Anxiety while driving. Crippling me

[MazzR]

Hi I'm new to posting here but I'm desperate. I've been suffering horrendous anxiety attacks while driving, great cause I've just started college and have a 3+ hour round trip a day. It's getting worse and the last week has been just awful down to me abandoning the car in the middle of the countryside and getting a bus and dh having to find a way to get the car later. But it's taking I've the rest of my life, I had a bad panic attack on the bus then, in a lecture another day and it's started to take over my life. Every waking thought is when will the next one happen. My gp prescribed lustral but I'm terrified to take it because I've read that it can make you a whole lot worse before being better which I can't do. Any advice please anyone?? Thanks

Hi. Have you tried talking therapies as al alternative??
How long have you been anxious?

Maybe you could try a relaxing cd in the car for when your travelling.

Hi, thanks for reply. Yes I've been to counselling about a year ago, Ive just started again now.

I think a relaxing CD might not be safe for driving as sometimes they can make you drowsy. Also looking at the risks for Lustral, drowsiness is a possible side effect and it is recommended that you do not drive on it, at least initially. NLP might be helpful, I agree that getting to the root of your anxiety would be the most helpful thing but that will take a bit of time.
Maybe you need to make your trips easier, perhaps planning on going by bus now. That doesn't address the problems of panic attacks in other places though- but a talking therapy that is practical should help with that.
Do you know what triggered this? Is it the stress of the course? If so that should settle down as you get used to the new college and make friends there.

Yeah never thought of tht.maybe not a relaxing cd more something that gets you singing away and distracts you from your thoughts.
You could try taking short journeys and building up to driving to college eventually.

Hi, ya I don't want to listen to a relaxing cd as I'm afraid it will put me to sleep while driving! I can't bus it really, live in the back of beyonds in irl and no buses will get me there on time in the morning. I think I might have a general health anxiety too, at the mo I feel I have a lump in my throat and am imagining all sorts. Also my chest is really paining me. Back to the doc tomorrow for me.. :-(

I get a lump in my throat feeling if I am very upset and/or bottling things up. Chest pains go with anxiety too. I do sympathise, I am quite an anxious person and anything health related has me in a panic.
Could anyone drive you to college? Or share the journey with someone and only have to drive yourself some days? Hopefully this will subside quite quickly and the drive will become more manageable. Unless it is the driving that is panicking you?

I don't know. I think at this stage a lot of it is associated with driving so now the minute I sit in the car nearly it starts.

Get yourself off to the doctor in the first instance, hypnotherapy may also help.

Could you afford to hire a driving instructor for an hour to reassure you that you're driving well?

It is a lot of driving so you could try leaving fifteen minutes earlier so you can stop somewhere and have a drink/stretch/powernap/read a book for a few mins. That works well for me.