Afraid of freeways?
 

About two years ago I was in an accident. No one was seriously hurt but it was really scary.

I am afraid to ride in a car on the freeway. (I'm a passenger, I never have driven a car) Every time I try I end up having to just take the next exit because I panic so bad. The only time I get on the freeways is when I am on a bus. I can deal with bus/walking/non freeway riding. It is really bothering me because I can't go a lot of places or meet up with alot of my friends. IDK what to do anymore.

Um, yeah.
I am going to Tunica tomorrow with my Dad and Pappy and I am already a little skittish about driving on the freeway. My Dad is driving which makes it worse, I do better when I am the one doing the driving but I still feel a little panicky.

There is only one place that has every felt really scary to me and that is the godforsaken Pennsylvania Turnpike. O-M-G
It is awful, narrow and has big concrete barriers on one side - a hill with no shoulder on the other....and people like to do 95 mph. There is NO room for error. I trust me, it's the other people I have a problem with...

I don't like driving in anymore than 3 lanes. It has something to do with movement on both sides of me. If I drive in more than 4 lanes, I like moving all the way to far left lane(if I am not expecting a right exit soon) or all the way right, so traffic is only moving on one side of me. Weird.

I would encourage you to look into "Thought Field Therapy" which is also known as "Meridian Tapping"

The therapy is based in/derived from the same premise as acupuncture and involves tapping (often following a specific sequence/algorithm) on meridian points on the body and ultimately balance your own qi (energy flow)

You can always find info online, but here is a good place to start: TFT

Here is a great book by psychologist who developed TFT: [ame="http://www.amazon.com/Tapping-Healer-Within-Thought-Field-Instantly/dp/0809298805"]Tapping the Healer Within : Using Thought-Field Therapy to Instantly Conquer Your Fears, Anxieties, and Emotional Distress[/ame]


and here is a video clip of Whoopi Goldberg using TFT to address her fear of flying

I saw a momma goose and her little yellow chicks get run over on the pennsylvania turnpike. they had safely made it all the way to that concrete barrier but couldn't get back. it's still one of the saddest moments of my life. poor little things. :(

I don't have any advice for you or anything, but I did want to let you know that I get it.

I have no idea what triggered this for me (I used to be fine) but about 2 years ago I developed a really horrible fear of being in a car. Like you I am a passenger (I sold my car like 8 years ago or something, I like to take the bus - and being on the bus does not frighten me) and my fear/reactions have gotten to the point where it is distracting to the driver. I do a great deal of gasping, clutching at the "holy shit handle", tensing up and bracing myself...and that's just in normal in-town traffic. If on the freeway for any more than 30 minutes at a time it is a guarantee that I will burst into tears.

I tend to focus on another vehicle while I'm in a moving car...and almost identify it as the "enemy" vehicle. I'm always convinced that the enemy vehicle is going to cause the vehicle that I'm in to be in an accident. My panic gets worse and worse the longer the enemy vehicle is in view - I calm down as soon as that vehicle turns onto another road or off of the highway....until a new vehicle becomes the enemy. It's INCREDIBLY stressful and I, like you, am at a loss as to what I should do to fix this problem.

(I don't suggest this, cuz it's actually a really shitty way of dealing with problems...but I often get drunk before leaving on any trip that will take more than half an hour. Especially if that trip will take us on the freeway.)

I'm pretty interested to see the responses here.

If I did get drunk I'd be too goofy and need to pee every 5 minutes lol.

No sence in driving on the freeway if we'd need to pull over at every tree.

I understand. Very well.
I was in a very bad car accident 2 years ago, as well.
My emotional recovery took much longer than my physical.

The majority of the coping skills and techniques I've acquired enable me to drive, rather than be a passenger. I'm rarely a passenger. But...when I am these are some of the things that help:

First, I let the driver know about my anxiety and the ways in which I deal with it. And that I am not a great conversationalist in the car because of my anxiety.

I find I do much better if I sit in the back seat.

I always have water with me, I consciously remind myself to keep drinking it.
I remind myself to breathe. Consciously remind myself, whenever I feel panic rising.
I find things to distract myself - I read maps or books - or listen to NPR - something that engages my mind.
And when my anxiety level decreases, I try to lay my head back and close my eyes. I can't sleep in the car, I'm never relaxed enough for that now; but I can usually get to a point where I can rest with my eyes closed, listening to music with earphones helps when I am at this point.

If you have access to health insurance and it covers behavioural health, I would strongly recommend you find a therapist who specializes in EMDR (resource link below).

I have a therapist friend who specializes in EMDR, and one session helped to bring my daily anxiety down to a level that I was able to better cope with regular highway driving. I would love to go through the complete process.

http://www.emdrnetwork.org/

I get super panicky on highways.

I don't know when exactly it started but for the longest time have felt that something really bad WILL happen on the road to me.

I did get into an accident (everyone was fine) in Sydney, Aus in 2005 due to a major sun glare that blinded my vision, but I had a dread of driving before then.

It was a messed up and long commute; I never drove again there and actually enjoyed their extensive public transit.

My commute now is barely anything, and I hate hate when I have to drive on a highway for something (to the airport mostly).

When we go away, Daniel always drives and, even though he is a SUPERB driver, I get moments of pure panic.

its not just PA turnpikes. I was sitting at a red light in a rural suburban area in NW PA and a semi backed up on my car and then when we pulled over to exchange info, got too close and ran his trailer up over the back of my car...blew out my tires and my windows. I had PTSD about driving in general for a long time but it wasnt freeway driving. It was red lights with trucks around me.

there is some kind of therapy that was done on me, using a wand that was vibrated quickly in front of my eyes, like a hypnosis kind of thing, that helped release most of the trauma.

but time....and pushing thru the fear...was the real way I got over it

I was in a nasty car accident 31 years ago; one night, a drunk driver left his lane and hit the car I was a passenger in. Being right behind the driver, my Father, I could see what was happening, and was helpless to do anything about it. I spent some time in the hospital—not how I wanted to spend my Christmas break. I did seek help from a therapist, because I did not want to drive at all, at first, and as a result, I gave myself permission to not drive at night, for about six months. I no longer have panic attacks, although if it looks like someone is driving toward me, in my lane, it does give me a start, and I think that is normal.

I just wanted to say that your stress is completely understandable and may take some time to work through. It took me a while after being rear ended on my motorcycle.
I also see you're in the Seattle area and can vouch for our transit system. It may take some practice and a little research, but if you are near light rail, bus stops or the water ( Ferry's) you can piece together your trip in no time flat.
Metro may take the spontaneity out of getting places, but with your continued success riding Metro on the freeways perhaps you can create a familiar path that might not be so stressful when retraced in a car ?
Keep up the good work !

Your situation sounds like PTSD stuff. I'm not any sort of a psychotherapist but I am a survior in many ways. Auto accidents have been a fact of life for me. None of the accidents I have been in were my fault. I have been rear ended, T-Boned, ran smack into a telephone pole, hit by a fairly slow moving automobile in a parking lot, on and on.

I learned how to drive at the age of 15 on Los Angeles freeways and local roads. This in and of itself is great "nerves of steel" training. One thing that does really challenge me is riding a bike in traffic. I was hit by a bus riding a bike and to this day, I get very stressed when I or loved ones ride a bicycle in traffic.

I've had a couple of "incidents" as a passenger on a SF Muni bus and a bus in Los Angeles. Alas, those are stories for another time.

Bad_boi dearest, considering your circumstances, I completely understand your feelings. However, when I'm on the freeway I blast the song of the day and let her rip!!!...:police::blink::cheer:

Duchess

My favorite freeway song....