How Do you Deal With Anxiety While Driving?: A person may feel anxious about driving for various reasons. A variety of tips and treatments can help to win over fear and anxiety while driving.
Past experiences with anxiety problems may result in driving anxiety.
In this article, you will find driving anxiety and what may cause it. It also finds out symptoms, treatments, and options that may help someone overcome fear.
What is driving anxiety?
Phobia of driving a vehicle may cause a person to suffer from driving anxiety. It can lead to significant distress and affect someone’s everyday life. A person may suffer from emotional distress while driving and prevent certain situations on the road.
The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) defines a particular phobia as not a rational fear of something that carries little or unreal danger. It provides the idea that 12.5% of American adults feel a specific phobia at some point in their lives.
Person with driving anxiety, the idea of getting in a car may lead to symptoms of anxiety. Additionally, a person may try to prevent situations where they require to drive or get into a vehicle. This alone can cause extra symptoms of stress or fear.
Keep in mind that driving anxiety is an unofficial situation in the Diagnostic and Manual of Mental Disorders, DSM-5. However, a person may have a phobia related to driving anxiety. Amaxophobia is a fear of being in a vehicle; it can be for a driver or passenger, and nomophobia is known to be a fear of driving.
Additionally, a healthcare expert may find a person with generalized anxiety disorder or an alternate mental health condition if signs interfere with a person’s everyday activities. [How Do you Deal With Anxiety While Driving?]
Causes of driving anxiety
For some people, driving anxiety may result from being in a road accident or witnessing one. According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA), most driving phobias are the result of an accident.
Following are some common fears and causes of anxiety about driving.
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Past negative experiences
A person may not be able to forget past negative experiences they have had in a vehicle and fear that the same case will play out again. For examples:
- Driving through bad weather, such as a storm, snow, or fog
- Being a victim of road rage
- Having a panic attack while driving
- Getting lost
Existing anxiety disorders
People who suffer from anxiety disorder may experience factors while driving. Such as, GAD may cause someone to have difficulty focussing or taking decisions while driving. This may impact the person losing confidence in their driving ability.
In addition, someone who is facing significant stress or life changes may be susceptible to driving anxiety.
Driving alone in an unfamiliar place
Some people may have fear in mind of getting lost while driving, breaking down, or their vehicle gas will run off. They may fear that their phone will lack a signal, and they will be unable to get help if they need it.
In addition, people may feel worried driving alone at night or worry that they cannot see potential issues clearly when it is dark outside. [How Do you Deal With Anxiety While Driving?]
Fear of dying in an accident
Fear may cause a person to declare a worst-case situation and not trust their own or other drivers’ capabilities.
Even though someone may not have directly faced a car accident, their imagination may make them feel anxiety about the possibility of harm or dying in an accident.
Being trapped and having a panic attack
People with prior existing anxiety about being caught, like claustrophobia, may become anxious while stationary in traffic. Moreover, people who have had a past panic attack may worry that they will have one again while driving.
Losing control of the vehicle
Physical symptoms of anxiety, for example, a racing heartbeat and sweating, may result in someone believing they will lose control over their car and lead to an accident. A person may feel uncomfortable, clutching at the wheel and fearing what others thought of the process of other drivers.
Driving anxiety symptoms
People along with driving fear may experience the following issues, many of which are also results of a panic attack:
- A sudden and intense feeling of fear
- Sweating, racing heart, and trembling
- Feeling nauseous
- Dry mouth
- Shortness of breath
- Lightheadedness or feeling faint
In addition, some people may change their way to avoid driving or being in a vehicle, which can directly affect their life.
Treatment for driving anxiety
Psychotherapy may be helpful for someone to cure driving anxiety. The NIMH gives the idea that many types of psychotherapy may help a person to know and change certain emotions, ideas, and behaviors.
A person may wish to speak with a healthcare professional about cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), counseling, or mindfulness techniques.
Exposure therapy
A 2018 review helps to know that healthcare professionals often use exposure therapy to cure particular fears. Exposure therapy is called desensitization therapy.
The treatment contains a therapist exposing a person to their fear in a safe and controlled environment to get out of their fear.
A 2020 study found the effects of virtual reality exposure therapy on forteen people with a fear of driving. The method contains:
- Two preparative psychotherapy sessions
- 5 virtual reality exposure sessions
- A final behavioral prevention test in real traffic
- A closing session
- Two follow-up phone tests after 6 and 12 weeks
The authors found that all participants experienced driving tasks they had prevented before, and 72% showed proper driving behavior when analyzed by a driving instructor. [How Do you Deal With Anxiety While Driving?]
Other strategies for anxiety
Maintaining a healthy lifestyle may help someone with driving anxiety manage their symptoms.
The ADA suggests people who faced anxiety to utilise the following strategies:
- talking with a partner, friend, or doctor about their anxiety
- becoming aware of what develops anxiety by keeping a journal
- Being active, having a balanced diet, and always having meals to avoid skipping
- Avoiding caffeine, which can trigger anxiety symptoms
Alternatives to driving
Someone with driving anxiety may prefer alternatives, like using public transportation. Walking may be a healthier and safer option for shorter trips.
However, people in rural areas may have less access to public transport, and walking may not be an option for people with certain disabilities.
What causes anxiety?
Anxiety includes a person feeling disproportionately distressed and fearful in response to an emotional factor. Anxiety can have a large range of impacts. These can contain environmental, genetic, and medical factors.
A range of factors can maximize the likelihood of feeling anxious. These factors may be internal, including genetics, or external, involving ecological concerns.
Feelings of anxiety and anxiety disorders are alike. Anxiety is an emotion developed by tension, fear thoughts, and physical characteristics, for example, increased blood pressure. An anxiety disorder includes recurring, intrusive concerns and other specific criteria that result in a diagnosis.
This article explores several causes of anxiety.