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Do you constantly find yourself getting stressed behind the wheel? Stress whilst driving is surprisingly common and has many forms. There are those that get anxiety over the fear of being in an accident and there are those that get road rage as the result of being inconvenienced by traffic jams and other people’s driving. Overcoming driving stress is important, as it can make you a more dangerous driver and it can affect your general health. Here are just several ways in which you can help beat driving stress.
Give yourself enough time
One of the most common times when drivers get stressed is whilst commuting to work. Traffic jams and unforeseen diversions often get us agitated because we know that we’re then going to be late. A simple way to beat this stress is to leave home earlier. By having more time to get to work, you’ll be less likely to get in a panic about being late. This applies to any road journey in which you may need to be somewhere for a certain time.
Plan your routes
Planning your route out could also help to eliminate driving stress. If you’re travelling somewhere new, planning your route can prevent you getting lost, which is known for making many drivers panicky and frustrated. It can also allow you to avoid roads that could be heavily congested or potentially dangerous in certain weather conditions, helping to make it a smoother and happier drive.
Listen to music
Listening to music can be a great way of relieving stress whilst driving. Obviously, it needs to be music that you enjoy and preferably nothing that’s too distracting. Something that’s tranquil and calm could be what you need to help calm you down on the road. In fact, why not try this song featured at Inc – science suggests it may be the most stress-reducing song.
Learn to deal with others’ bad driving
Other people’s bad driving can be a huge source of both driving anxiety and road rage. Learning to deal calmly with bad drivers is essential – treat them with caution, but don’t fixate on them. Some drivers feel that having a dashcam gives them a sense of security by helping to record any bad driving – sites like BlackBoxMyCar offer information on the best dashcams to buy. Meanwhile, there are also therapists that deal exclusively with road rage, helping you to act calmly during an incident on the road.
Bring some coffee and snacks
Having some coffee and snacks in the car with you could also help you to relieve stress. Tasty foods and drinks can trigger our feelgood receptors, flooding our bodies with endorphins that can help to flush out stress-causing cortisol. The likes of BODUM do great travel cups for drinking coffee on the road.
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