As a 30+ year Mental Health professional, I hear this issue a lot. Many times it spoils a trip or a spouse will refuse to go on a trip unless they can drive to feel in control of the driving experience. Or a client will make up elaborate excuses why they can’t go to avoid having to tell something the real reason they don’t want to go is because they don’t like the feeling that driving anxiety bring up for them or that driving anxiety is ruining their life.
The most common thing I hear, is that a past experiences of an accident or seeing an accident is now conjuring up fears, that this drive event will have the same outcome.
I also see that many clients will start with an anxiety in one area of their life, like a fear of crowds and it expands into other areas of their life like driving.
The issues and the treatment is to look at what they are thinking or telling themselves in the moment about the experience that contributes to driving anxiety.
Mostly what I hear from clients are a worst-case scenario thought about what COULD happen; We will have an accident and die or be maned for life. This thought creates fear in them or anxiety enough that this discourages them from the experience at hand. Once they start down this imagined path of negative thinking, they are actual strengthening the fear. Or they are reinforcing the possibility that something bad might happen, with a self-fulling prophecy. Instead of using their logic to look at probabilities to help their brain find other ways to look at the situation to reassure themselves.
This article discusses driving anxiety and what may cause it. It also explores symptoms, treatments, and alternative strategies that may help someone manage the condition. If this issue interferes with your life experiences, please reach out to a professional for help.
Final thoughts about Driving Anxiety Ruining your Life:
The problem with safety behaviors, like fear while driving, is that they give your brain the false impression that you would be unsafe without them. "Good thing you checked traffic," your brain tells you, "or that might have gone badly." As a result, you continue to feel that driving is extremely dangerous and must be closely managed by avoiding it so that nothing terrible happens.
The problem is that you are missing out on moments in life that you can not replace with family and friends.
It is better to learn some new skills to manage your fear thoughts to feel more in control of yourself.
Use a >Video 3 Step Course on how to Crush Panic Attacks with Joanne Williams, LCSW< Learn from a 30-year mental health professional. Click the link to take your first steps out of having panic attacks forever. In this course, the 2nd step teaches the Vagus breathing, to get that immediate calming.
Contact Joanne Williams for a free 10-minute consultation on you best next step at 760-485-6784.
Disclaimer: This article is by no means a replacement for medical attention or therapy. Please take care of your mental health.
Animals can Boost Your Self-Esteem. How you can get a certified confidence animalIt’s not difficult to see the many benefits that animals offer and we will present many benefits. There is plenty of research on medical benefits and how they increase our self-esteem.1 Is there Research that proves that Animals Boost your Self-esteem?Not only is well-being
Read More
1 How do we know when we crossed that line?Crossing this line can cause success or self-destruction- Learn to know the difference. This can be confusing because we’ve all been told throughout our lives to be confident. We must stand up straight and look people in the eye. At the same time, we’re also told to
Read More
When you think of confidence, what comes to mind? Do you think of arrogance as confidence? We will examine both Arrogance vs Confidence. The visual — and even behavioral — distinction between confidence and arrogance is hard to pinpoint. When you try to imagine it, you likely think of a person that embodies each of these
Read More
As a 30+ year Mental Health professional, I hear this issue a lot with clients. They will be upset, or their spouse is upset because their anxiety spoils a trip, or the client will refuse to go on a trip unless they can drive to feel in control of the driving experience. Many times a client
Read More
How Meditation Can Help You Achieve Unwavering Confidence When have you experienced a moment of feeling really really good about yourself….don’t you want that feeling to continue? Maybe it was something you accomplished after dedicating a lot of time and effort to it. Or perhaps it was just a moment in time when you shined brighter
Read More
Do you ever feel like you can’t succeed, no matter how hard you try? Do fear and self-doubt hinder your ability to reach for the things that excite or motivate you? If so, then it’s time to take control of your inner critic with a simple but powerful formula for boosting self confidence. In this
Read More