Tricks and tips to avoid stress behind the wheel

Some drivers associate driving with experiencing nervousness, so here are some tips to avoid stress behind the wheel.

Getting behind the wheel is synonymous with stress and nerves for a large number of drivers for various reasons: some never manage to get used to the car they drive, so facing certain situations becomes very uncomfortable for them. Other people have a bad day and take it out on the road the moment they get into their vehicle, driving aggressively and behaving aggressively.

Perhaps the most serious cause of reaching very high levels of stress is what is known as amaxophobia, a condition in which the sufferer reaches a very high level of nervousness when behind the wheel, eventually developing a fear of driving.

So, we come to the point of how that stress is expressed when we are in the car. Some drivers take it out on other drivers, so shouting, gesturing and insults are the order of the day. Other drivers internalise it, and begin to feel so anxious that they can become a genuine danger to other road users.

However, there are various actions that can help us drive more calmly, so at Top10motor we are going to give some tips to avoid stress behind the wheel so that your journeys are not synonymous with losing your hair.

7 tips to avoid stress in the car

Keep calm

Keeping calm behind the wheel is one of the things that, at first glance, seems simplest, yet a great many drivers seem incapable of doing it. For this reason, it is advisable to take your time, get comfortable in your seat and make sure everything is in order before setting off. If you are travelling with your dog, don’t miss the tips for travelling with animals from our colleagues at Highmotor.

The main cause of losing your cool behind the wheel is timetables. We can’t tell you to forget them, since we all have to get to work at a certain time, drop the children off at school at another, and so on. What we can recommend, however, is not leaving the house at the last minute, because all that will happen is that we start to stress for no reason and arrive late and frazzled. Heavy traffic is one of the main enemies, so our tips for driving in summer traffic jams will also help you.

The road is not a boxing ring

We will often come across drivers who perform manoeuvres that put our safety at risk or simply annoy us. How many times have you been overtaken without indicating, cut off, or driven straight through a give-way sign? In such cases, try to let it go and simply signal that their behaviour was incorrect with a toot of the horn or a flash of the lights. Always avoid retaliating with a manoeuvre of your own, since all you will be doing is putting your own safety and that of other road users at risk again.

Don’t set yourself targets

Just as we should try to leave the house with time to spare, we should not challenge ourselves with absurd goals such as reaching a destination in record time or getting through a street with every traffic light green. Trying to achieve them will only frustrate us and, moreover, make our driving far more aggressive and prone to speeding, putting others at risk.

Stop and take a breath

Some drivers are terrified of undertaking a long-distance journey, or simply of driving on roads they don’t know. If that is your case and you have no choice but to drive, we recommend doing it in stages. That means that if you feel even slightly tired, you should stop and get out to get some fresh air. You can also use the break to plan the journey and relax your mind so that you can concentrate better when driving through unfamiliar places.

Enjoy it

For some people, myself included, the simple act of driving is already a pleasure. However, if that is not your case, it is important to find a way to make it something that entertains you. A good ally to keep your journeys from being boring is to play music, though we should not turn it up too loud, since that can divert our attention from the road.

Make sure you have good company

Drivers who get nervous behind the wheel tend to feel more at ease when they travel alone. However, the feeling of being responsible for several people, and of being judged on your driving, can make you uncomfortable. It is best to choose passengers who are calm and, if you normally get nervous, to tell them to be quiet so they don’t make things worse.

Of course, getting into an argument behind the wheel is dangerous, since it reduces your attention on the road and, on top of that, creates stressful situations. Therefore, if an argument is unavoidable, it is best to stop the car and be patient.

Avoid trouble

If you have had a run-in with an aggressive driver and they continue their behaviour to the point where you feel threatened, make sure the doors are locked and drive to the nearest police station or a service area. If they are following you, repeatedly pressing the horn can discourage the aggressor from continuing with their dangerous attitude.

With these tips to avoid stress behind the wheel we hope to help you and that your journeys by car are completed in a relaxed and safe way.