While it’s the last thing any driver wants to hear, traffic accidents are real. They occur from time to time on the road, some of them causing vehicle damage and injuries that may result in long-term scars, physical disability, or even death at the worst. After being involved in a major (or minor) accident, it is not unusual to have recurrent anxiety attacks after a car accident, and thoughts and memories of the event in your mind.
For instance, if you had an accident at night, the flashbacks may tend to recur in your mind at night when asleep or when driving in the dark. In most cases, these flashbacks also present anxieties about driving, traveling, or being near traffic/vehicles. Additionally, these anxieties may come with mixed feelings, including:
Nervousness
Fear
Irritability
Shock
Anger
Grief
Depending on the magnitude, some of these feelings may affect your life drastically, with the possibility of causing bigger problems like PTSD and depression. Fears of driving or riding in a vehicle are also common if you’re experiencing anxiety attacks after a car accident. However, some people manage to recover from these anxiety attacks, of course, with professional help and support from loved ones along with a strong willingness to recover.
Below, we briefly explore how car accident anxiety attacks present themselves and how you can overcome them.
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
After an accident, you are bound to experience problems that may take time to go away. One of these problems might be post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Anxiety attacks may come solely or as one of the symptoms of PTSD.
This depends on a wide range of factors, including you as an individual, your support system, the extent of damages, how the accident happened, and how long it has been since the incident. They can affect or change the way you view or feel about your life. Some of the symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder include:
Panic when in a moving car
General uneasiness
Experiencing nightmares
Recurrent memories of the incident
With the above symptoms, you will need to find a way to face your fears and overcome them before it becomes a mental disease that might lead to depression or worse.
Solutions to Overcome Anxiety Attacks After a Car Accident
You cannot live in your anxiety cocoon forever. While different people react in different ways to different situations, here are some ways you can overcome anxiety attacks after a car accident:
Talk about it
A problem shared is half-solved, so they say. We all have that person we find comfort in talking to. Call a friend, family, or a counselor and talk about that fateful time when the accident occurred. Talk about everything and give all the details you need to. It can help your mind feel at ease, thus diminishing your anxiety.
Get back to your normal schedule
After an accident, some people tend to withdraw from reality, which affects their schedule. It may be scary and traumatic at first, but with time, you will need to get back to your normal life. To fight anxiety attacks, it’s best to find a way to slowly get back to your normal routine.
Take precautions when in a car
If you’re a driver, you can consider taking defensive driving classes so you improve your skills on the road. If you were a passenger in the accident, on the other hand, you may require amaxophobia treatment for passengers. The feeling that you’re safer when in a vehicle can have a calming effect on your mind, which can prevent sudden anxiety attacks.
Consider hypnotherapy
The Driving Peace Program is partly based on guided hypnotherapy. There are also other hypnosis downloads you can use to get over car accident anxiety attacks, including:
You Don’t Have to Be a Nervous Passenger
This gentle hypnosis session will calm your nerves around being a passenger in a car.
Get Rid of Fear and Anxiety Pack
Overcome excess fear and anxiety for good with these 5 carefully selected hypnosis sessions.
Be Rid of Panic Attacks 5-Pack
Hypnosis can to retrain your subconscious to know when anxiety is actually warranted.
More Guided Hypnotherapy Downloads
Stay active and exercise often
Engaging in exercise – especially yoga – can really help you meditate and get through the situation. There are tons of free yoga courses online to get you started. One of my favorites is SarahBeth Yoga.
Accidents are associated with so much pain, pressure, frustration, and turmoil. While permanent scars, disability, and death are possible, the majority of accidents are fortunately minor, but often they still leave victims in mental anguish. The above are just a few helpful ways you or someone you know can deal with the weird feelings, fears, and anxieties that follow after being involved in a car accident.
