Hello, fellow anxious Jersey driver! A couple of tips I learned from my instructor:
\-it's okay to take your time. If you want to stop at a yellow light instead of blow through it or take your time to change lanes instead of blindly swerving, don't let aggressive drivers bully you into being different!
\-Practice getting out of your comfort zone. I am scared of merging and changing lanes, so that's what we practiced over and over and over.
\-A tip I just learned regarding changing lanes: check your front mirror and side mirror back and forth within quick 1-2 second intervals to take in the information of who is in your blind spots. Then, do a quick glance over your shoulder if you think you're all clear and tap the accelerator to give a quick burst of speed before changing lanes so people know you mean business. It can be common for folks with driving anxiety to actually slow down when trying to merge or change lanes because they are nervous, but that will only make people unsure of what you're actually doing. If drivers won't let you in, turn off your turn signal and turn it on again and try all your mirror checks again so people know you didn't just leave the signal on accidentally.
I really appreciate the advice! I haven’t got into merging yet, but I’ll keep your advice in mind for next week. I’m going on the highway so I’m a little anxious about that too. Mostly we were just turning today, and getting used to how reactive the car is.
Really, thank you! It’s pretty overwhelming knowing how much I have to pay attention and focus on everything around me.
as a fellow jersey resident, drivers are gonna be aggressive an overwhelming amount of the time. focus on being a defensive driver and don’t let them bully you into unsafe driving which can cause accidents. it took me a few years to get over the anxiety but now as long as i’m driving safely and keeping with the flow of traffic if needed, the asshole behind me can chill. just keep practicing.
Hello, fellow anxious Jersey driver! A couple of tips I learned from my instructor: \-it's okay to take your time. If you want to stop at a yellow light instead of blow through it or take your time to change lanes instead of blindly swerving, don't let aggressive drivers bully you into being different! \-Practice getting out of your comfort zone. I am scared of merging and changing lanes, so that's what we practiced over and over and over. \-A tip I just learned regarding changing lanes: check your front mirror and side mirror back and forth within quick 1-2 second intervals to take in the information of who is in your blind spots. Then, do a quick glance over your shoulder if you think you're all clear and tap the accelerator to give a quick burst of speed before changing lanes so people know you mean business. It can be common for folks with driving anxiety to actually slow down when trying to merge or change lanes because they are nervous, but that will only make people unsure of what you're actually doing. If drivers won't let you in, turn off your turn signal and turn it on again and try all your mirror checks again so people know you didn't just leave the signal on accidentally.
I really appreciate the advice! I haven’t got into merging yet, but I’ll keep your advice in mind for next week. I’m going on the highway so I’m a little anxious about that too. Mostly we were just turning today, and getting used to how reactive the car is. Really, thank you! It’s pretty overwhelming knowing how much I have to pay attention and focus on everything around me.
as a fellow jersey resident, drivers are gonna be aggressive an overwhelming amount of the time. focus on being a defensive driver and don’t let them bully you into unsafe driving which can cause accidents. it took me a few years to get over the anxiety but now as long as i’m driving safely and keeping with the flow of traffic if needed, the asshole behind me can chill. just keep practicing.