Big Phobia: Driving. How do I overcome it?

Question:

I have not gotten my driver's licence yet because I have a difficult time getting myself into the driver's seat of a vehicle without having what I would consider close to a panic attack or a nervous breakdown. Some of this might stem from a father who tended to be violent in the car (because he pretty much had the family 'trapped' in the car when he was driving) when I was younger. Other possibilities could be fears of crashing and hurting someone or something just unknown to me.

I would like some suggestions on how to help deal/overcome this phobia. I am out of high school and I have managed to simply walk everywhere's I've needed to for the last few years, however, it is getting to the point that I will not be able to do this anymore. Mainly it is hindering what jobs I can take. Talking with a psychologist is not an option at the moment as that would take a car to get there.

Answers:
hi randomnight

i think the best that u can do is first get into the drivers seat and just get comfortable sitting there. put ur seatbelt on, and play with the gears (if its a stick) and just imagine yourself driving. think about nothing else except you and the car and driving. once u get comfy in the drivers seat, try starting the car and get used to that. dont think about your dad, cos he's not there with you and i assume he will never be with you in the car. go to a place where u can be far away from him. take one step at a time. play some relaxing music in the car and thing of things that relax you. you can do this if you put your mind to it and take it easy.

do this for yourself and show the person that hurt you that you are worth more than that and proe that u can overcome anything.

i hope this helps you.

Other Answers:
The only way to overcome a fear is by facing it. Get a trusted friend with an old care and find an empty parking lot. Start there and work you way up.

Try sleeping in the car for a night, you don't need to have the keys in the ignition or anything like that. If you can sleep there you should be able to be relaxed there. If that doesn't work you could always get a bike. If you can't do psychiatrist try hypnotherapy. Where you get hypnotized out of your fear of whatever. It might help you figure out why you are afraid and take it away. lol. Maybe you can call one up to come to your house.

I have the same prob. I am also stubborn so I dont want to ever do it but I know I'll get to it sometime. Im 22, and a few friends have offered to take me out to the country-that seems like the best idea for me.

I was very afraid of driving when I first started at 17. I was incredibly scared of getting into an accident whether with another car or some stationary object alongside the road. I cured myself of this fear by going on drives with my mom late at night (like at 2am) Since there weren't other cars on the road it was less stressful than it would be during the day. And then before my eighteenth birthday, I got my license and have been driving ever since.

I was afraid and a co worker told me she was afraid but she just got in the car and forced herself to drive a little each day untill she was no longer scared. She said "It's just something you got to do." I did not get my license untill I was 21 though and I never did overcome my fear. I get in a car and I am scared but I turn on a station I like and just drive. Remembe it is OK to have a fear just don't let yor fear have you. It may help if you have a good trusted friend in the passenger seat who can instruct you. The only way to overcome a phobia is to immerse yourself in it. It takes a lot of self control and confidence in yourself that you can handle it.

Try sitting in the car without the car keys anywhere near you or the car. This will help you believe that nothing can go wrong. Visualise driving slowly and cautiously. Go through all the motions as if you were really driving while constantly reminding yourself that nothing can go wrong while you are in there. It should help you become more comfortable within the confines of your vehicle.

Hire a driving instructor.someone who knows everything about driving, someone who wont judge you if you screw up.and is able to tell you exactly what you are doing wrong, and how to fix it. Plus he/she will be able to prepare you for your driving test. hullo
if your phobia is not based on a previous car accident(previous trauma),then a behavioral approach is the best way in the form of shaping of behavior or successive approximation,to overcome your problem.
you should consider seeking psychological help,it is not a taboo you know.

Dr.solo Woah, I didn't know so many people had this phobia either!
I'm 21 and I waited so long to try to get my license that I've been stressing over it. ..But TODAY I drove my aunt all day long.even on the highway! I had been practicing a little before that though. Just make sure you get familiar with the car you're driving. Know where everything is and it's functions. Make sure the person who goes with you isn't the nervous type----that will make you nervous----trust me. My aunt is a freak. But I made it through and after some time on the road, i was relaxed. I found that talking to myself out loud about whta I was doing or about to do helped calm me a lot.
You just gotta do it. Make yourself. I haven't made my license yet either for the same reason as you and i am 26 years old.
I am scared i will wreck, i am scared someone will run into me, i am scared cause i have anxiety and nervousness and i do take medicine for that (xanax) and it does help.
I can drive a little bit but i am afraid to be in there by myself but when my husband is in there i want everything to be quiet and then their is my 4 year old son in the back so i am scared that i will hurt him by driving.

I am going to try to make my licsence sometime between now and when school starts back cause my son will be going to school for the 1st time and i need to drive cause i think what if he gets sick and needs picked up. I can't call on others to go and pick my son up for me and if my husband is at work then what you know.
So i am going to have to get over it for my son and myself cause i am stuck at the house all day long cause i can't drive well i don't have a license.
Just get a friend someone that won't scream at you while your trying to drive and go from there. Just drive like a mile then go longer the next time and so on until you are driving on your own without being scared.

Maybe you need something for anxiety and nervousness--go see a doctor for that.

i wish you and me both the best of luck to finally start driving and stop being so scared I didn't drive until I was 25 and on my third marriage (but that's really another story), because my grandmother and my mother never drove and were afraid and dependent on others, and I guess I thought that's just what women did. lol It can be done, though. My husband was very patient with me and not a nervous type. I learned well enough that within a couple of years I was confident enough to take a job with the post office (driving to deliver the mail) and to trade off driving with my husband when we went across the country! So hang in there. There is much good advice here. Practice and take it slow until you feel in control of the car and not vice versa. You will get there. I still have a few phobias, but I won't lay them on you. Don't want you to get any ideas, lol, and it does not keep me from driving, just makes me a bit more careful.

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Big Phobia: Driving. How do I overcome it?

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