Stress is something we are all susceptible to when we are driving nowadays. If you are driving with your children and other family members in the car, all these distractions can add up to a wealth of anxiety. Throw into the mix roadwork, traffic, and leaving late, now you are turning your car into a ball of stress. If you can get to your destination without feeling the urge to kill rising, it will benefit everybody concerned. What are the best ways to do this?
This is a contributed post and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Meet The Harris Family.
Plan Ahead
Everybody is in a rush these days, because they’ve left late, or they haven’t planned their journey at all. Before you set off, especially on long, arduous road trips, check the various routes, and before you head off, it’s always a good idea to have a look on Google Maps to see if there are any traffic problems. Other routes are beneficial for you to have in your back pocket, don’t just rely on the GPS.
Make Sure Everybody Takes The Journey Seriously
If you’ve got kids in the back that are noisy and distracting, this split second you take your eyes off the road to see what they’re doing could spell disaster. When you are driving by yourself, or even when you are on a motorcycle, you have that killer focus because there are no distractions. So if you were to crash your motorcycle or the car with just you in it, you have nobody to blame but yourself. But if you have children in the backseat who are very noisy, and simply don’t care about you trying to get from A to B safely, they need to get the message. This can mean the old fashioned trick of pulling over if they are being too noisy, taking the keys out of the ignition and sitting there until everybody takes the journey seriously.
Learn How To Calm Down
Sometimes it’s not the external factors, but it’s us and our emotions. If you are the only driver in your family, the pressure you can feel is overwhelming at times. The best ways to calm down would be to take the opportunity to relax before you leave, but also not get into the negative mindset when you hit a problem on the road, such as when someone cuts you off. If you are heading out on a long road trip, you need adequate breaks, and the opportunity to stretch your legs. If you plan ahead and aren’t in a rush, this gives you much more of an opportunity to have a break when you really need it.
The more you stay on the road, the slower your reactions will be. And the more stressed you get, the less you focus on everything around you. Remember, driving tired is just as bad as driving under the influence.
We all should have a relaxing journey, especially for embarking on a long road trip, but because there are so many external factors, as well as problems in the car, we need to learn the best ways to cut back on stress.
