I didn't pass my test at 17, I passed it 28. I remember my dad got me into manuel driving lessons at 21 for a year but I feel like I struggled to even drive the car during the lessons because I had to keep changing the gears and a few times I stalled on the road. I nearly always felt uncomfortable during the sessions and didn't look forward to the moment when the instructor exchanged seats with me and let me be the driver. I didn't get back into it until at 24, I was given automatic lessons and they seemed more comfortable as time went on for I think about 3 years I was with the instructor. This may sound strange, but I felt more comfortable with my latest instructor because she was female and I don't know why but I didn't always like going out with my male instructors worrying they might get angry or shout at me for making a mistake. Obviously I'm not making out that all male driving instructors shout and get angry at their students because that is not what I'm saying. My latest instructor seemed always calm and didn't shout or make me feel uncomfortable.
I seem to think as time went on during those lessons, my anxiety in the car lessened and I got more confident in doing the lessons and even after I had passed and had my own car. I don't know if that was because I had matured and was able to calm myself in the car and convince myself that everything is okay whereas when I had my first lessons in a manual car I was nearly always panicking and not knowing how to use the gears while in drive or getting out of a situation in which the car stalled sometimes in the middle of a busy road.
I feel glad that I do know how to drive and have a car but a part of me, sometimes thinks that I feel bad that I was anxious during my lessons and feel like I was the only one in my early 20s at the time who felt that way, when maybe every other 20 year old was having lessons or driving a manual car without any anxiety problems. I seem to think I wish I was as confident in my early 20s as I was in my late 20s. I just makes me feel like I ''should'' have had more experience with driving my own car by my late 20s and probably ''should'' have by that time have gone through 3 different cars even though I was only just starting at 28 with my first one. I will also say that I didn't drive because I really wanted to, I feel it was persuasion by my dad that got me where I am now. A part of me does feel glad that I do drive because I seem to feel that if I didn't right now, I would be feeling a lot more like I am ''falling behind in life'' or that I am ''missing out'' because I still didn't drive a car.
Last edited by chris1989 on 08 Aug 2023, 8:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.