Why I'm here

[daz]

Hi.

I'm Darren, and I'm here because in recent months I've had my first experiences of what I think are panic or anxiety attacks while driving on motorways -- shortness of breath, palpitations, an irrational obsession with the thought of losing control of the car.

From browsing the forum I know a lot of people are dealing brilliantly with problems that are a lot more life-limiting than mine, but I hope I'm welcome here and that I can learn something from the strategies that have worked for others.

[FAN]

hi welcome to the forum as you know from browsing the forum there are loads of really helpful people here and im sure you will soon be feeling much better

fan x

"dont wait for the light at the end of the tunnel..........stride down there and light the bl**dy thing yourself!

[mynydd]

hi darren,
you will get their, for 16 years i never thought i would get close to getting better but i feel on my way now

[sal]

Hi Daz

Welcome to the site. You will meet some brilliant people on here and get lots of support.



Love Sal xx


Dont mess up the best things in your life, just because at present you are unsure who you are.

[katiekatie]

Hi and welcome,

I hope you get some support from this site and find some answers to your panics.

katiekatie x

[bubbles]

Darren,

Welcome to the forum. You'll get lots of help & advice here, everyone understands. I find car travel a good starter for anxiety at the best of times!

Have you had/are you having any treatment for how you've been feeling? Did a particular incident set it off the first time?

Keep posting. You will get through this, it takes time & effort--but you'll get there & people here will help all they can.

Linda. x



Being defeated is often a temporary condition. Giving up is what makes it permanent.

[Tracy68]

Hi Darren
Of course you're welcome :D. I'm sure that you will find people here that have been through what you are experiencing now and will offer plenty of help and support to get you through this.
Take care
Tracy
x

[daz]

Thanks everybody for so many supportive messages.

In answer to Linda, I can't remember an incident that started it. I used to drive on motorways quite a lot, then had kids and didn't travel so much, and when I did come to use motorways again, I'd just completely lost confidence. I think the first anxiety came after I found myself thinking about the possibility of falling asleep at the wheel.
Haven't tried any treatment. Was thinking about hypnotherapy but wanted to see whether other people had found it useful.

[Karen]

Hi Darren

Welcome to the forum.

You'll get a lot of help and support here.



Karen



It is not easy to find happiness in ourselves, and it is not possible to find it elsewhere.

[sal]

Hi Daz

I cant understand how you are feeling, i recently made a long journey and have put of driving on motorway for quite a while. To me it is the sense that you cant just turn of or pull in and if you overtake someone you are trapped in that lane until you can pull back over. It could be a lot to do with you are not totally in control and if feel anxious just cant stop the car and calm yourself down, i know that is how i feel.

Love Sal xx


Dont mess up the best things in your life, just because at present you are unsure who you are.

[henri]

hey darren,
i reckon if you can find somewhere local that does hypnotherapy, you should give it a go. some people swear by it.
i get so anxious when i'm behind the wheel of a car i've been trying to pass my test for 10 years and still haven't managed it! motorways freak me out as well - as sal says, it's definitely something about not being in control - for me it's about not being able to get off the motorway whenever i want to that freaks me out.
i hope you feel a bit better after reading all the info on this site - i'm a fairly recent sufferer and have already found it's helped me loads.
let us know if you try the hypnotherapy,
henri x

[bubbles]

Darren,

You wrote that you used to travel on motorways & then had a break from it &, in the meantime, had had children. Just a thought--it's something that happened to several friends when they'd had children---they became much more anxious & stressed about situations that were potentially dangerous--motorways being one. In each case it turned out to be the newfound responsibility for their kids, worse if the kids were actually with them at the time. I suppose it makes sense because of the instinctive need to protect our kids &/or a fear of injuring ourselves & not being able to be there for them. Everything becomes heightened!

Add to that the fact that motorways seem to get worse as each year passes & if you've had a break from them.......

I've not had hynotherapy but have heard good reports about it. Hope it goes well if you decide to give it a go.

Linda. x

Being defeated is often a temporary condition. Giving up is what makes it permanent.

[lainey]

Hi Daz

Welcome to the forum, you'll get lots of help and support here. Nic , who runs the site has had problems on the mototway and I'm sure she'll be able to advise you.

Take care

Elaine x

[lisarose]

Hi Daz, you will be made very welcome on this site, you will find some excellent advice and support from a very friendly bunch of people.

I don't drive myself but am a very anxious passenger on motorways or long journeys, I drive my boyfriend mad as I am always telling him to "slow down" or "mind that car" and he ends up saying "who is the driver here"!! Have you tried Bachs Rescue Remedy? I find this helps alot. I haven't tried hypnotherapy but have heard good things about it so if you have the cahnce I would give it a go.

Take care
Love Lisaxx

[zena]

Hi Darren
Welcome to the site.
You'll find lots of people helping you on this site.
I can understand where you are coming from.
I won't drive on the motorway on my own, I have to have someone with me .....hubby is a great help though calming me down when needs be.
I have had hypnotherapy b4 but can't say it worked for me. Felt nice and relaxed though after.
It's not for everyone but hope it helps you.
Let us know how you get on.

with good wishes

Zena

[nomorepanic]

Hi Darren

Welcome aboard. Driving is still my big issue and I find it hard when I get stuck in traffic or on roads where you can't pull off.

Read my stroy on the webiste (www.nomorepanic.co.uk/mystory.htm) and also the Hypnotherapy page as I had Hypnotherapy for my driving issues. (www.nomorepanic.co.uk/hypnotherapy.htm)

Hope it helps you to know that you are not alone.

Nicola

[jill]

Hi Darren

Welcome to the site,

I suffered PA anxiaty back in june last year, since finding this site in August I am now 98% better most days 100%.
You have come to the right place there are lots of nice people here
who will help and support you.

TAKE CARE LOVE JILLXXX

When you fear something.
Learn as much about it as you can.
Knowledge conquers fear.

[Meg]

Hi Darren,

sounds like youºve caught it ealry.
The symptoms are of anxietya nd you can either get over this yourself with sheer b****dy mindedness or get some help in form og hypnotherapy which can give you a head start but you still have to overcome it.
.

Meg
www.overcominganxiety.co.uk
You cannot conquer fear until you have learned what it is you're afraid of. The enemy is ignorance. Vivian Vance