Being in a car accident is a terrifying experience. Hopefully, you haven’t sustained any severe physical injuries. But another consequence can be much less visible yet just as agonizing as a broken arm or bump on the head.
If you’re familiar with a gripping fear overcoming you every time you so much as think about getting back behind the wheel, you might have driving anxiety.
And you’re not alone. Various studies yield different statistics — one highlights that up to 47% of car accident survivors experience elevated anxiety and driving phobia — but whatever the actual figure, one thing is clear: anxiety is a common and entirely normal psychological response to the trauma of a car accident.
Fortunately, there are numerous techniques and strategies you can implement to ease your anxiety.
In this article, Dr. Louis Patino — a personal injury lawyer in McAllen, Texas, provides practical tips and exercises to help you combat anxiety based on his years of experience advocating for clients injured in car accidents and witnessing their strength and resilience as they deal with the impact of a crash.
How Anxiety Is Triggered
Anxiety after a car accident can come on suddenly — even when you’re not on the road. You might be standing in line at the store and hear a song on the radio that was playing while you were in your car. You might be walking down the street and smell food from a nearby restaurant, reminding you that you were on the way to get dinner when you were injured. Or you might be resting at home and hear a sudden bang, setting you on edge.
These responses happen because our brains constantly create associations, often without us realizing it at the time. It’s why the smell of a specific perfume can transport you back to a specific moment in time and why tastes and sounds can create nostalgia. But this also happens for traumatic events, meaning stimuli seemingly unrelated to your accident can trigger intense stress and fear.
Methods for Combatting Sudden Anxiety
Practicing Mindfulness
Mindfulness might seem like a buzzword, but this meditative practice is incredibly beneficial for anxiety. Most meditation is centered around emptying your mind, which sounds useful in theory, but in practice, it can be challenging to stop thoughts from creeping in. In contrast, mindfulness techniques involve focusing on a specific thing, making it easier to divert your attention from whatever might be triggering your anxiety at that moment.
Breathing Exercises
Breathing exercises are a practical approach to reducing anxiety and have an immediate, stress-relieving benefit. The simple act of noticing your breath — without trying to control it — can divert your attention from anxiety triggers, but there are also several techniques for controlling the breath.
Four-Seven-Eight Breathing
A popular breathing exercise is the Four-Seven-Eight technique. This exercise involves breathing in through your nose for four seconds, holding for seven seconds, and exhaling through the mouth for eight seconds. Repeating this cycle several times helps relax the body, brings you into the present moment, and can reduce blood pressure.
You can also adapt this exercise if you have respiratory issues or your breath is shallow. Hold for as long as feels comfortable, The goal of this exercise is to feel calm and centered — not to struggle to breathe!
Box Breathing
An alternative to the Four-Seven-Eight technique is Box Breathing. This exercise is particularly suitable for those who struggle to hold their breath and exhale for long counts.
To perform this exercise, inhale for a count of four, hold for four seconds, exhale for four, and hold for a final four seconds. Repeat the cycle for as long as you like or until your anxiety subsides.
The 5-4-3-2-1 Method
The 5-4-3-2-1 technique is often recommended by Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) practitioners to help you focus on your immediate surroundings. This grounding practice is equally effective whether you are suffering a flashback of your accident or “what if” scenarios are plaguing you with worry.
To practice this technique, notice your surroundings and identify:
- Five things you can see.
- Four things you can touch or feel. For example, you might notice the cool metal of your house keys, the heat emanating from your coffee cup, or the softness of a fleece jacket against your neck.
- Three things you can hear; perhaps the kids playing upstairs, the sound of music from another room, or a bird chirping outside.
- Two things you can smell.
- One thing you can taste.
You might find this exercise challenging at first, but it gets easier with practice. The things you notice may even surprise you — the pattern of graining on your coffee table; the subtle scent of the rain or air; the ridges of your fingernail; the feeling of sinking into a chair, or simply feeling the ground below supporting you.
Too often, we go through the motions and barely notice the details. Taking the time to really see and acknowledge your surroundings can give you a newfound appreciation for them. More importantly, this exercise regulates your nervous system, sending a signal to your brain that you are safe. When you scan your environment and home in the leaves on the ground or the smell of herbal tea — or whatever you notice — your brain equally acknowledges that there are no immediate threats. There is no hungry lion stalking your movements, no gunman holding you hostage, or, indeed, no car speeding toward you.
Talking about It
If your driving anxiety makes daily life difficult or develops into post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), it’s wise to seek professional help. But when you’re suddenly overcome by anxiety, it’s not always practical to head immediately to a support group or visit a therapist.
But you should never underestimate the benefits of talking about your feelings with a friend or loved one.
Studies show that support from family and friends can significantly reduce anxiety symptoms in car accident survivors.
Having a safe, non-judgmental environment where you can be vulnerable and express your fears and feelings can provide a profound sense of relief. Your confidante may not understand exactly what you’re going through or have a solution, but they can listen, and that can be enough.
Helping your loved one understand your triggers and how your anxiety manifests can also allow them to support you in other ways, such as by accompanying you to appointments, picking up the kids from school — so you can take the time you need to build up to driving again — or simply watching out for the signs of an attack.
When you experience sudden anxiety, it is vital to remember that it’s okay to feel this way and not to be too hard on yourself. Overcoming anxiety is a process, and you will have ups and downs. But with the right tools in your arsenal, patience with the process, and a support system, the small victories will turn into bigger victories, and you’ll soon be able to look back and see how far you’ve come.
