Cycling with headphones or earbuds, it might actually be help some and not hinder others.

I like to see connections between the things in my life and how these things effect each other. We all have to get from A to B and we all have our preferences. Headphones are possibly the adult version of ear defenders for many adults on the Autistic spectrum and who have ADHD and I want to explain a bit why and what that means. From the head of a cyclist and a woman.

I was diagnosed a couple of years ago with ADHD, I take dexamphetamine (when I remember, ironically) to help me stick to what I'm supposed to be doing. I am relatively normal, I have an Autism (also known as Aspergers) diagnosis too.

I have used head phones or earbuds most of my cycling life, since my mid teens. I was a teenager in the 80's so a walkman was never very far from me. From the age of 10, I rode to school every day with my Dad on a Tandem, first through rush hour Reading, then on a train and the mile or so from the village station up the road to the village school where my dad was a teacher in Crowthorne.  When I reached my teens and rode to school on my own, I had a choice of two bikes, both hand build by my dad. A road bike and a diamond frame transport bike with a sturdy carrier for my saxophone case and sit up handlebars. It was just whatever bits I wanted really.

The thing I used to love most, was taking my road bike out along Greenham Common Airbase, with my headphones on, blow off some steam with some Gary Newman or Japan, Kraftwerk or some Punk, Ska was very good for climbing too. A good mix tape was a must. Pick one of the numerous hills near where I lived, go up one and come back on another - usually the short steep one up and the long gradual back. Was it dangerous? definitely. Would I let my kid do it now? probably not, but the one most likely do do something like that that takes after me probably wouldn't ask permission.

As I got older, I mostly liked the combination of headphones or earbuds and cycling for long distances, it would help to establish a rhythm, or help settle me in for a long ride. You see, if you ride for transport, sometimes you make quite long journeys by yourself, it's great if you do have someone else to talk to, but you could say, just like any kind of travelling where you can't just read a book or stare out the window, it's nice to have something other than your own thoughts for company.

Don't get me wrong, my own thoughts are fine, but it helps to have something else to occupy yourself with. I enjoy music, I have always enjoyed the radio, especially now that you can pick your programmes with your phone so easily. An episode of Woman's Hour, can get me from my place to my Mum's as it's about 45 mins at a good pace.

Cycling is well known for being a great way to clear your head, a kind of meditation. Drifting off into your head, on a bike isn't the same as in a car, riding a bike is a physical thing, there's wind, weather, pedalling etc, physically, you are constantly being pulled back to the real world. This isn't the case behind the wheel of a car, in fact cars isolate you to the point you can actually fall asleep if you drive for too long. I'm sure bum ache will stop most cyclist from going that far.

Kids in the Netherlands, where I now live, die on bikes looking at their phones, just like adults do behind the wheels of a car. It's a problem too, I admit to occasionally texting while riding my bike, but I also tend to only do that where the road is straight and then I look up every other word and I find myself increasingly pulling over as it's really not a good idea to be reading stuff on your phone. You can always spot a cyclist who's just pulled out their phone, their speed drops and the head goes down. Pulling over on a bike is also much easier than in a car. Not concentrating on the road no matter what your transport mode, isn't a good idea. Mobile phones are the new drink driving.

Those who find the idea of riding with headphones uncomfortable, often say that this is dangerous, that you can't hear the traffic around you. I will admit that it does take some of that sensory stimulation away. But not as much as you might think. This is also a very personal choice, it is not something that you have to do, no one is forcing you to do it. I have friends who say they never listen to music and do other things simultaneously, they like to listen when it's their choice.

I use google maps if I'm going somewhere I've not been before. I can set up a route, put my headphones on, put the phone in my pocket, and the instructions are spoken. I might need to stop and check, or use the phone holder on my bike to show the route sometimes, but with headphones, it works very well.

In winter, I like my earphones because they keep my ears warm.

My husband is very very sensitive to noise, to the point, he wears earplugs when we are out, especially around the kids, who are very loud when they play together. He also uses his over ear headphones to cut out as much audible stimulation as he can, both on the bike and just walking around. He finds unwanted or sudden noise physically painful, he clamps his arms around his head in pain. After being prescribed SSRI's a few years ago, he is left with severe ticks, which are now worst when he is subjected to sudden crashes or bangs. Taking the family out on outings in public is...fun...and we have been very limited when it comes to choosing holiday destinations. Headphones are what allows him to come to busy places like theme parks with the family. He also prefers to cycle with headphones on, and when we have the kids in the car, he wears his headphones to block out the kids chatter and concentrate on driving.

I like to do the supermarket shop with my headphones on too. I find it much easier to focus, I don't have to put up with the random shop music either. I see too much of what is going on around me, I hear everything, I notice too much, so it cuts it out. Not long ago, I was shopping in my local supermarket, as usual headphones on, music playing. I saw a man in front of me ask a sporky teenage shelf stacker where the bbq coals where, the sporky young shelfstacker looked terrified, looked around, ummed and arred, so I walked over, moved my headphone to one side and said, in Dutch, "Houtskool is in de aanbieding, rechtdoor, tussen de alcohol en de freezers". He smiled and thanked me, the shop assistant thanked me too.
So shutting myself off enough to allow me to focus on daily tasks better, doesn't mean I have shut myself completely, more dialed the world down a bit.

My point is, wearing headphones or earbuds can be something that makes normal life more possible is as much a choice for some, as for others it would be unthinkable. Modern life has it's challenges, and that includes being able to accept that not everyone does as you do. If it's not hurting you, or anyone else, mind your own business.

When I ride, I want to stay alive, I have my feckless moments, the odd near miss, but not because I'm wearing headphones, because I'm human. The worst crash I had in London, I wasn't wearing them, I was blindsided by a car turning right and left for dead. I rode 100 miles a week on average in London, knew it like the back of my hand, all times of the day and night. Being a woman travelling from Bow to Battersea at 2am was safest by bike, I was invisible in the best possible way. No cab drivers or night busses for me. Was it my ADHD that made me take risks others wouldn't? Or was it my ability to think outside the box? Cycling for an hour flies by with a good mix of music.

Not having an ADHD diagnosis does not make you immune. In fact, turns out there are many un-diagnosed adults out there. I have several female friends with ADHD who love driving and are very good drivers. I don't think the condition can define whether or not you are a good road user or not, but how you do it, it got that way for a reason.

One thing I have learnt about how the brain and stimulation works, is that being slightly on edge can make a sluggish brain more efficient. An element of risk will make the processor work better, increase the amount of dopamine I'm getting, as does music or the radio. For some at least, knowing what helps or hinders is just part of growing up.

If you know your ears are occupied, or impaired, you use your eyes more. In a car, you are insulated from almost all exterior noise. Any kind of complacency when moving at speed is dangerous, as cars got more comfortable at speed, they needed more safety features. The trouble is, those safety features are for the occupants benefit, not for the thing they hit. So separation from motor traffic is the only way to be safe as a cyclist.

Headphones and earbuds are not a distraction for the cyclist, they are a distraction for the conversation around cyclists, a reason to judge them. The fact is, fallibility is a fact of life. Headphones don't effect your eyes or your ability to ride or turn your head and check what's coming.

Segregation is what keeps cyclists safe, indeed designing road infrastructure that allows for an element of fallibility is what keeps us all safe. No matter how your brain works.