Today my husband and I went to the Auto Show in Detroit, MI. I was feeling about as good as I get. I had zero noticeable SPD issues. I was wearing my Irlen Lenses to help with my light sensitivity, but that is usually enough.

I did good for the most part throughout the Auto Show, but I had some of my standard SPD quirks show up in blatant fashion and one that hit me hard from an insideous fashion.

I would sit in a car at the Auto Show and the seat would cause me so much pain that:
1) I would jump out of the car quickly and give it a dirty look.
2) I would get overwhelmed in pain and paralyze (making leaving the car difficult even with assistance from my husband).

Some cars had such great seating that I:
1) Didn't want to leave the seat. It was so comfy I just wanted to take a nap right there. (A Volvo Convertible really did this to me and I would have loved to be a passenger in it as it speed down the highway along the California coastline.)
2) Felt that I could actually drive the car from point A to point B without problems from SPD. (Really only the Chevy Volt fit into this category.)

Another sensory problem I had was lighting. Some cars were placed poorly in the show cases and the light would come into the sides of or on top of my Irlen Lenses and I would get stunned by the light.

The insideous sensory problem were the show cases with White Walls and White Carpetting. The longer I stayed in each of these sections the more I had difficulties with my Periodic Paralysis. The second we got into a show case with a different colored walls I would fully recover. A different colored carpet than white with white walls didn't hurt me as much as white on white, but I still had problems. My husband and not I was the one to figure out what was going on with me.

Every time I crossed into a white wall white carpet section I would start to shut down. By the end of our day at the Auto Show we were trying to figure out ways to dodge the White Showcases.

I did have some problems with a sound room showing off a cars sound system, but in another car the sound system (even though it was playing Rap) actually soothed me.

Another problem I had was dodging the Roasted Almonds stands since I have an allergy to Nuts. Thankfully, my allergies stayed mostly under control so I could get within 100 feet without having to flee for safety. I just couldn't stay close to the stand for long without the issues starting. It didn't keep me from checking out a lot of Auto Show cars.

Since I have an interest in electric and hybrid vehicles I tested the weights and difficulty of use for charging stations for electric vehicles. Some of the charging stations were impossible for me to use (too heavy or required a hand motion that causes me muscle problems). However, one was usuable enough that it won't disuade me from getting an electric or hybrid vehicle in the future.

The last thing we got to do was go for a test drive in a Chevy Volt. That was nice and it turned like a dream.


My husband and I went to the Auto Show because it was local and something different than what we usually do. We weren't really looking to replace a car. I came away happy to realize that Electric and Hybrid vehicles are on the rise and there are actually plenty of quality options available right now.

Sure I had SPD challenges in a strange environment, but we were able to manage around them to have a great day. Too often I let my SPD, Periodic Paralysis, and Food Allergies keep me trapped at home. The chance to escape my self imposed prison was fantastic.