Uh-oh. You've spent months solo traveling or living in a different country for work or school, and now that you're back home and standing in front of your car, you're not sure you remember how to drive. Can being away for some time affect your instincts behind the wheel? Is driving a skill you can forget altogether?
As you'll see, it doesn't quite work that way, but it can take time to get comfortable behind the wheel again after a long break. Thankfully, regaining your confidence and getting back out on the road regularly are not as hard as you might think. All it takes is practice, practice, and more practice.
Can You Forget How to Drive?
Driving a car is similar to riding a bike—you don't really ever "forget" how to do it. Once you get the hang of it the first time, the motions become muscle memory to you, and your body and brain will know what to do without you explicitly throwing out instructions. You're a well-oiled machine, after all. Driving is almost like breathing.
That isn't to say that you won't feel anxious when you get back behind the wheel after months of being away from it. And even if your brain and body still understand how to work the basics—gas for accelerating, brake for stopping, shift gears for optimal control—you might still short-circuit when performing certain maneuvers that you wouldn't have thought twice about back then.
It's Normal to Feel Lost
The first time you get back behind the wheel can feel shaky, and it might even feel a little impossible. But again, that kick of anxiety that fills you doesn't mean you've lost your driving skills—it just means for a while you'll feel like you're being put under the spotlight without a script to follow. Think of it like being pushed to give a speech when you have nothing prepared: you've given speeches before, and it's not like you don't know how to draw a crowd, but you can still feel a little out of your element.
Don't worry, though: this stage won't last forever. As soon as you reintroduce yourself to all the motions and get familiarized again, you'll realize you had nothing to be anxious about.
How to Build Back Confidence
On your first drive, try tackling something small, like running an errand close to home or doing a loop around a quiet neighborhood. The key is to get your brain and body familiarized again with not only how to drive, but also all the other things you'll need to pay attention to when you're behind the wheel, such as intersections, road signs, and your surroundings.
You don't have to be alone in your journey, either. If you find that you're rustier than you're comfortable with, you can also take a few refresher lessons to get yourself settled, or you can ask a friend or family member to sit beside you on your initial drives. As you keep practicing, your skills will return, and it'll almost be as if they never left.
