This is kind of a serious question! I think I may have the worse sense of direction in the world. I’ve been living in my town (not even a city) for about seven years and I’m still not sure how to get out of it onto the motorway. And I keep on mixing up which motorway goes where, and I’m not too sure what their names are. I lived in one suburb for two years and kept on forgetting the name of the suburb. I can be driven, or drive myself, to a place 10 times and still not be able to find my way there unaided. When I try and use my instinct, I get lost. When I try and remember how I got there last time, I get lost. When I get to a place and try and retrace my steps, I get lost. I piss off Mr Bifar big time because when we travel everywhere he has to shout directions like a driving instructor. Otherwise I am fine with maps, am a grade A student and can otherwise function well in society. (ahem)
So, I was wondering if it was a physiological thing, like an anti-autism or something – cos I’m good at languages and communication. Anyone got any thoughts? Anyone else have the problem?
If you are mentally deficient, so am I. I have a terrible sense of direction and need detailed written instructions (or someone in the car going, “Here! Turn Here! Now get in the other lane!”) when driving anywhere outside of my regular stomping grounds. It is definitely a problem as I often have to have people pick me up instead of meeting them somewhere. I can also get lost when taking a stroll around the block even downtown in my own city, although I am very good with maps and had no trouble navigating foreign cities while I was in Europe as long as the map and streets were clearly marked. It’s just that if I turn down a wrong street I can’t “intuit” my way back to where I was before.
Glad I’m not the only one! Sometimes I think it’s down to my childhood. I used to sit in the back of the car reading (and getting progressively more carsick) instead of looking out at the road ahead. Maybe this means that something in my brain hasn’t developed properly.
Glad I’m not the only one! Sometimes I think it’s down to my childhood. I used to sit in the back of the car reading (and getting progressively more carsick) instead of looking out at the road ahead. Maybe this means that something in my brain hasn’t developed properly.
I honestly don’t know. I also used to sit in the back and read instead of paying attention to how we were getting where we were getting, but I imagine many people did that as children. Maybe it’s some form of learning disabilty?
I also have a hard time remembering street names and locations in relation to other streets. For example, someone will say, “Do you know Illinois Road?” and I will be able to picture a stretch of it but will have no idea how to get there.
That’s all right, I love seeing my name in name in print.
I get lost coming out of stores in the Mall. However, I don’t usually panic when driving any longer (I’ve had my licence for about 8.5 years now) because I’ve developed an effective coping mechanism: I’m careful to memorize which towns routes go through, and which routes cross each other. That way if I get lost in the middle of nowhere, but I find a familiar route, I can usually find my way back to civilization. So do what I do upon finding a new route (or street) say to yourself " ok, 33 goes from exeter to portsmouth where I could them pick up 4 to go to…" so later on when you’re lost and you see a familiar route sign you know you’ll be able to make it home alive
I have good direction sense: I knew where I was going when the other boy scouts were lost. I used to think it was some innate talent, but I noticed as I got older, and paid less attention to my surroundings, that it was getting easier to get lost, particularly if there weren’t any cues from the sun. Also, I can’t take verbal directions for more than a couple turns, and I don’t remember street names unless I’ve been embarrassed about them (like “How do you get to your place?”), so no doubt my brain has figured out I better be able to navigate some other way.
Try writing the instructions down on a piece of paper, or drawing yourself a personal map. Turn off the radio. Open your window so you can get auditory clues from outside.
QUOTE]I also have a hard time remembering street names and locations in relation to other streets. For example, someone will say, “Do you know Illinois Road?” and I will be able to picture a stretch of it but will have no idea how to get there.
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Yep I have that too. I see bits of roads in my mind’s eye, but not the whole route – and I have trouble linking them together.[
