Overcoming Driving Anxiety – My Latest Video Hypnotherapy Testimonial
Driving anxiety is one of the most common anxiety and fear related things that I help people with. Whereas you can try and avoid some things that cause you anxiety, like flying or public speaking, pretty much everyone needs to get in a car at some point.
And of course, driving anxiety can vary greatly from person to person. I’ve worked with those who haven’t driven much for a long period and find themselves getting anxious and worried even thinking about driving, let alone getting behind the wheel. And there are those who struggle and dread even being a passenger in a car, perhaps particularly on faster roads.
You may find that local roads are generally ok as the speed is much slower, there are places to pull over and you know your way around a bit. Yet when it comes to faster roads, like motorways and dual carriageways, most people with driving anxiety find that their fear, dread and worry rockets. Everything moves so much quicker, there is more to think about and you can’t just stop and pull over if you feel like you want to. People often feel trapped and out of control as their mind races to process everything going on within and around them. The anxiety can be so great that you may decide to avoid them altogether if you can, even if that means taking a much longer route.
And all of that driving anxiety and fear can cause stress, worry and frustration, particularly if it stops you going places or doing the things you want to do.
As you’ll have gathered from the title of this article, I’ve got a new hypnotherapy testimonial video that I’m excited to share with you today from someone who overcame their driving anxiety and is now confidently driving anywhere they want to .
Overcoming Driving Anxiety
Whilst some people experience an accident whilst in the car and find that, afterwards, the shock, trauma and fear of that has impacted on being in a car, many others can feel a bit confused as to how their driving anxiety even started. This can be particularly true if you’ve always been a confident driver in the past and then somehow start to find yourself filled with anxiety and fear.
Often what happens is that all the stress and worry from outside the car builds up and up and then seems to all ‘hit’ you while you are driving. All those other life stresses can take over and, in the pause whilst behind the wheel, they catch up with you and impact. Of course, driving does require concentration and focus and all those other things can cause you to feel distracted or out of control of things or to doubt yourself and diminish your confidence.
Added to this, most of us drive a bit on ‘auto-pilot’ where we can move our arms and feet and pay attention to the road, yet also think about other things as we drive. In that space to think, can come all of the thoughts and feelings of anxiety and worry that then get linked to being in the car driving. Some people can experience so much anxiety, or a panic attack, and then start to question whether they are ok to drive because they may cause an accident or hurt someone.
Because our minds work on patterns, once you’ve experienced a lot of anxiety or panic in the car, these two things – anxiety and driving – can easily become associated. You may start to worry about driving, either generally or on particular roads. You may feel hot, shaky, tense and unable to think clearly if you do drive. The more anxious you feel, the more those worst case scenarios fill your mind about driving, and the more you find yourself dreading it.
And all the while, you may feel disappointed and frustrated because you can remember that you used to drive anywhere and everywhere with no problems, and you may have even enjoyed driving in the past.
Sarah came to see me because she wanted help to deal with her anxiety and confidence and wanted to be able to calmly and confidently drive a long distance to visit a relative. Here’s what she had to say after her sessions (click on the image to find out):
It’s always fantastic to work with someone and help them to overcome their anxiety. And if you are looking for more inspiration to overcome your driving anxiety you could have a look at this video from Matt who feared driving on motorways (watch it here) or this one from Jenny, who wanted help to get back on dual carriageways (have a look here).
Driving Anxiety Hypnotherapy
Driving anxiety is one of those fears that can easily creep into our minds because we all know and appreciate the potential impact for accidents and injury. And if we feel anxious, there are certainly a lot of potential worst case scenarios that can easily come to mind, and people will sometimes even find themselves thinking about what would happen if they lost control or swerved into an oncoming lorry or caused an accident because they were panicking too much.
I used to regularly drive from the East of England across the country to South Wales to visit my home town. I thought very little of it before hand, or even when behind the wheel. It was a long way and it was tiring yet that was about as much attention that I gave it. Then, a few years ago, having only driven local journeys for several years, I needed to drive down to Kent. This journey involves several dual carriageways and motorways (as well as the Dartford crossing!). Feeling a bit rusty about those quicker roads I found myself a bit tense and stressed beforehand and until I had a few miles under my belt and relaxed into it.
The beauty of hypnotherapy for driving anxiety is that we are using similar psychological processes that generate the anxiety, yet we are pretty much turning them on their heads or reversing them. Rather than thinking and imagining things going badly, and finding yourself feeling anxious, we want to engage your thoughts, feelings, imagination, belief and focus and direct it towards the goal of driving confidently, calmly and successfully to your destination. Of course, we also want to build in strategies and techniques that you can use to stay calm and positive before you drive and when you are behind the wheel too.
And as Sarah and many others have discovered, by using hypnotherapy to overcome your driving anxiety, you can soon be calmly and confidently driving in all sorts of conditions and all sorts of roads and even enjoying having that time to sit back and relax.
To your success,
Dan Regan
Hypnotherapy in Ely & Newmarket
Like to read more about anxiety and how to overcome it? You can read more anxiety articles here: Anxiety Hypnotherapy
Seeking help to overcome your driving anxiety? Take that first step and book your Complimentary Hypnotherapy Strategy Session with Dan now: Free Consultation
Find out what many, many other people have said after their hypnotherapy sessions with Dan: Testimonials
And be sure to check out these powerful hypnosis downloads that can start helping you right away: Hypnosis Downloads
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