Profile For Alan C.

Alan have you discussed your desire to become a truck driver with your personal Doc.? I think that’s a good place to start.

At the very least when you are filling out the long form, you’ll need to disclose the a-fib issue and provide as much supporting documentation as possible. Thus the reason why your Doc. needs to be on-board with your decision to pursue a trucking career.

Here is more info on the physical:

• Getting Started With The DOT Physical
• DOT Blood Pressure Requirements
• DOT Drug and Alcohol Policies & Testing
• DOT Eye & Vision Exam Requirements
• DOT Hearing Requirements
• DOT Physical - Driver Exemptions
• Hair Follicle vs. Urinalysis Drug Testing: Breakdown By Company
• Hypertension (High Blood Pressure) Guidelines & Advice
• Sleep Apnea, Truck Drivers, & BMI Calculator

Thanks for the suggestion and links. Yes I will definitely do that, just thought someone here might have had a similar situation.

I don't know the answer to your specific condition, but this is what happened to me. I'm 66 and went in for my FedMed physical about 6 weeks ago. My blood pressure was high, no other issues, but I could only get certified for 12 months instead of 24 months. So they gave me a year to get the BP down. This probably has nothing to do with your question, but I know they are strict in some areas. Hopefully, someone here will enlighten us on your particular condition.

Thanks Bruce. I know there are a lot of posts here about sleep apnea, hopefully someone can shed some light on how my particular problem might be handled. I just don't want to invest a lot of effort and planning into something that I'm not able to complete.

I've been considering getting my CDL for over a year. I'm currently 60 and have become burned out on working in an office cube and all the politics, etc. I'd really like to get out of a building and have a little bit of autonomy and I like driving, so there you go.

My primary concern is that I've been diagnosed with atrial fibrillation and have been on meds for it for over a year. It's never a problem when I'm awake, but when I'm sleeping horizontal sometimes I would stop breathing for a few seconds which causes my heart to freak out and triggers the arrhythmia. It does not happen when I'm on my medication. I've had a sleep study done back when this first became a problem and although this is what they found they did not return a diagnosis of sleep apnea.

I don't plan on doing long haul overnights or team driving, there are lots of opportunities here for local runs. I'd even be happy doing dump truck and/or rolloff truck driving that only requires a CDL B. My question is will my medical issues be a problem if I have never had an episode when awake, and even when I've woken up with an arrhythmia I'm not lightheaded, I just have to take it slow until things return to normal. Will they take things like this into account or will I be rejected out of hand?

Thanks!