How to Overcome the Psychological Fear of Driving a Car

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Most often afraid of what is unknown and unknown. Getting behind the car wheel for the first time can be compared to playing poker or any other gambling game. At first, it feels intimidating to create a new Playamo login, but when you get used to placing bets, it becomes much more exciting. However, without overcoming his fear, a person is unlikely to be able to move from the category of pedestrians to the status of the driver. Moreover, with the right approach, the fear of driving a car, as well as other human phobias, is surmountable.

Who Is More Afraid?

Regardless of gender or age, a large category of people, after taking a driving course, can never get behind the wheel because of a fear of driving a car. Unable to cope with their fear, having a car in their luggage and a driver’s license in their wallet, a person remains frightened both by the sight of the car itself and by the thought of getting into it and driving down the street.

There is another category of novice drivers who manage to force themselves to get behind the wheel, but drive with great indecision and hide their fear of driving. This incompatibility of a person with the car, stiff behavior on the road will never allow such a person to become a full-fledged driver and improve their driving skills.

More often women traditionally belong to such a category. It’s typical for them not only to learn the wisdom of the driving craft with difficulty, but also to be indecisive and slow at the wheel. By and large, such behavior is primarily determined by the biological characteristics of the female body, particularly the brain, vision. However, it is safe to say that if a woman has coped with her fear and has begun to “feel” the road and the car, then the chance to become an experienced driver is definitely guaranteed to her.

With the right approach, the fear of driving a car, as well as other human phobias, is overcome.

But don’t think that the “driving” fear bypasses men. Stress associated with driving a car, and subjected to males. It’s believed that a man is not destined to demonstrate his fear, emotions and worries. Such a judgment from the category of delusion plays a cruel joke, because the mentality of such containment has a harmful effect. Having no outlet, emotions “hit” the physical health, endangering the digestive and nervous systems, heart function. It’s no coincidence, and for this reason among others, that life expectancy among men is much lower than among women.

What Are Men Most Often Afraid of

Fears are individual and may arise where you least expect them, and continue to live as long as you want. Fears associated with driving a car are also varied: from the fear of the car itself, to the fear of the possibility of getting into an accident, of making a hit-and-run. And remember also that the novice driver has to endure stress associated with the beginning of training, perception of new information, and mastering of driving skills. The subsequent stress arises during the exam.

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Being behind the wheel of the car for the first time without an instructor, the freshman driver can be simply scared even to start the car and move from the place. The car is the means of transportation, which usage is connected with the risk to life. By realizing it, a person also understands the whole measure of responsibility, which he bears for his life and the lives of his passengers.

This fear is sometimes aggravated by the fact that during practical training the instructor could make harsh remarks about driving errors. Thus, being left alone at the wheel, the driver may feel insecure, not the least of which is the former negative assessment of the instructor.

Nervousness can also increase the strong reaction of other drivers to unsure driving actions of the beginner. Having hesitated at a traffic light or a turn, such a driver may hear behind his back “unhappy” beeps of neighboring cars. Besides annoyance at his sluggishness, this indecisive driver is afraid to hear reproaches and unflattering words from others, which may also shake his self-esteem.

Fear of driving can easily appear in a driver who has not sat behind the wheel for several years. Doubting their own strength and skill, such a person is just as likely to become overly cautious on the road.

Fears don’t go away without a trace. By intensifying and aggravating, the fear leads to a state of constant stress. A person who can not cope with such phobias, staying all the time in a stressful state, most likely to “earn” himself more than one disease, will become nervous, maybe even aggressive or vice versa. And most likely, such a driver will never drive a car.

How to Overcome the Fear of Driving

What should such a distressed driver do? To begin with, it’s necessary to understand and realize whether you really want to drive a car, or all the same at the subconscious level in you is the aversion to the fact of driving. After all, the appearance of such a contradiction: The “I want” (from the side of the mind) and “I don’t want” (from the side of the subconsciousness) precisely leads to the fact that the psyche responds with a reaction of rejection, fear or stress.

Psychologists associate fear of driving with low self-esteem of the driver. Certainly, as a person grows up, it becomes more and more difficult to change their vision of themselves, but it’s possible and necessary to raise self-esteem regardless of age.

Go the Way of the Little Diners

Your accomplishments, visible sometimes only to you, can create an overall positive mood and give you the opportunity to boost your self-esteem. Psychologists also advise smiling to yourself in the mirror more often and engaging in auto-training.

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You should start to work with your fear by admitting to yourself that this fear exists, that this specific fear of driving, and no other. After that, you can change your attitude to the situation and work on building self-confidence.

Say No to the Particle “No”

When talking to yourself mentally, try to avoid using the negative particle “no.” Scientists believe that our psyche does not perceive such a word, and then the seemingly negative phrase “I am not afraid” becomes quite affirmative “I am afraid.” Try to find the right attitude for yourself. Perhaps, for your own greater confidence, say them by ear; if you are shy, do it alone with yourself.

Think Positively

Change your thoughts from decadent-negative to positive and try to maintain it in this tone for as long as possible.

Use Visualization

If you’re afraid of a particular event, say a car accident, try using a visualization technique. Mentally “dramatize” a dangerous moment on the road and imagine that you act clearly and correctly, skillfully get out of the situation. And, however, for “prevention” it’s better to visualize the moments of your confident and masterful driving, and it will become such later.

Take Breaks

Driving, even for an experienced driver, is often stressful. There are enough stress factors on our roads. Not giving in to stress is hard, and it may even be futile. But the ability to get out of such a nervous state as quickly as possible is a very real skill, mastering which is in your own interest. The main thing is to learn to listen to their feelings, and when the situation on the road strongly “strained” your nerves, stop, if possible, calm down and continue driving. After all, the psyche, irritated by stress, is a bad adviser and helper.

Practice

The method of visualization, realized directly in the “scenery” will also help you. That is, you can sit behind the wheel of the car without turning on the gas, try to imagine yourself directly in the process of driving, see how you switch gears, pick up speed, and slow down at the right moment.

Ask for Help

If you are already in bad shape and you cannot get rid of fear, ask a skilled driver, one of your family members or friends to accompany you during the trip by car. Perhaps the presence of an experienced person will help you consolidate the skills learned in the driving school, and the words of approval will raise your self-esteem and inspire new strength in you. Only getting used to such an escort is still not worth it, because you will now need to rely only on their strength and skill.

Change the Perception of the Process

Try to change the angle of perception of yourself and learn to present yourself correctly. Even if you’ve just started learning to drive, talk about yourself not as an inexperienced driver, but as a driver gaining experience. Your own self-confidence will be transmitted to the people around you, who, seeing such calmness, will treat you with respect, regardless of your occasional mistakes.

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