A long standing interest of mine has been the treatment of phobias, and of particular interest is the treatment of anxiety related to driving.  People develop fears of driving for a variety of reasons and the intensity of the fear varies from very mild to incapacitating.

Some of the reasons for developing this fear are fairly straight forward, resulting from such things as being in a motor vehicle accident, seeing a severe accident, or being in any situation involving being a motor vehicle where you experience severe anxiety or emotional trauma. Other reasons may not be so obvious.  Some of these can center around fears of becoming lost, being out of control of the situation, or experiencing feelings of being trapped, such as driving on the freeway and not having any immediate way to escape.

Treatment can be relatively simple for many people.  Often, providing some basic education about anxiety, developing a relaxation strategy, and the use of ‘covert desensitization’ will alleviate anxiety sufficiently to allow some to drive and manage their anxiety. At times the use of medication as an adjunct is very helpful, when the patient understands what the medication can and can’t do, and how to utilize it appropriately.

There are situations where the use of ‘in vivo desensitization’ is required as part of the treatment. For a description of what might be anticipated in actual treatment click: Example.