I had my driving licence revoked

I was diagnosed with epilepsy when I was 21. I already had my driving licence and was commuting 30 miles to work every day. I let the DVLA know that I had been having seizures and they told me that I wouldn’t be able to drive for at least a year. At first, I was really upset by this news. Living in a village was great but meant that having a driving licence was vital in order to get places. The public transport wasn’t very regular and the village didn’t have any shops.

I felt like I had two options. I could either get a job nearer to where I lived or move to the next city and continue working for the same company. I had always planned to move away at some point so decided that I should use this as an opportunity to explore a new city. The diagnosis of epilepsy itself was overwhelming and unexpected. Add moving house on top of that and you can probably imagine it was quite a stressful situation. However, I soon got used to the new city and travelling by public transport. I was entitled to a free bus pass which I still use to this day which makes travelling less of a worry.

It’s 5 years later and I still haven’t been allowed my driving licence back. Even if the DVLA gave me my licence back, I don’t think I would want it. I have adapted to living without it and simply don’t need it. I realised I can travel everywhere on public transport. I’ve been all over the world and never come across a problem. Public transport is a lot cheaper and also better for the environment.

I also wouldn’t want to have to go through losing it again if I had a seizure. At the time, having my driving licence revoked felt like a negative thing but I look back on this situation positively. It encouraged me to move to a new city and become a more independent person.