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Travel anxiety-anyone else have this?

Queen

Hi,

Am curious to know if anyone here suffers from travel anxiety? When I was little occasionally I used to suffer from bad anxiety when we had to travel than the few miles into our town, but the 45 miles to where my grandparents live was too much and resulted in anxiety and attacks leading up to the day in question. Then on the day of travel, we would take my dads car, if I went nine times out of ten I'd have a panic attack and end up sick along the way.

I'm a bit older now but my travel anxiety is even worse now. Any journey even the short ones into town make me so anxious and give me anxiety symptoms leading up to it and on the day.

I never go anywhere now. No job, no friends just extreme anxiety. Also another form of this is that when I'm in the car and travelling I need the toilet and need to wee literally within five minutes of the journey starting. And on hour long journeys it becomes so difficult, especially as most public toilets are closed here now.

This morning I was meant to go with my dad to see my grandma but the anxiety was severe and I backed out and now I feel so guilty and bad.

I know that the logical thing to do is to go to the doctors but I get severe panic attacks when I go so I don't go.
But I realize that this is becoming really bad for me.

Parents

  • Im so sorry your going through this. I do understand. I have had some form of travel anxiety my whole life. When I was a kid if I knew my mom n dad were planning a trip to the seaside I would spend days looking forward to it but then the night before we went I would be lying in bed hoping it would rain so we wouldnt have to go. I didnt know I was autistic back then so I never knew what it was. Even if me and my mom went to London to a museum or something I would spend the whole day plagued with anxiety attacks. Wierdly, the more I looked forward to something and the more I wanted to enjoy it the more it would happen

    I am so interested in different countries and history and the world around me but I have bookshelfs full of books about places I have never been able to go to because of my travel anxiety. I am facinated by German culture and almost see myself as a German cos it is my special interest and I identify with it so much but I have never been able to go to Germany

    As for practical tips that can help, do you find it easier to go places on your own or with someone? Sometimes I find if its a short trip on my own is easier because if theres someone else there then I have to worry about them as well as me if that makes sense. Although, saying that, I had a panic attack in the shopping centre the other day cos of all the Christmas shoppers and had to call my wife to come and get me. 

    Best advice I can give is you don't need to feel guilty about not being able to go places. It is a perfectly OK part of autism and there is nothing wrong with you. The more pressure you put on yourself to go places and the more you think you "should" be able to the harder it will be to do something.

    I find doing things on the day rather than planning them in advance helps too as then I dont have time to build up anxiety about it. Not sure maybe that would help you

    If I can think of anything else I will put it here 

Reply

  • Im so sorry your going through this. I do understand. I have had some form of travel anxiety my whole life. When I was a kid if I knew my mom n dad were planning a trip to the seaside I would spend days looking forward to it but then the night before we went I would be lying in bed hoping it would rain so we wouldnt have to go. I didnt know I was autistic back then so I never knew what it was. Even if me and my mom went to London to a museum or something I would spend the whole day plagued with anxiety attacks. Wierdly, the more I looked forward to something and the more I wanted to enjoy it the more it would happen

    I am so interested in different countries and history and the world around me but I have bookshelfs full of books about places I have never been able to go to because of my travel anxiety. I am facinated by German culture and almost see myself as a German cos it is my special interest and I identify with it so much but I have never been able to go to Germany

    As for practical tips that can help, do you find it easier to go places on your own or with someone? Sometimes I find if its a short trip on my own is easier because if theres someone else there then I have to worry about them as well as me if that makes sense. Although, saying that, I had a panic attack in the shopping centre the other day cos of all the Christmas shoppers and had to call my wife to come and get me. 

    Best advice I can give is you don't need to feel guilty about not being able to go places. It is a perfectly OK part of autism and there is nothing wrong with you. The more pressure you put on yourself to go places and the more you think you "should" be able to the harder it will be to do something.

    I find doing things on the day rather than planning them in advance helps too as then I dont have time to build up anxiety about it. Not sure maybe that would help you

    If I can think of anything else I will put it here 

Children
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