Amaxophobia (from Greek hâmaxa, 'chariot' and phobos, 'fear'), ie. the fear of driving is classified as a true phobia, i.e. as an irrational and debilitating fear that can also affect one's social life.
This is not a simple situation of 'anxiety' while driving, but manifests through the anxiety that the person can suffer from even the mere thought of touching a steering wheel.
How and when does the fear of driving appear?
Visible symptoms can be traced to those of a classic panic attack: tachycardia, excessive sweating, tremors throughout the body, pain in the abdomen and chest.
This fear of driving can be the result of what is called in the jargon a preconceived fantasy, that is, of all the possible dangerous situations that the amaxophobic imagines to encounter on the road.
In a heightened state of anxiety, the person driving the car may imagine getting into catastrophic situations such as accidents or serious illnesses such as stroke or loss of consciousness.
Specific case studies of amaxophobia
Each person affected by amaxophobia has a different trigger, as there are different situations in which the person in question may have developed this phobia within themselves:
1. Drive alone
The feeling of someone in the passenger seat next to you can help ease feelings of anxiety. Alternatively, the amaxophobic may end up refusing to drive in order to avoid succumbing to anxiety.
2. Driving in desert areas
In the case of a person suffering from agoraphobia (irrational fear of open places) a situation may arise in which he fears a panic attack in a situation in which he could not ask anyone for help, generating peaks increasingly acute anxiety.
3. Driving in tunnels
The same vicious cycle explained in the previous point occurs (fear of feeling afraid), but this time referring to claustrophobia, or the irrational fear of enclosed spaces.
4. Highway driving or speeding
The amaxophobic, in this case, feels as if he cannot control the situation. This is both because of the high speed that he is forced to respect (up to 130 km/h on the highway and 110 km/h on the ring) and because he himself is afraid of losing control of the car or not being able to keep up with other drivers under control.
5. Leaving home
If for some amaxophobics the idea of driving along familiar roads near their home is still stable, the fear of the unknown appears when they take new roads far from their comfort zone.
6. Driving in or getting stuck in traffic
Simply because, out of fear of having a very intense panic attack, the person is afraid of finding himself stranded and unable to get any kind of immediate help. You may experience the same anxiety when crossing long and very elevated bridges.
Causes of fear of driving
In general, amaxophobia arises from an extremely underestimated vision of the person, who feels unable to manage all possible situations.
The causes of this low self-esteem can be sought, both in character, and in more or less traumatic events: an accident of which amaxophobia was the victim or involuntary author, or the loss of a loved one after a collision. The psychological picture is really broad.
Often this phobia is also the result of a distorted and strongly negative thought of everyone around the person, including drivers and pedestrians, as if they had the constant feeling that someone is about to make a wrong step or a wrong maneuver .
People most susceptible to developing this fear usually have a highly anxious profile or other debilitating phobias, such as claustrophobia, agoraphobia and separation anxiety. However, there are those who possess this fear without a specific trigger.
How to overcome
Since this is a disorder closely related to anxiety, it is a wise decision to first think about the psychologist and the possibility of starting a treatment path with him.
If the panic attacks have improved, you can continue to the practical part of the instructor.
