Overcoming My Fear Of Driving – 5 Things I Do Daily
In this post, I’ll share everything I’m doing to overcome my fear of driving.
Even though I drive every other day, just deciding to drive scares the life out of me.
My heart would race, and my tummy would hurt.
But I only started driving confidently when I started fighting my fear of driving.
Some days I win, and sometimes I lose.
But it’s an ongoing thing.
So, I’ll tell you the excuses I made not to drive and how I fight to overcome my fear of driving.
It’s been a challenge, but I’m taking it one day at a time.
Let’s dive in.
The excuses I made to hide from driving
What excuse have you made? I must have made them, too.
And because my husband loves driving, he drove me everywhere.
But he still pushed me to drive because he wanted me to be able to drive myself.
And one day, we were driving, and I noticed my sight was poor.
So, we visited an eye doctor to get my eyes checked.
Lo and behold, I have astigmatism.
My vision is blurry.
And there goes excuse number one.
1. My sight is poor
When the doctor told me I’d have to drive with my glasses, I was happy.
Happy that I’d take a two-week break from driving.
And my husband would drive me everywhere.
Then I finally picked my glasses, and I began to panic.
Because now I’d have to drive.
So what did I do?
2. I forgot my glasses or driver’s license.
So after I get my glasses, I’ll intentionally leave them at home so I won’t have to drive.
And I only remember when I’m about to enter the car.
Or sometimes I’ll take my glasses and leave the license.
I always intentionally forget one of the two important things I need to drive.
But deep inside, I knew I was cheating myself.
3. It’s cold; the steering wheel and seats are also cold
Another excuse I made to keep from driving was the weather.
And I even made that excuse this winter.
We’ll get to the car, about to drive to the gym, and I’ll tell my hubby, “It’s cold; can you drive?”
The car has heated seats and a steering wheel.
But my excuse was it takes time to get cold.
And I’d be sick in my stomach.
So, my husband ends up driving since he loves it and doesn’t want his wife to feel cold.
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4. It’s raining
I also shied away from driving with the rain excuse.
Saying I’ve never driven in the rain before.
That the roads will be slippery, etc.
But my husband told me driving in the rain is not different from normal days except you need to go slower.
5. I’ve not driven there before
If we’re going to someplace I’ve never been to, my excuse was I’ve not driven there before.
So, instead of using the navigation to get there, which I understand well, I’d shy away again.
6. How about if I don’t stay in my lane
When I first started driving in the US, I struggled to stay in my lane.
But for a long time, I’ve learned to drive in my lane.
But I still make the excuse that I can’t drive in my lane.
Just because I don’t want to drive.
7. Highways are scary
The first time I drove on a highway, my legs were shaking.
My husband was right beside me, encouraging me to keep going.
That day, I missed a turn and took a longer way home.
So my new excuse was highways are scary.
And I can’t drive 60 miles per hour.
But guess who’s driving on the highway three to four times a week?
8. This car is different
The other day, a friend came to pick me up to have dinner and hang out.
So she asked if I’d drive, and I said yes.
So I drove her car.
But I was panicking the whole time.
Even if she told me, I was doing okay.
Then we stopped to pick up another friend.
And I told her I couldn’t continue driving and that I wasn’t used to her car.
Then she said, “You have to get used to driving other cars, not just yours”.
My husband said the same thing to me, too.
Because I made the same excuse when we got our current car.
I said I was used to driving the old car, and this new one is too fast, modern, etc.
But now I love and enjoy driving it.
So here are five things I do daily to overcome my fear of driving
Now, we’ll discuss what I do daily to overcome my fear of driving.
You see, I said daily.
The fear still creeps in, but I fight it every time I have to drive.
Here are some ways I push myself to drive.
1. I always choose to drive
So, instead of making an excuse not to drive, I fight the pain in my tummy and choose to drive.
The thing is, whenever I decide I’m going to drive, my tummy starts to churn.
Some days, I give in to the pain and do not drive.
Then, sometimes, I tell myself this pain is trying to keep me from driving.
And I’d ignore the pain and drive anyway.
But once I start driving, the stomach-churning stops.
And we’ll drive (hubby and I) and talk all the way to our destination.
2. I imagine what could happen if I can’t drive in case of an emergency
Another thing I do to overcome my fear of driving is imagined an emergency and I have to get my kids to the hospital or pick them up from somewhere.
And if I can’t drive, stuff might happen.
But if I can drive, I might have some control of the situation.
So maybe imagine an emergency scenario where you must help a family member, friend, neighbor, etc.
And all the things that could go right if you can drive.
Just saying that makes my heart race a little.
But I’d rather my heart race over the thought of that than be helpless when stuff goes wrong.
3. I think about the convenience of driving wherever I want without my hubby
My husband loves driving.
He drives me wherever I need to go, except when my friend picks me up.
But you know, when someone drives you somewhere, you must work with their time.
So my hubby will sometimes ask, “Are you done?” or just somehow hurry me up.
But I like to take my time when I go shopping.
And if I can drive myself, then nobody has to rush me during shopping.
Also, I can’t take my kids to places on my own.
My hubby always have to drop us off and pick us.
But I tell myself that if I can drive, then I can take the kids to places without relying on him to drive us.
And I sometimes feel bad that he has to leave whatever he’s doing to take us to places.
So I choose to drive.
4. I consider not being an inconvenience to my friends
Sometimes, I have dinner with a couple of friends.
A particular friend of mine always ends up picking me up from my place.
But I’d like to pick her up sometimes.
So I decided I’d keep driving so I wouldn’t be an inconvenience to my friends.
Well, this friend who picks me whenever we hang out has no problem with it.
But I still feel like if I can drive, then we can meet at the restaurant, coffee shop, etc.
Also, I think it’s cool when you leave a place, walk to your car and drive home.
Instead of relying on someone to pick you up and drop you off all the time.
Especially if you have a car to drive but not using it.
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5. I think about how I love driving a sexy car
Lastly, this might sound vain, but I’ll say it anyway.
What I do is I look at our car and see how sexy it is.
Honestly, it’s a beautiful car.
And I enjoy driving it.
So if I’m not driving, then I don’t get to enjoy that sexy car.
That’s why I push myself to drive and overcome that fear of driving.
Conclusion on what I did to overcome my fear of driving
So those are the excuses I used to shy away from driving and the things I’m doing to overcome my fear of driving.
I’m still a work in progress, I tell you.
Even today, my tummy started churning when I picked up my wallet and glasses and decided to drive.
But once I started driving, the pain vanished.
And tomorrow, I’ll do the same again, and again, and again.
Funny enough, I’m no longer scared, but my mind wants to hold me back.
And that’s the fight I have to win every day.
What are you doing to overcome your fear of driving?
Please share in the comments.
Thanks for reading.
