driving while impaired does not only apply to being intoxicated by alcohol or illicit drugs. You could be taking prescribed medication at prescribed dosages, and if those medications affect your ability to operate a motor vehicle, you are driving while impaired. 

Secondly, you could be impaired by fatigue due to not getting enough sleep. Thirdly, a stressful situation can create impairment. 

There are two issues we are dealing with--actually more. One issue is that of whether we could be arrested and put on trial, if law enforcement believes we're "on something," and we've been at fault in a car accident. Another issue is simply the basic responsibility toward fellow human beings, something that goes beyond being punished by the courts. 

Circumstances for each situation suggest varying responses. If you are evacuating a natural disaster, your choice is clear; you have to get out of there and do your best. If you are in life-threatening danger because of a physical threat from a criminal, you need to get out of there. On the other hand, sometimes people will pressure us, or circumstances will pressure us, such as a medical or mental health appointment, or showing up for work. Or maybe someone wants us to run an errand or take them somewhere. In those instances, if you feel that it is difficult to drive because you have just taken your medication, or you are fatigued from lack of sleep, maybe you'd better stay home. 

People could say, "I've very disappointed in you." 

On the other hand, if we strike and kill a pedestrian, that person's life is over, and ours may be over as well. The lawful ramifications of killing someone due to driving while impaired--you don't want them. The course of your life will be changed for the worse. 

On the other hand, missing a medical or mental health appointment could cause us to lose services. That kind of thing can usually be repaired. You could find someone else or do something else. 

A friend may be angered if we refuse to drive her or him somewhere. If they are family or a close friend, if their car broke down on the freeway and they are stranded, and they can't find someone else to give them a ride, it is a factor in favor of picking them up. On the other hand, if an acquaintance went to a bar and got drunk, and they want a ride home at two in the morning, just say no. Do not let someone make their problem into your problem. 

An additional note: I've been pulled over by police in the circumstance of a car accident, and on some routine stops. Police have questioned me as to whether I've taken any drugs. (They knew I was not on alcohol because if I was, they would be able to smell it on my breath.) 

In short, my answer to them has always been, "I'm schizophrenic, I'm on psych meds." (You do not have to volunteer this information unless the officer asks you if you are taking drugs) In my experience, that answer has worked to prevent them from doing anything to me. Most police in California have had some degree of mental health training and are not completely ignorant on the subject. Despite the news stories of police using excessive force, most are dedicated to working for the good of the community. 

As I said, I was in a car accident that was determined to be my fault. In 2012, following my father's death, I ran a red light due to being distracted from the road by grief. It was a big mistake to get behind the wheel. When there is a death of a loved one, often this is a disruption to one's normal functioning. 

There is no law that you can't drive following the loss of a family member. Yet, if I had killed someone that night, I would have to live with that for the rest of my life. I've been lucky. 

Many persons with mental illness including me have a driver's license and should be allowed to drive. I do every bit as well at it as do most nondisabled people. I am very careful, and I drive defensively. When I feel I shouldn't drive, I don't, regardless of whether it will make someone mad because I didn't do what was promised. It is a "boundary." 

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