Anyone around? Help me deal with this...travel anxiety

[user1491572121]

I am in Oz so it's daytime here. Today I have to get a bus to a place I've never been and I'm so anxious.

I get very anxious over travel....I'm not sure why! I can't remember being like this as a teen...it's only since having DC.

I can't drive so rely on public transport...I worry about missing buses, about not being able to find the right bus home and about getting on the wrong bus!

I've looked closely at the map and feel I know where I'm going and which stops etc but I can't shake it!

Any adice?

I used to feel the same way, due to growing up in a part of the UK which has a very low population and no public transport. The first time I got on a bus on my own was when I was 18 and at uni. I was terrified! I still get a bit stressed now and like to plan my route and rehearse it until I'm happy I know where I'm going.

Is it the sort of place that you could get a taxi if something goes wrong with the bus journey? You could have that as a back up plan.

You sound really well prepared and I'm sure it'll all go fine.

Hi there, I am visually impaired and travel alone and have also been to Australia. Don't feel shy about asking people for assistance . Just ask if you have the right bus and it's going to the right place.

Do you have anything to help you relax? A good book? I remember how hard it was to get Wi-Fi in Australia, but do you have 3G ? You could use it to surf the Internet and relax, as well as finding information you need or contacting people.

All I can say is 'Feel the fear and do it anyway'. Logically you know it will be fine, you have a phone and credit card (assumes away), so it is irrational. Does not make it irrelevant, but helps to conquer.

Ask the driver before you board if it's the right bus - sit at the front and ask the driver to let you know when to disembark.

Can you afford a cab?

Knowing you dont have to work it out yourself may help.

When you get on the bus, look around, smile and see if you can get into a conversation with someone. It will help you to feel more relaxed and they can perhaps confirm when you are at the right stop.

Ask yourself what is the worse that can happen? You can't find the right bus: ask someone. You get on the wrong one, well, you'll get off again and get the right one. Not the end of the world, is it?

There are literally about two cabs in this area. I know it's weird but it's quite rural...it's almost impossible to get them.

I've decided not to go. I'm going to have to do the journey with someone else first.

I think a lot of my fear comes from a very bad sense of direction. I get lost easily. Even in areas I know I can suddenly not know where I am if I for example look at a usually familiar street from a new direction.

To illustrate further, I once got lost in my own town back in the UK and wandered around a big housing estate for AN HOUR. I kept thinking I'd see someone to ask soon...and there wasn't a soul!

It was getting dark and I was less than 2 miles from my own house but had taken what I thought was a shortcut! It was awful.

If I do something similar here, it's bloody enormous...you can walk down the wrong road for miles...

I have read that these are the sorts of things CBT can be very useful for.

It might help you to look at Google Streetview, and plot your journey on it so you recognise landmarks. Is that available where you are?

Ada I did...and do. It helps to a point but the area I wanted to go to is big...long roads with the odd shop and then nothing for ages.

I sometimes get a bit anxious about things like this, more so when I have to drive somewhere I don't know and worry about lanes and where I'm going to park!

I assume you have a smart phone? Check you're on the right bus with the driver when you get on. Then follow the route on your phone, using google maps, so you know where you're getting off.

I do Me264 and it does help a bit but services are unreliable here.

Some drivers are helpful but others are very much "Don't know.." if you ask them for eg. where to get a particular bus.

It doesn't help that I find timetables like a forgeign language. I've tried to get to grips but can't.

I have to write down the bus times...and then the next ones in case I miss them.

I use the Citymapper app to get around cities in the UK - it does routes by foot, public transport and car; for public transport it tells you the bus to get, and notifies you before your stop. It may worth getting this (or something similar if Citymapper doesn't include your city) for future trips.