So you have decided that its time to learn to drive, but you may be a little intimidated by the complexity of driving. Don’t worry though, you don’t have to learn it all in single day. You will need a friend or family member who can already drive to get you started with this program, if you don’t have anyone around that can do the job then you may need to pay for some private lessons.
Driving phobia can be tough to cope with at first, but breaking down the daunting task of learning into small manageable steps can help.
Before you begin to practice in a real vehicle you will need to get a copy of your regions driving laws and regulations, in most places you can pick one up at the local registry office or police station. Many of these handbooks are targeted at new drivers and will be well worth the read as well as any small cover price. Once you have read over the basics and have a licensed friend with you then you can start the road practice.
Try to spend around an hour per day at least three times a week practicing so that you skills improve at a steady rate and you don’t forget anything you have learned. A good first session is to drive slowly around your neighborhood, pay close attention to posted traffic signs, double back towards your home so that you don’t have to worry about getting lost. It helps to have your friend give you directions and point out any mistakes you are making. Identifying and avoiding future mistakes is a great way for overcoming fear of driving.
As your skills improve you can try longer more complex trips, and more difficult tasks like parallel parking, maneuvering in parking lots and navigating multi lane roads. A wise idea would be to hire a driving instructor for a single lesson for some professional critique, and pointers for these more complex maneuvers. Most importantly, go easy on yourself; it is perfectly fine to pull over somewhere safe and take a time out to gather your thoughts and calm down.
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