Anxiety behind the wheel

Try relaxing, I know I know easier said than done right? But there are some excellent things that can be helpful to you apart from taking the prescription drugs the chemists and doctors will suggest you take. I find just watching those nature documentaries on cable can be relaxing, go for a walk in a park, if your close to the ocean, go down to the beach the waves for some reason have a very calming effect on a person. Or simply just laying down and listening to some classical music can work wonders.

 

You started this thread 4 years ago and your still have the same issue yet today ?
You need to make a career change if that is so

 

That would bore me to death lol

 

You need to learn how to convince yourself that everything will be fine. When dealing with conjested areas slow down so you’re in better control of the rig.

 

It's not GnR's Night Train, but it is well done. That's why ice cream comes in many flavors.

 

I recommend some old school instrumental jazz. It has helped me deal with some major crap.

 

We all drift to a rumble strip from time to time. Some states have them right on the fog line where we like to run.

 

I'mma throw my $0.01 in here. I am, by nature, an over thinker and highly risk averse. I don't like amusement park rides or stuff like that. I also have seen & experienced some stuff I wish I hadn't, and can visualize pretty accurately the sorts of gory mayhem that can happen when highway things go bad. and saw too many ignorant drivers that made me furious and terrified.
Oh- and I also, in 2 separate incidents, took off an oil pan stuck in a mud pit, and paid 900$ out of my own pocket for a scraped bumper issue...
so plenty of awareness of various ways things can go to hell.
rumble strips never made it on my stress list, but I'm not here to pass judgement
I will say, I knew early on that to keep whats left of my sanity I had to drive during the day and sleep at night. I'm old and grumpy when I don't sleep at night. doing flatbed and sleeping at night I was just old and fending off decay LOL. Plus I ate really well cooking in my truck because I won't eat truckstop food. So I had that going for me. and I made pretty good money. I'm an introvert and making good money while NOT having to deal with people is amazing!!!

When I got hit with long covid and spent the first 6 months sleeping I couldn't really tell that I had been stressed out, I was just really sick. But now that I sleep less and am back to driving to work or going on a site visit or whatever- if I see a truck my gut tightens up. If I have to watch a truck back up off the road I want to puke. It's like I'm behind the wheel and I can't make that blind back or whatever. I hate driving my car. I forget that I actually can stop in a reasonable distance, and that an accident won't automatically kill the other vehicle driver (always my worst fear- killing someone. I'd rather die). almost 2-1/2 years later it is getting better, both my health and my nerves, but I am still amazed that I was able to so completely shut out the parts of the job that were stressing me out. I mean sure- I'm oblivious sometimes, but that's just ridiculous LOL

Stress is hard on the body. It's been suggested to me that I might have gotten sicker than I would have if I'd been less stressed for the few year before I covid. No way to tell. Is the stress of this job on you causing problems? Overeating, high blood pressure? trouble sleeping?
if it is, why do it?

_/\_ Lee