Media Room

Driving on the Highway for the First Time

Hello there! A couple of months ago, I shared some wins I had against my anxiety, which you can check out here, and wanted to share another win I recently had. After having my license for about 7 years but only driving on residential roads, I finally drove on the highway for the first time.

Quick Context

Learning to drive was quite scary, as I’m sure it was for most folks. However, since I only have one fully functioning eye, I found myself trying extra hard to drive as safely as possible, maybe even too safe lol.

During the dark times, aka peak COVID days, I chose not to drive anymore after hitting a curb, and planned on not driving for the rest of my life. The first part of this decision was also based on the car I was driving in that moment not being mine, but my mom’s, and I didn’t want to risk causing serious damage to her car.

Fast Forward

During summer or fall of 2023, I changed my mind by getting behind the wheel again for the first time in a few years.  Of course I had to get used to that stressful feeling once more, but I adjusted quicker than I thought I would.

I had been thinking about driving on the highway for a few weeks.  I knew it’d be more intense than residential roads, so I needed a lot of time to build up to it.  Finally, after finishing a grocery shopping trip, I felt it was time.  To be honest, though, I only went for it because I only needed to drive from one exit to another to get home, so I wouldn’t be on the highway long.

The experience was definitely pretty stressful. I had to quickly adjust to a faster than what I’m used to speed.  I stayed in the slow lane which did ease a tiny sliver of stress, and as you might imagine, I was very glad when I got off at my exit. Even though it will probably still be intimidating for a while, I know I should do this again soon to keep the momentum going.

Wish me luck. – T