One of the biggest problems I'm trying to conquer is driving again. I was out yesterday and drove for 20 minutes with my mom in the car. Once I turned my head slightly to the right while looking straight and it felt like the whole car was sliding away. I finally let Mom finish driving and beat myself up over not being able to comfortably do something I've done for 20 some years. I felt lightheaded and off-center for hours afterwards. I can cope with the anxiety and have pretty much squashed the panic attacks, but how am I supposed to get back to a normal life without feeling comfortable driving? I'm on no meds as yet and no diagnosis yet (see ENT 3/1). m

Hallo - yes I have avoided driving for a few months now.
I am ok if there is someone in the car with me - but I would hate to be on my own driving. I also beat myself up about it and feel like a real failure. It's just I am so scared of feeling anxious and "weird". It is a real relief though to read that I am not the only one feeling this way :)

I also feel a bit like my friends must think I am a wimp and can't understand my anxieties (going out on my own/driving alone) but I have to remember that they just don't really understand what we're going through and that we are allowed to take time out with some things and don't have to give ourselves a hard time and that we should be concentrating on getting better.

Hope you feel better soon. I am feeling a bit bummed as I haven't been able to sleep laying flat for over 3 or 4 weeks now. Also when I can almost lay flat it is only on my left side (which is odd as I have a gland up on my ear on that side and that ear aches!) Anyway I digress!! GET WELL SOON!! And don't beat yourself up - you are doing very well considering the circumstances! :D Katkin!!

One of the biggest problems I'm trying to conquer is driving again. I was out yesterday and drove for 20 minutes with my mom in the car. Once I turned my head slightly to the right while looking straight and it felt like the whole car was sliding away. I finally let Mom finish driving and beat myself up over not being able to comfortably do something I've done for 20 some years. I felt lightheaded and off-center for hours afterwards. I can cope with the anxiety and have pretty much squashed the panic attacks, but how am I supposed to get back to a normal life without feeling comfortable driving? I'm on no meds as yet and no diagnosis yet (see ENT 3/1). m

Driving is a tough one. My doctor scolded me for trying to drive. She asked how I would feel if I hurt someone. That made me think, but I also felt like I am not out of control, I just feel funny. I mean, there was a time when I gave up driving completely because it was too unbearable and stressful. I just felt like it WAS dangerous. But now I have days when I feel like I wouldn't like to get behind the wheel unless I had to, but some days I can do it, and although I feel funny, I feel completely in control, and I am not going to have a vertigo attack or anything. That's not ever happened. I can tell when I am going to have one, I have a sense, and at this point, it's usually when it's dark. But I would say it's best to use your judgement. If I am having a rough day, I simply don't drive. But it is important to consider how safe it is, for you, and anyone else in your path! Good luck.
Julianne

Thanks for your replies. I've often wondered how people manage to drive feeling this way. Some have no choice, I'm sure. I don't feel like I would actually lose control, but it makes me a nervous wreck because the movement sensation is so entirely magnified. My husband just bought a new truck and he tells me how wonderful it is to drive it compared to our very old one. I wonder if I'm soon going to be able to experience that myself--each day I just see how I feel and if I feel spinny then I bow out. That's nearly every day so far. Then when I think I'm making progress and can get behind the wheel, I get spinny again.

Dawn.

Hi Dawn I know what your talking about. I didn't even leave my house for 6 months!! Driving is still a big fear. I have done it and done fine but the fear of spinning is there and thats the biggest problem. Just wanted to let you know--your sure not alone. Belle

Hi, I am lucky in the fact I dont get spinning just dizziness and inbalance (cant believe im saying "just" - this thing has been hell for me!) so driving, I actually feel much better. My ENT explained this is the case for many - because you are concentrating. Being a passenger in a car, is more tricky for me. On v bad days, I dont drive. In time it will get easier for you xxx

One of the biggest problems I'm trying to conquer is driving again. I was out yesterday and drove for 20 minutes with my mom in the car. Once I turned my head slightly to the right while looking straight and it felt like the whole car was sliding away. I finally let Mom finish driving and beat myself up over not being able to comfortably do something I've done for 20 some years. I felt lightheaded and off-center for hours afterwards. I can cope with the anxiety and have pretty much squashed the panic attacks, but how am I supposed to get back to a normal life without feeling comfortable driving? I'm on no meds as yet and no diagnosis yet (see ENT 3/1). m


