Do you feel anxious or panicky when you are behind the wheel? Driving-related anxiety and panic can be a significant source of stress and prevent you from getting where you need to go. While it may seem like an impossible challenge, there are some simple steps you can take to help you conquer your driving-related anxiety and panic.
This article will discuss the various ways to manage and overcome driving-related anxiety and panic related to intensive driving courses. You can learn to handle your fear and drive with confidence through mindfulness, cognitive-behavioural therapy, and lifestyle changes.
When driving anxiety increases, drivers may avoid specific situations or stop altogether. Cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT), one of the best strategies to deal with driving-related fear and avoidance is to confront the scenarios in which the person is frightened of panicking.
Pay Attention to the Road Ahead
When driving tensely, you regularly map out the entire journey. You can plan the route ahead of time, paying attention to bridges along the way. You can relive the worst parts of your trip as you’re on the road. The entire drive is too much for you, not just the road in front of you.
The mind naturally wants to project into the future and ensure that everything will proceed as planned. Therefore, it takes practice. Concentrating on sensory perceptions, like seeing the road before you and feeling your hands on the wheel, may keep your attention in the present.
Ignore Your Gut Instincts
Because of our concerns, we occasionally discover essential information from an introductory driving course that keeps us safe. But, sometimes, our worries are unjustified. When we are worried, we usually fall into the trap of thinking that the simple fact that we feel threatened proves that we are actually in danger. The problem with this notion is that our bodies and thoughts can give us a false sense of danger.
Do Away with Avoidance
Our brains assume that certain items must be dangerous because we avoid them since we wouldn’t otherwise. This happens every time we avoid something we’re afraid of. No matter how much you attempt to rationalise and talk yourself out of your anxieties, nothing rewires the brain like personal experience. The best technique to train your nervous system so that it doesn’t need to activate the panic alarm is to put yourself in uncomfortable situations. This strategy is known as “exposure” in CBT.
CBT for panic disorder also employs techniques like challenging one’s thinking and breathing deeply. If you have experienced frequent anxiety or panic episodes while driving, speak with your doctor or a mental health expert about effective techniques to lessen your fear.
Challenge Certain Presumptions
Even though calamity has never occurred on your previous visits, panic may make you believe it is waiting for you on the highway. It’s simple for worry to persuade us that “next time it’s going to be bad”—that we’ll be stressed out and “go crazy” or “lose control”—is imminent when we are experiencing anxiety. But none of your worst nightmares has materialised thus far.
This is not intended to imply that your anxieties won’t materialise. One can be stranded between levels if one uses elevators frequently enough. A bridge will soon become congested if you use it often. While in the middle of a long tunnel, traffic may stop totally.
Nevertheless, none of these factors generates worry about what happens next. Our anxiety informs us that if we were in such a circumstance, the panic would undoubtedly result in some terrible event happening. If your panic attacks get particularly acute, fear and panic are the most likely feelings you’ll feel.
Conclusion
With time and patience, overcoming the fear and anxiety associated with driving and regaining confidence is possible. It is also beneficial to be mindful of your thoughts and behaviour in driving school and to be patient and kind to yourself. Driving-related anxiety and panic are issues that can be managed and conquered with the right approach.
The ENA Driving School’s mission is straightforward: learning to drive should be fun until you pass your driving test. Most importantly, we want to ensure you have the knowledge to drive confidently and safely for the rest of your life. We also want to promote speedy learning among students. Get intensive driving courses today!