How to Deal with Driving Anxiety
Driving anxiety is a very common form of anxiety that can range in severity from a hesitation to drive , where anxiety is always present , all the way up to a total refusal to drive at all , in which case it becomes driving phobia . A phobia is a fear that is paralyzing but irrational . Driving phobia is one of the most common phobias . Driving phobia is a form of agoraphobia , literally defined as is the fear of open spaces . But it ' s not the fear of open spaces that scares people , it ' s the fear of loss of control . People with a driving phobia fear being trapped in a traffic jam and unable to escape if they experience a panic attack , likewise , they also fear passing out , losing control of the vehicle , throwing up or getting into an accident . For many people , driving next to big trucks can be very nerve racking , as can be merging on the freeway or driving in the fast lane .
Driving Anxiety Symptoms
Symptoms of driving anxiety or phobia are similar to those of most other forms of anxiety : heart palpitations , perspiring and sweaty palms , disorientation , confusion , dizziness , dry mouth and shortness of breath . This is the classic " fight or flight response ". Sometimes people feel that they are going to die or go crazy . This can be really scary and people will avoid driving to avoid these kind of intense feelings . Of course , these are just feelings and even the most severe panic attacks don ' t cause any long term ill effects . Obviously , this can seriously impact a person ' s ability to function on a daily basis if they need to drive to work or drive for a living , especially here in Southern California where driving is necessary to get anywhere fast . Driving anxiety can start in many ways . Usually a person has experienced an incident such as a car accident or " close call " and that memory is still causing the subconscious mind to be protective . Sometimes , although not often , this kind of anxiety can show up seemingly out of the blue . If you are a person that is prone to anxiety or fear , then driving may just be one place where this shows up . In addition , episodes of low blood sugar can create anxiety which can become associated with driving , if you happen to be driving when the low blood sugar takes place . Low blood sugar can be caused from not eating or after eating a meal high in simple carbs or sugar . This is especially true for those that have family histories of diabetes or hypoglycemia . Driving anxiety can turn into a phobia though avoidance . In other words , of you have some fear of driving and you decide to stop altogether , it becomes a full blown phobia and the more you avoid it , the harder it is to get back in the saddle , so to speak . The good news is , fear of driving is a learned behavior . If