Symptoms of Driving Anxiety & Road Phobia

Driving anxiety disorder, as a condition, is road fear that will cause the anxious driver to feel very uncomfortable on certain types of roads. Often referred to as road phobia, it may develop as a gradual build up in fear that can begin with something as innocent as a sense of lost confidence in driving. At its worst, road phobia causes a full–blown anxiety attack whilst driving, and may even start off in this way.

Getting hot with sweaty hands on the wheel

Typically, the anxious driver will experience spells of dizziness or imbalance, feeling faint, nausea, stomach cramps, visual distortion, darkening of peripheral vision, hyperventilating, tingling sensation around the mouth, arms and legs turning to jelly, dramatic rise in body temperature, tightness in the chest, fast and thumping heart beat, difficulty in breathing, heightened awareness of vulnerability and maybe some disorientation.

These are the good bits, as road phobia can initiate other more worrying symptoms. There may be intrusive thoughts and desires that inspire the notion to swerve across the road into the path of another vehicle, and the anxious driver will feel as they can’t trust themselves not to do it.

The sensation the car tipping over
is a common effect of driving phobia

There may be a feeling of the car tipping over when driving around a bend, or feeling it is going to slide off a bridge or embankment. Even when driving on a straight piece of road, there can be fear of the car tipping over.

A common reaction is to keep a grip the handbrake tightly with the left hand, or the gear lever, as if in some way this will stop the car tipping over. The belief the car is pulling to the left is another one, particularly on a wide road, and many an anxious driver will get the vehicle checked out, thinking it is at fault.

One of the most identifiable traits of road phobia is the anxious driver will make frequent application of brakes where braking isn’t necessary. There can be sudden and sometimes violent stamping on the brake too, stopping the car dead in its tracks.

Stamping on the brake pedal may occur even when driving on a busy motorway, which has the potential for profound consequences. Stamping on the brake marks the point where the anxious driver has gone beyond the point of coping and will feel they are abotu to fall off the cliff.

Coping With Life in The Car & Road Phobia.

For the phobic driver, dealing with the normal routines of everyday life in a car is extremely difficult. Feeling embarrassed and foolish they will almost certainly try to keep to themselves their driving phobia. There will be the worry of being ridiculed by others.

A common behaviour pattern is that of displacement activity

This is where the driving phobia will cause the subject to go to extreme and elaborate lengths to get to their intended destination. Routes will usually by very complicated and really quite ingeniously worked out. This is done with only one thing in mind and that is to only drive on those roads within their level of tolerance.

The fact the journey takes the driving phobia case many times longer, require extreme hard work to complete and far greater distances to be covered. However, for those with driving phobia, this will be infinitely more desirable than driving on a motorway or other forbidden route.

The reason for using such bazaar routes can always be so hotly justified. Displacement activity is avoidance behaviour in the extreme and becomes well rehearsed by those suffering with driving phobia, as well as convincingly necessary.

Hiding Driving Phobia From Employers

Where an employee, having been issued with a company car, is expected to make visits to different regions of the country, they will find this extremely difficult when harbouring driving phobia.

The demand for displacement activity here can be so powerful it can force driving phobia cases to leave their company car at home and to use public transport instead.

Driving phobia has been known to push people to extreme lengths to keep it hidden from employers. It is not unheard of for a spouse or partner to drive the company car, just to put miles on the clock, to add to the deceit whilst the employee uses public transport. The trouble is, the more elaborate the tactics, the more stressful life becomes.

Hiding your driving phobia is making the problem worse

If this is what you are doing, or you are forcing yourself to perform other secretive acts in your attempt to conceal driving phobia, put a stop to it now. All you are doing is digging a deeper hole and you have to realise that one day you are going to get found out. Don’t put yourself through this crushing level of stress. Talk to us about your issues to see if we can help, but above all else, come clean with your manager.

Just remember, with each and every anxiety attack the driving phobia becomes ever more deeply rooted.

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This page was last updated
Sunday, 16-May-2010

Road Fear – Lost Confidence in Driving