I’m so relieved that I’m not alone with this paralyzing fear. I do okay driving in town, on familiar roads, and in good weather. Take any of those factors away and I start getting panicky. When snow and ice hit (which they have so often this winter), I either take a vacation day from work (feeling like a slacker) or get a ride with a coworker (and just feel pathetic).
I used to do okay driving on highways (though not in big cities—I never mastered that), but after several years of living with my husband, and him driving us everywhere, those skills atrophied. My husband wants to move to a smaller town, which I told him is contingent on my being able to drive on the highways again. We went out yesterday, and I made it four miles (crawling along at no more than 50 mph, no doubt pissing off everyone around me) before I panicked and had to pull over and have him take the wheel again. I felt so ashamed of panicking and failing that I ended up lashing out at him, and we had a horrible fight.
I’m 33 years old; I have a professional job and a master’s degree. But my fears of driving keep me from feeling like a real, competent adult.
