You might have never had any sort of difficulty while driving when suddenly something comes over you without warning. It becomes difficult to breathe, feel dizzy and you feel an overwhelming sense of dread. You begin to feel as though you may lose control of the car – and this intensifies the fear tenfold. If you’ve ever had this happen to you, you might be afraid to drive.
You might be told you need to overcome your fear of driving by confronting it head on and driving more. Of course, this only works if driving was the trigger for your panic attack in the first place; if it wasn’t it doesn’t matter how much you drive – it’s not going to help. However, a panic attack can happen anytime, anywhere and come without warning. What should you do if you have panic attacks while driving? If you know how to handle the situation, then you’ll be more at ease behind the wheel.
If it’s never happened to you before, you may not recognize the shakes, clammy palms and increasing dread and fear as a panic attack. You might have been worrying about the driving conditions, a breakdown, traffic or even something unrelated to driving.
At the onset of a panic attack while you are driving your car, pull over. During a panic attack, it seems that all cars are racing towards you. That is just your imagination or ugly intrusive thoughts going haywire. Sit up straight, take a deep breath, and regulate your breathing until you are relaxed. Breathing in through your noise and exhaling through your mouth can lessen the attack.
A panic attack may last for anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes, so take all the time you need to calm down. If you have some water handy, have a drink. Dehydration can cause or exacerbate panic attacks. If you’ve been prescribed medication for your condition, take one of these pills and relax as you wait for the attack to end. It’s a good idea to keep a bottle of water in your car and a brown paper bag to breathe in. You’ll get over an attack quicker if you ride it out instead of trying to fight it.
Preventing those attacks is better than a pound of cure. To avert panic attacks, take vitamin B complex as part of your preventive regimen. This vitamin family is recommended for people who are stressed out. Since Vitamin B complex is water soluble, there is no harm in taking the vitamins daily to supplement your diet but ask your doctor for the correct daily dosage for your age and gender.
Always follow the recommendations of your physician and make sure to attend any one on one or group therapy sessions consistently. The support that being around others who suffer from panic attacks provides can be invaluable.
Never drive alone if you’re prone to panic attacks while driving; you may even want to have other people do the driving if you have attacks frequently. Having someone else along in the car can keep you calmer and prevent you from being overtaken by the fears that trigger panic attacks.