Wow, can I ever relate. How long have you been dealing with this? Mine has been 8 years, and you never get used to it. :( At least, I haven't. I used to be so independant, have a new 2003 Cavalier that we bought 6 months ago sitting here, and I can't even enjoy driving it. Sometimes I do, but only with someone with me. Plus, I have a family who just doesn't get it. My parents live about 2 miles from me, if I tell her I'm having a bad day she'll tell me "come on over, you don't need to be alone". Well DUH! If I feel bad, the last thing I need to do is get behind a wheel of a car! Plus, within the last 4 months I have started having anxiety/panic attacks where I feel like I can't breathe. I never knew they could start late in life (I'm 43) but the last thing I need to be doing is driving. I just use my best judgement. (btw, I don't have vertigo/spinning, just off balance and that "spacey" feeling 24/7)

Sorry I rambled :D

Kim

Hi--

It's only been 2 months with the driving--I certainly hope it's not going to be another 2 months or even more!! I did drive back from town today (8 miles) with my mom in the car and did okay. If I start to think about actually driving while I'm driving, I get spinny. So I honestly don't know if it's the anxiety about not feeling 100% while driving that's really causing the sensation.

Kim, I am 38 and just started with the anxiety/panic attacks two months ago. I still have them, only not as bad. I just think to myself that it's only fear and what am I afraid of? Sometimes that works. Sometimes I just have to stop what I'm doing and move on to something else and try and quickly change whatever line of thought I was in. When they first started, I was freaking out because I didn't know what they were--I could have sworn I was going crazy and actually told my husband I needed committed. I hope you are doing better or can find some relief. One thing that helped me was reading "Feeling Good" where in it the doctor said one of his techniques about people feeling like they are going crazy is just to try and make yourself go crazy--you soon realize you can't do that as you're not prone that way. Same with panic attacks in public--if you're afraid of what people may think if you lose control (my big fear), just go into a store and do something off the wall and crazy and see if anyone really gives a heck. Haven't tried that one, though!!

I do have an rx for Lexapro and for Klonopin and have been debating taking one or the other of them. I hear so many different opinions on both on these boards (including the anxiety and the depression boards) that I just don't know. The last place I was recommended to look was www.remedyfind.com and it has a lot of different opinions from actual people using the different meds. Lexapro looks like it is being prescribed for anxiety just as much as it is for depression.

I feel for you all--this really stinks. I keep wondering if normal is just around the corner and then wonder if normal is just going to be an ever-elusive feeling.

Dawn.

Dawn, your last sentence hit home with me - I indeed often think this as I cant remember what NORMAL feels like. How do normal people walk? How does it feel for them? I just cant remember anymore. Normality is in reach for us all with vestibular issues. We just have to remain strong, hopeful and ride through this bumpy ride.

Keep smiling.

xxx

One of the biggest problems I'm trying to conquer is driving again.....

Hi Tazmindog,

I'm having the exact same problem although I haven't tested myself for about 5 weeks now. The last time I drove, I got in the car feeling about 90%. Within 15 minutes at the wheel and stuck in a traffic jam, this freaked out feeling went through me like an electric shock right out of the blue. I was thinking about something totally unrealted too. It was like a wave of panic washed over me. From that point forward I was all messed up for the rest of the day....sensitive to noise....just feeling unwell and unstable. But as a passenger I'm fine! Buses and trains are OK too. It's all got to do with the concentration of driving I think. It just maxes out the brain and if you haven't fully compensated then WHAMMO. Oh....one other thing...I can't handle motorcycles either - even as a passenger.

Lets hope this will all just go away with compensation. Perhaps the best thing to do is to just force yourself to drive regardless. This would surely speed up the compensation process.

Cheers.....Scott

Hi Tazmindog,

I'm having the exact same problem although I haven't tested myself for about 5 weeks now. The last time I drove, I got in the car feeling about 90%. Within 15 minutes at the wheel and stuck in a traffic jam, this freaked out feeling went through me like an electric shock right out of the blue. I was thinking about something totally unrealted too. It was like a wave of panic washed over me. From that point forward I was all messed up for the rest of the day....sensitive to noise....just feeling unwell and unstable. But as a passenger I'm fine! Buses and trains are OK too. It's all got to do with the concentration of driving I think. It just maxes out the brain and if you haven't fully compensated then WHAMMO. Oh....one other thing...I can't handle motorcycles either - even as a passenger.

Lets hope this will all just go away with compensation. Perhaps the best thing to do is to just force yourself to drive regardless. This would surely speed up the compensation process.

