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394991 tn?1214255907

Feeling Out of It When Driving

I have not been able to drive for the last 3 weeks.  It all started when I was driving with my husband in the car, and all of a sudden I felt like I was going to faint. I pulled over on the highway.  My heart was beating really hard and I was sweating.  I am not sure though, if this was a cause or a result of me having to pull over.  Ever since then, I have not been able to drive because every time I get in the car I feel out of it, I am lightheaded and about to faint. I feel this way when I am a passenger in the car.  My husband and I don't usually have to go on the highway, but we did today, and the speed of the highway made my symptoms get a lot more exaggerated.  The best way I can describe the feeling is that it felt like I was on a rollercoaster with no seatbelt and no sides on the car.  Like the car was going to fly off the road at any second. I went to the ER the 2nd time this happened when I was driving and they did tons of tests..EKG, pregnancy test, CT scan, chest x-rays, and found nothing. I made an appt with my primary care physician and she thought it might be panic attacks. I have been on Zoloft for 2 weeks and seen no improvement.  I started thinking they probably weren't panic attacks because this sensation occurs every time I am in a car, from the time the car is moving, to the time it stops.  I made an appt with an ENT to get tested for Vertigo, although I have never heard of someone getting vertigo only when they are driving.  If anyone has ANY ideas, please let me know because I am desperate for help.  It is very frustrating not being able to drive
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370181 tn?1595629445
When you wrote........"it ALL started when I was driving in the car with my husband......." I wonder what was going on in your life at that time. Cast your mind back to that day, and even BEFORE that day, really look at what was happening in your world that could have caused you to feel stressed and panicy. Try to remember what you were thinking and feeling just moments before the panic hit you and you had to pull over. What triggered those thoughts and feelings?
I'm glad you had a good check up, so you can rule out some physical reason for this episode. It sounds like a classic panic attack. And now what is happening is a type of avoidant behavior. When we have a panic attack at the mall, or in the grocery store or at the beach, we tend to avoid those places, thinking it was the place that caused us to panic, not our minds. You are avoiding driving because that is where your panic attack happened...........you think it was the car or the highway or the speed. I would suggest you ask your doctor for a referral to a good therapist and get to the bottom of what caused you to feel that panic. Once you realize that it had nothing to do with the car, you will back on the road. Don't let anxiety take control of your life!
You didn't say that you suffered from anxiety before this one time. They say that everyone will experience an anxiety attack at some point in their life. Maybe this was your time, but since it is preventing you from living your life as you normally would, you DO need to see someone about it. Good luck and keep us posted, OK?
Peace
Greenlydia
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Avatar universal
I have been fine for awhile. now I have to start over.
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Avatar universal
i have almost the same problem, when driving on a slope (bank) highways lower is driver side i fell like falling on my side as driver. then that starts to feel m head dizzy and my neck stiffy. i feel that my car tends to roll over on my side everytime i passed by to hway that are banked. please share ideas what have you done? i already done some research and have already done various test with my ENT dr... but to no avail... i remember one time 2 years ago this symptom triggered when i rode a much higher pool slide, that i can't control myself when going down.. from there i started to feel this until now..
please share any ideas that can minimize or help my situation. tnx
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Avatar universal
I am the same as you, cannot drive all of the sudden because I almost fainted while driving, had to pull over, it happened about 4 times over the last years but the last one was really bad, I haven't driven since! I am okay riding passenger, just not driving, but I also have these symptoms while not driving too so I don't know. I am not much help just wanted to let you know that I know where you are!
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