Giving up driving not all bad: study

Older people who give up driving report positive life impacts and say it's not all doom and gloom, according to new research by PhD student Sarah Walker from The Australian National University. The study looked at the lived experiences of nearly 40 volunteers above retirement age who had ceased driving. Ms Walker said previous research had only associated the change with negative effects. "Other studies have shown that giving up driving can lead to poorer physical health, increased risk of mortality, depressive symptoms and emotional distress," she said. "But little is known about people's actual experiences, the cognitive coping strategies used to deal with these detrimental and often distressing consequences, or the positive impacts of quitting driving. "My study looked at filling these gaps and it produced some interesting results. In some cases, individuals felt relief at no longer having to drive, personal growth through adversity and learning acceptance, and monetary savings.