2023-12-09 11:38:34
Nervousness, anguish, anxiety or blockage are the most frequent symptoms of amaxophobia or fear of driving, a problem suffered by 28% of people who have a license, mostly women, and which has increased in recent years.
This is the case of María Jesús García, who says that she was blocked in the middle of a highway, which caused her an anxiety attack that prevented her from continuing driving.
For them, the National Association of Driving Schools (ANAES) organizes courses that offer psychological treatment and practical classes that help overcome the fear of getting behind the wheel. The results are positive, since 95% can overcome the trauma.
Those who come are usually people between 30 and 60 years old who have a license but have not driven for many years and have a phobia of taking the car. There is also the case of those who are taking their permit and show a lot of anxiety in practical classes.
More phobia in women: 65% of cases
Fernando Lara, the director of one of the driving schools where the courses are held, assures that cases of amaxophobia have increased in recent years due to an increase in the number of actors participating in traffic.
“In the past they were cars, buses and taxis, but now there are vans, ubers, bicycles, skateboards… and each to their own,” he explains.
According to Sonia Rojas, director of Stop your feara center specialized in the psychological treatment of amaxophobia that collaborates in the courses, 65% of people who suffer from this disorder are women, which is attributed to the historical difficulties of this group in accessing the world of automobiles.
Also because of the stereotypes that exist around female drivers that do not correspond to reality, because women “are much more cautious, maybe we forget to pass the ITV, but in terms of speed, drugs and distractions, much better That men”.
Bad experiences behind the wheel
Rojas explains that the causes of this fear are mainly bad experiences behind the wheel, either as a driver or as a co-driver. There is also the case of people who have seen accidents on television or have suffered episodes in driving schools in which they have received negative comments that have affected their learning.
María Jesús García points out that in her case she has been affected by having lost three friends on the road: “It gives me a lot of respect because I feel very insecure. I am afraid of causing an accident by not doing it well and in the end I am tense and not I know how to react,” he says.
Personality traits also influence, such as excessive caution or a high need for control.
Added to this are factors that may be related to other phobias, such as, for example, heights, which causes fear of driving on bridges or viaducts, or claustrophobia, which can cause anxiety when driving through tunnels. .
Learn to manage anxiety
In the courses, individualized psychological treatment is carried out “to improve the perception of the person as a driver, prevent anxiety experiences and learn to manage it when it appears,” explains Rojas.
In a second phase, practical classes are carried out in which the teacher and the therapist coordinate so that the patient gets used to the road and they introduce him to circulation little by little.
In these sessions, a virtual simulator is sometimes used to recreate driving in certain scenarios, such as ports or tunnels, and in adverse situations, such as heavy rain, which can cause insecurity when driving.
According to the director of the Lara driving school, the important thing is to teach people with amaxophobia to channel their emotions towards good driving and, once they have gained confidence in the vehicle, the course students are recommended to take the car alone and Get used to driving through known places to gain security.
In addition to practical classes, Stop Your Fear also offers a therapeutic accompaniment service in the vehicle for those people who are unable to get behind the wheel alone.
Another part of the process to overcome this phobia are group workshops, both online and in person, which, according to Rojas, are very important because “they allow them to talk with people who suffer from the same fear and feel understood.”
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