How to Overcome Fear of Driving: Easy Tips for Beginners

Fear of driving a car has its own reasons and explanations, but for successful driving, you need a cool head and a sober calculation. So, it’s important to be able to overcome it, otherwise a person either will not sit behind the wheel, or nervous tension will lead to inadequate reactions to events on the road, and as a result, the risk of an accident will increase.

Fear is a natural emotion, which is designed by nature for our own good. It appears in many situations we face for the first time from betting on 20Bet to the first flight. Thanks to this feeling the body is ready to react quickly and avoid danger. But this feeling often arises even when there is no immediate threat to life and it is necessary to remain calm.

How and Who Develops Fear of Driving

Fear may be present before the experience of driving or after the person began to drive. The main reason and most common is fear of getting into an accident.

It may arise as a result of the following:

• Psychological personality traits (excessive anxiety or emotionality, insecurity).
• Negative experiences that have left a deep impression (own or others).
• Uncertainty behind the wheel due to lack of knowledge, skills, unfamiliar road conditions.
• Fear of the individual may explain both one of the reasons, and their combination, or all three at once.

Why Fear and How to Get Rid of It

Fear of getting behind the wheel arises in newcomers during training. This is an adequate reaction to an unfamiliar environment. However, in overly anxious and emotional personalities, this caution can turn into fear. Stories about accidents, rude remarks of instructors, lack of solid knowledge of the traffic rules and about the peculiarities of the car aggravate the situation.

Useful Tips for Beginners

For a person who is calm and confident, overcoming your fear is easy. But other people are also able to cope with it. To do this, a number of conditions should be provided:

• Knowledge and ability to apply the rules of the road.
• Attention and concentration at the wheel.
• Understanding and controlling the road situation (the driving instructor teaches this).
• Bringing the skills of driving to automatism.

Theoretical basis lays the foundation of confident driving. In many cases, first lessons begin with the actions at landing in the car: to fit the seat position, to buckle up, to take off the handbrake, etc. You shouldn’t disregard the information given by teachers at lectures thinking that it will be useful only at practical lessons. Learn what you have to do, visualize it in your head before you get in the car or perform a maneuver. This will occupy your brain with useful information, not pictures of scary accidents. Your muscles will be prepared for the right sequence of actions, which reduces the risk of mistakes. All of this adds to your confidence and helps you overcome fear.

Avoid negative fantasies about, “What’s the worst that can happen if I don’t slow down in time, turn in time, etc.” Think positively. Imagine pulling up confidently in the parking lot at work, how your coworkers look at you with wonder and respect. Or think that now you can go on a trip wherever you want, at a convenient time with friends. Picture real pictures of the subject in all the details. Choose something related to your independent driving that you enjoy thinking about.

At first, nighttime roads seem scary to many people. It’s hard to shake off the feeling of oncoming cars rushing right into your lane. Accept the idea that they are driven by people who know how to drive, control what lane they are in and certainly do not want to collide with you head-on. Drive yourself at a comfortable speed to control your position on the roadway.

It’s important for unsure beginners to have experienced driving instructors. Their skill should be more than just being able to tell you about all the nuances and point out mistakes in time. That’s important too, but they have to choose the right tactics to interact with you. As a rule, for most people driving for the first time, it’s important to talk to them calmly and confidently, tactfully parse actions, and praise them.