Cheers.....Scott

Scott,
Totally relate! I had terrible panic attacks in the car, without any warning. Just riding along stuck in some traffic, and all of the sudden, whoa, felt like I was going to pass out, ears ringing very loud, start to black out a little, odd breathing, just a total freak out for no obvious reason. At least we can all relate with each other. What a mess. I haven't had that lately thank goodness.
Julianne

Thanks for the input. That's what I get--a feeling of electric shock and "Oh my God, I shouldn't be driving!" and then it's downhill from there. I'm afraid I'm just going to have to force myself, and soon. I've been staying in PA the last several weeks with my Mom, but we are headed back to my home in FL and my Mom will only be staying about 10 days. After that, I'm back to driving on my own as my husband works days and I can't simply NOT go out and do things that need to be done. The mere thought frightens me. My "crutch" and chaffeur will be gone. At 38, I feel like a 6 year old. However, I finally will get in to see an ENT soon upon return and, I so hope, have some insight as to what exactly is going on.

Dawn.

Thanks for the input. That's what I get--a feeling of electric shock and "Oh my God, I shouldn't be driving!" and then it's downhill from there. I'm afraid I'm just going to have to force myself, and soon. I've been staying in PA the last several weeks with my Mom, but we are headed back to my home in FL and my Mom will only be staying about 10 days. After that, I'm back to driving on my own as my husband works days and I can't simply NOT go out and do things that need to be done. The mere thought frightens me. My "crutch" and chaffeur will be gone. At 38, I feel like a 6 year old. However, I finally will get in to see an ENT soon upon return and, I so hope, have some insight as to what exactly is going on.

Dawn.
Hi Dawn, I know exactly what you are feeling. My husband is gone for 5 months on work, and here I am, trying to take care of two small kids and drive to various things and so on. I am at my sister's house on the other side of the country for a month right now, just to take some of the stress off. It's hard, but what I try to do is just consolidate my errands and drive close and locally. I don't drive at night, and I have one trip that's about 15 miles to church each way, once a week. Otherwise, I stick to the grocery store which is within 5 miles, and other nearby shopping. I also take advantage of good days to get things done. If I have a good day, I get out and do the far away shopping I need to do. It's not great, but it helps me to manage and eventually it has to get better. It just has to! I am 34, my husband did almost all the driving, and now I feel like I need a driver, but I am not wealthy enough for that. If I had the money for a driver, I would hire a housekeeper first, let her run my errands!

We'll get through this, but I know it's a pain, and it's scary. My biggest revelation that I should not necessarily be driving came when I was on my way to an appointment. I couldn't figure out how to get there. I just couldn't reason my way through my own town. I was so flustered and stressed, and there was awful traffic, I finally got to the appointment and I was half an hour late. I tried to explain and after the whole horrible fiasco, I was told they couldn't see me because I was too late. I almost burst into tears right there, but instead, I went to the bathroom, and sat on the floor crying and rocking and feeling like, "how the heck will I get home now?" It was that day that I said, "I am not driving this speeding bullet of chaos until I am better!" And although I am not better, I can find days where driving can happen. It's almost like you can't fight the bad days, you just have to embrace them and go with the flow. I hope that helps a little!
julianne

Hi Julianne,Oh do I know what your talking about. I was in town and driving--had my youngest with me. I was driving along and all of a sudden, I could not figure out how to get where I was suppose to be going. It just terrified me.No matter how hard I thought, I couldn't remember HOW to get there.I pulled off and had a cry, and realized--hey, I know the way home..... So I got us home as quick as I could but was still shaking from the experience. If I have to drive,I plan where I am going before I ever get in the car!!! Thank God, that has only happened once and I pray it never does again. How you doing on the Klonopin? Any improvement? Prayers, Belle

Hi Julianne,Oh do I know what your talking about. I was in town and driving--had my youngest with me. I was driving along and all of a sudden, I could not figure out how to get where I was suppose to be going. It just terrified me.No matter how hard I thought, I couldn't remember HOW to get there.I pulled off and had a cry, and realized--hey, I know the way home..... So I got us home as quick as I could but was still shaking from the experience. If I have to drive,I plan where I am going before I ever get in the car!!! Thank God, that has only happened once and I pray it never does again. How you doing on the Klonopin? Any improvement? Prayers, Belle
Hey Belle,
We have a little post going on Klonopin. I have been discussing it there and there is a guy, Dizzydude with some very helpful info. You might want to take a look. I am not entirely impressed with the klonopin, the verdict is still out. I am thinking about adjusting my dose. I have to discuss it with the doc. Dizzy dude seems to have had some success. Check out the thread, it's called, Is anyone who is taking klonopin having any success or something like that. How are you? Are still having rough symptoms or are you getting a break? I am at my sister's for a month and it's a nice break. We have a church here that's my "home" church, so it was great to go there last Sunday.

Take care,
Julianne