My fear of driving in the state of Georgia

I remember when I was first learning to drive I was excited to be able to go places on my own….that is until my mom was the one helping me learn.

Every single time she was in the passenger seat we would end u having to pull over because I was in tears.

My mom would yell at me, tell me to pull dangerous maneuvers to backtrack unclear instructions, and would constantly berate me because I “couldn’t listen to simple instructions.”

This gave my anxiety something new to feast on: my fear of driving. Before I started my medications I would take the same roads even if it would make my driving time twice as long. And I would never turn off the GPS, even if it was the 15-minute drive I took from home to school (or vice versa) every day.

Now, I, like I believe everyone should, have a healthy fear of driving, not something overwhelming, or something I can pass by.

I live in Georgia, which is notable as Driver’s Ed wasn’t made mandatory in the state until 2005, after a 2003 fatal incident with an inexperienced driver named Joshua. So, if you look onto the road, you can usually tell who got their license before and after this date, usually by the lack of turn signals.

This is not only dangerous to drivers but pedestrians. In a world where suburbs are becoming more and more popular: necessitating the use of cars, there are fewer and fewer pedestrians not only because of the use of roads over sidewalks but the higher danger that more cars on the road create. That’s why we have soccer moms in the US, versus in European cities where children can bike or walk to school or other activities.

But besides that in 2004 Georgia had 19.9 car-related deaths per 10000 vehicles, in 2014 it was 5.3. This shows how driver’s ed does improve road safety, especially as the number of cars increases, as stated previously.

In addition, Georgia implemented that an Alcohol and Drug Awareness Program must be completed to attain a Georgia Driver’s permit. But as someone who has taken this course, I think it skips out on one important detail: drowsy driving. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that every year about 100,000 police-reported, drowsy-driving crashes result in nearly 800 fatalities and about 50,000 injuries. I think that more awareness should be shown of this epidemic of drowsy driving, and I can’t say I’m innocent of avoiding it. Which is why I believe implementing it into driver’s education would seriously help reduce these injuries and fatalities.

To be a better driver I have always tried to ask my mother to drive me when I am feeling especially tired and need to go somewhere, to avoid this problem.

But I can’t say my mom is the safest driver either. She’s gotten a few super speeder tickets, and when she turns your neck turns with the momentum.

There are also an increasing number of projects being done in my state to help prevent reckless driving, such as Project Yellow Light that creates PSAs prevent distracted driving.

But people need to start within themselves to resolve their own issues as everyone has that one thing: listening to music too loud, texting, calling, resolving children fights in the back seat, balencing something in the passenger seat, or something else.

I can’t say that I have many driving distractions, but rather than the overconfidence and arrogance that statement might portray it is because I have already resolved many of them.

I love the freedom to go where I want when I want. But I rarely take advantage of that because I know the danger and sometimes it overwhelms me.

Without fail when I first began driving. I would begin by putting all my things on the floor behind my passenger seat, then I would plug in my phone and stick it into the compartment between the two front seats (after checking that I had everything, twice), set the radio to a specific channel at a specific volume, and take a calming breath.

Then while I was driving I would drive out of my way to only take specific, familiar roads.

But while I was driving I was still distracted, not by the things around me, but by my own mind.

I would always have intrusive thoughts about being in a crash, even if I am one of the safest drivers. I would continually think someone was following me if their car stayed behind mine for just one turn. And sometimes I would become so tired that I could barely keep my eyes open.

And I knew something was wrong because normal people don’t have these problems.

But of course, that was then and this is now. And I would be, as I said, arrogant to say I am without flaw in the world of driving.

So, one distraction that I know I still have that I can’t seem to get rid of is my tendency to get distracted by the notifications on my phone. Of course, I plug in my phone and put it away and on silence when I’m driving. But whenever I feel a buzz of a notification my wandering thoughts overtake me and I become overwhelmed by the need to check my phone.

What if it’s something important?

What if my brother is hurt?

What if my shift just got canceled?

What if? What if? What if?

I resolve and promise to try and prevent this type of wandering thoughts by completely shutting off my phone in the future.

And this is something everyone can do and I think should be required: a reflection upon their distractions, because the first step to change is to acknowledge the problem.