A phobia is a general fear of an action, activity or an object. The most commonly known ones are water phobia, height/ depth phobia and animal phobia. But, did you know that driving comes with some related phobia among some people? Yes, this is the surprising truth. Many people have a serious driving phobia and cannot take to the highways with their hands on the driving wheel! It is inconceivable how such people would possibly survive in the current human life set up. A society that is heavily reliant on motorized transport, where cars will soon outnumber people.
Take the lane that allows you to travel at lower and manageable speeds
Image Source: en.wikipedia.org
If this is your predicament, sit back. We have solutions and suggestions that will surely help you overcome this phobia and will see you becoming the driver you thought you would be. By sticking to these suggested solutions, you have real chances of subduing that fear of driving.
1. Know the root of your phobia
We recommend that you seek to understand why you fear driving. For instance, did you witness or experience a traumatizing incident involving cars? Were you roughly recruited to driving-mistreated by fellow motorists? Or did you cause a grisly road accident. Whatever it is, understanding the root is a critical step in solution finding.
2. Seek psychiatric assistance
The next step after identifying what is ailing you, is to look for assistance. Phobias are mental conditions that are developed from experience or intuition. A psychiatrist can help you overcome the effects of whatever causes you the fear while driving.
3. Shift your thinking lines
The next monumental step towards this recovery is the willingness to view things from a different perspective. Shedding off the things that make you develop the fear and looking from a new way to view driving. For instance, accidents are not automatic on the road. They may happen, but they are not guaranteed. For this reason, learn to embrace safe driving skills voluntarily.
4. Prioritize on tension reduction
Driving phobia is exponentially aggravated by tension while on the driving seat. This call for the personal effort to take all steps that will minimize the tension. Firstly, identify the ways in which you demonstrate the fear. Possibly through sweating, shaking, feeling that your car is unbalanced, headaches, among others. To cool off the tension, take some water, turn on slow music and possibly take some chewing gum.
5. Start low, finish later
It is now time to take driving like a new driver. Start by driving in rural less-traffic roads. Exercise all the road driving rules there. For instance, perform preliminary checks on the car before embarking on a journey. Adhere to safe driving conventions, and concentrate on the task ahead-driving.
A woman driving unsafely
Image source: www.sheknows.com
6. Look for a co-driver
The final step in getting back to professional driving without the fear is looking for another driver to take you through initial driving outings. Such a driver confirms your conduct in the car and recommends on what needs improvement.
Thus, you are now back to driving without fear!
