Crap at driving and feeling rubbish

[Clover2020]

Hi ladies I think I am just need to vent a bit of frustration and also a bit of support.

My husband and I bought a vw campervan a couple of months ago and I've been scared to drive it. Well I decided to pluck up the courage last night and took it out for a short drive but managed to scrape it on the neighbours car as I tried to park up at home. The van is scratched at the side and will need repair work done.

Thankfully the neighbour seems to have taken it well and my husband is being very reasonable about it (van is his pride and joy) but I feel absolutely awful about it and now terrified of driving the van. I did have a tiny skoda before this (which we've now sold as we don't need another vehicle) and scraped it a couple of times parking so this has just left my confidence rock bottom. I've been in tears half the morning.

I passed my driving test over 20 years ago but I am a bit of a crap driver. I've never had to drive for work and have gone long periods of time with no driving. Basically, I've never done enough driving to get confident at it. And I am absolutely awful at parking and maneuveres.

My husband is being really reasonable, says I should have some driving confidence lessons and get some practice in. He is right but it just feels like an impossible hill to climb right now.

I see all these other confident women driving campervans and having fun adventurous trips, I want it to be me but I'm terrified!

Any words of wisdom appreciated xxx

Lots of little trips out in it will help, even if your husband drives first to a quiet area then you take over?

I'd describe myself as a very confident driver of over 20 years in all sorts of cars but even I'd be unusually nervous and prone to a spatial misjudgement stepping up to something vw campervan size. Does it have any parking and safety aids to assist you or is it old skool?

I think you are being very hard on yourself over something that could have happened to an experienced driver getting into a large unknown vehicle for the first time.

We're all fallible and my husband once scraped my new company car on a gatepost within 48 hours of me getting it due to a touch of overconfidence on his part!

You're husbands suggestions are good ones. Sessions with a professional third party to build your confidence sound ideal. I hope you can be a touch kinder to yourself and acknowledge that these confident women got there from experience and practise and this isnt a failing that you dont yet feel this way about driving💐

Thanks for this. Yes it has reverse parking sensors so at least that is something, although they wouldn't have avoided the scrape yesterday as that was a side thing.

I think it's the timing of the scrape that is making it feel worse. I scraped my skoda right before we were about to put it up for sale. And it was my first go driving the van. Ugh. Its sitting on the drive now and I can't bear to look at it!! 🙈

Practise makes perfect. My little boy's car is a long wheelbase Ford Tourneo so I understand the fear but the best thing I found was to get out and build my confidence in it. Can DH drive you somewhere quiet so you can practise?

Why don't you ring a local driving instructor abd see if they will take you out in your van and give you some help to improve your driving? That's what I would do.

We are going away in the van next weekend so might see if we can find anywhere quiet for me to have a short drive. It's hard to get out just with my husband as we have a 4 year old so it involves getting someone to watch her (and we have no family nearby)

Getting an instructor to take me out in the van is probably a good idea, if they will do it x