Got Anxiety Behind the Wheel? How to Overcome a Driving Phobia

Got Anxiety Behind the Wheel? How to Overcome a Driving Phobia

A phobia is a fear of an activity, object, or situation that is in
excess to the inherent dangerousness of the feared thing.[1] A
driving phobia is likely to be enormously detrimental to your life
because it will stop you from going to places you need to be (such
as shopping, appointments, etc.) and can even interfere with jobs
requiring driving as part of the work.

If your anxiety behind the wheel is controlling you and preventing you
from driving with ease, or even at all, it's important to face the
phobia so you're able get back behind the wheel with confidence. Here
are some suggestions to help you overcome your driving phobia.

!! Steps !!

Understand how phobias arise. Phobias can be genetic in nature,
although a phobia about driving is probably not likely to have this
cause; however, if you're a parent displaying this phobia, it can be
easily passed on to your children.[2] Phobias are also grounded in
witnessing or experiencing something traumatic and then developing an
avoidance to doing or dealing with the feared object or situation. A
driving phobia could develop gradually or quickly,[3] and might arise
because of the following experiences or situations:

* You were involved in, or witnessed, a car accident.

* You were yelled at or provoked a lot when trying to learn to drive
a car.

* You were a victim of, or even a perpetrator of, road rage.

* You find the stress of traffic build-ups unbearable.[4]

* You made a dangerous or frightening journey that didn't result in
an accident but could have and caused high anxiety; for example,
driving in deep snow, driving on black ice, driving through an
area renowned for moose or deer populations, animals jumped in
front of your car (but narrowly missed), heavy rain, fog, or smoke
made your driving very difficult, etc.

* You are frightened by reading or hearing news stories about bad
vehicle accidents.

Seek to recognize symptoms of a phobia in yourself. When suffering
from a phobia, you can experience a range of emotions and physical
reactions, some of which are mild, some of which can be
debilitating. Common phobia responses include:

* Stopping the activity altogether – you might not even be able to
drive a car anymore; or, you may never have even sat for a license
or tried to drive a car.

* Feeling physical reactions such as sweating, headaches, tingling
lips, chest pains, heart palpitations, nauseated and a desire to
vomit, actual vomiting, dry throat, feeling faint, "jelly" legs,
dizziness, etc.[5][6]

* Feeling surreal or displaced, as if it's not you undertaking the
activity but someone else, or you feel as if you're automated
rather than switched on. In its most dangerous form, these
feelings can be accompanied by thoughts about swerving across the
road into the path of another vehicle with feelings you can't stop
yourself from doing so.[7]

* There may be feelings that the car is unbalanced, that it'll tip
over as you go around corners, or will slip off the road down an
embankment or cliff, etc.[8] Braking a lot when braking isn't
needed is a common reaction from anxious drivers, even down to
doing this suddenly in the middle of a lot of traffic.[9]

* You plan driving trips that are very elaborate and perhaps even
much longer than needed, just in order to avoid dreaded roads,
especially freeways and motorways, or any intersections and other
areas where there is a lot of traffic.[10]

* You may become argumentative with someone who wants you to drive
them somewhere and rather than owning up to being afraid, you find
all sorts of excuses and difficult reasons to avoid it.

Seek advice and help. It can be very hard to overcome a phobia on
your own, especially if you've let it grow over a period of time
but phobias can be easily treated and not seeking help will cause
you to suffer needlessly.[11] Your driving phobia renders you
vulnerable because your judgment can be easily clouded when
driving when you seek any way out of whatever makes you anxious
while driving (such as avoiding freeways, speeding up to get away
from cars or trucks, feeling dizzy in narrow tunnels, etc.).[12]
See your doctor first and discuss your feelings, so that your
doctor can confirm that you have a phobia. Your doctor will
probably then recommend a course of action that includes seeing a
therapist who deals with cognitive reprogramming. In conjunction
with the help you're gaining from such a person, the remaining
steps will help you to overcome your driving phobia.

* Choose therapy according to what feels best for you in conjunction
with talking to your doctor. You might also talk to anyone else
you know who has been treated for a driving phobia or anxiety to
see what they did to overcome it. The person or persons you choose
to help you must be empathetic; sometimes people don't understand
how frightening a driving phobia can be because driving is such a
common activity; if the person helping you seems to feel this way,
find someone more sympathetic.

* Seek to talk. Talking about your phobia is important because it is
a key means of facing it and having to accept that you need to do
something about it. At least one of your therapy choices should
involve talking.

* Consider driving school or defensive driving classes. Some people
specialize in helping anxious drivers return to the road, with
practical, hands-on lessons in safe places that graduate out into
the roads or places you fear most. Look them up online or in the
phone book and talk with them about what they offer.

Avoid black and white, or absolutist, thinking. Convincing yourself
that being in a car will attract a car accident is a type of black
and white thinking. It often arises after the "one trial learning"
of being involved in a single car accident.[13] Basically, you're
suggesting to yourself that when you're not in the car, you're safe
from car accidents, but when you're in a car, you'll have one. And
while saying things like "roads are dangerous" and "long distance
driving is dangerous" might be factual truths, repeating these
statements over and over to yourself as justifications for avoiding
driving does nothing to alleviate the potential dangers; it simply
confirms the problem and avoids the reality that you can do things
to minimize the dangers.

* Accept that driving is inherently dangerous if done irresponsibly.
In turn, drive responsibly. Drive with care, always be alert, and
know your limitations. Never drink and drive. If you're tired,
that's a good reason to pull over and rest or to wait until you're
not tired before driving. But being tired is not a reason for
never driving again; it's a state that will pass.

Learn to reduce your tension when at the wheel. When you're tense
and nervous, you restrict the information being received and acted
upon by your brain.[14] Practice relaxing before you drive. If you
notice yourself tensing up as you're driving, tighten consciously
and then let go of all tension consciously. Keep doing this until
it becomes a second nature to relax every time you notice yourself
becoming tense. Without the tension, you'll be a safer driver,
thereby managing the driving experience far more effectively.

* If you can't learn to relax by yourself, ask your therapist for
help in practicing this.

* If you suffer from panic attacks, learn to cope with them. Getting
your anxiety under control will benefit you generally, not just
for driving.

Drive somewhere it's easy to take breaks to begin with. Return to
driving in a graduated fashion. If you haven't been driving, it might
be helpful to return to driving slowly, building up by small steps.
Only do this if you've confronted the physical and emotional phobia
reactions with your therapist first.[15]

* Sit in the car and familiarize yourself with everything again.
Move the gears, the steering wheel, the indicators, etc.

* Take small trips on local roads that you're really familiar with.
Gradually increase the time you're driving from home to another
place. Take regular breaks, such as a 10 minute break after every
5 minutes of driving.[16] Try writing down what is good about
driving and what is not. For anything that doesn't feel good, find
solutions.

* Drive further onto less familiar roads. Only do this once you're
convinced that you don't need to get back home in a hurry because
you're panicking.

* Drive on motorways, freeways, highways, or other busy roads again.
Have someone with you when you do this again and take it very
slowly. Know where all the exits are in advance so that you can
get off quickly if needed (use a GPS navigator to help you).

* Help yourself by making things easier. Have adequate parking money
so that you can drive into a paid parking lot instead of having to
struggle at the end of your journey looking for a cheap or free
park. The extra money spent on the easy parking option can be
worth it as you can use the time to calm down and reassure
yourself that you did well after a hard drive.

Use affirmations to confirm that you're doing the right thing
while driving. Affirmations are a way of reassuring yourself that
you're in a good situation. With driving, the type of affirmations
that you might want to use include:[17]

* I am driving carefully and within the speed limit. Careful driving
is safe driving.

* Driving is a common, everyday activity. I am an alert driver
participating in a common activity with care.

* I do not have to drive fast, I can drive in the right hand lane if
I want to travel slower than other cars.

* I do not have to risk switching lanes at the last minute. If I
miss a turn off, I can double back somewhere that is safe to do
so.

* I have planned this journey from start to finish. I know where I
am headed and when I have to make lane changes and turn offs. I am
well prepared.

Ensure the car is in great shape. Make changes to the car to improve
the safety of your driving. There are a number of things you can do
to help increase your sense of safety in the car:

* Check that your rear vision mirror is aligned properly every
single time you get in the car to drive.

* Check that your wing mirrors are aligned properly every single
time you get in the car to drive.

* Adjust the seat according to how it feels. During the day, your
posture tends to change with increasing tiredness, so make
adjustments for this by improving your seat positioning.

* Get broken things fixed immediately. Whenever anything fails in
your car, have it repaired straight away; even if the car is still
able to be driven, having impaired car parts is dangerous and can
potentially cause damage to other parts of the car, or cause
accidents. Even a broken wing mirror or a single headlight can be
dangerous. Set your mind at ease with quick repairs.

* Practice Zen driving. Zen driving can help you to relax and go
with the flow. This may be enough to help you overcome some of, if
not all of, your fear.

!! Tips !!

* If you find you can't even stand being a passenger in a car, the
return to driving will be even harder for you. Try to start with
drivers you trust and know will drive with the greatest of care,
then slowly work your way back to the driver's seat with the
trusted driver as your passenger.

* Desensitization through Eyes Movement Desensitization and
Reprocessing (EMDR) might assist with a driving phobia.[18] Ask
your therapist for information.

* Other forms of treatment that can help include hypnotherapy, NLP,
and EFT.

* Play relaxing music in the car. This can help some people to
overcome a sense of rising panic by tuning in to the music instead
of the traffic noise.

!! Warnings !!

* Avoid avoiding the inevitable; a phobia has you in its grip until
you choose to deal with it. The sooner you seek help, the sooner
you can return to enjoying a normal life.

* There doesn't seem to one single fix-for-everyone who has a
driving phobia. This is hardly surprising as we're all unique and
the reasons contributing to our phobia will all be sourced
differently. The main thing is to try different things when other
things don't work for you, until you hit upon what works for you,
or what combination works for you. Don't give up – keep trying
as phobias are treatable.

!! Things You'll Need !!

* Comfortable seat, possibly a driver's cushion

* Car in recently serviced condition, no repairs needed

!! Related WikiHows !!

* How to Practice Zen Driving

* How to Drive a Car

* How to Drive Your Hybrid in California Carpool Lanes

* How to Avoid Annoying Other Drivers

* How to Pass Your Driving Test

* How to Overcome the Fear of Driving for the First Time

!! Sources And Citations !!

!! Article Tools !!

* Read on wikiHow

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