Passed 6 months ago, got my first car a month ago, and I'm really nervous driving. How do I get more confident?
I passed my test about 6 months ago but only got my own car around a month ago. I've been driving locally to work, the shops etc. and that's fine, but anything longer or on roads I don't know makes me really nervous. Sometimes when I'm on my own my legs are actually shaking.
Motorways are the worst for me. Before today I'd only been on one once, with my mum. I learnt mostly with her in a dual control car so I'm used to having her there, but since passing I don't like driving with her because she doesn't help my confidence at all. Today I went with her again to drop something off at my gran's, and of course when I was merging a massive lorry came past and didn't let me in. I felt like I was really close to going into it and ended up on the hard shoulder before I could merge. Now I'm even more nervous about motorways, but I know I need to get used to them at some point.
I also struggle with satnav. When I look at the screen I feel like my steering starts drifting. Having the audio on helps, but if I'm picking up friends I might not always be able to have it on. Having friends in the car is another thing I'm worried about in general. Right now I feel like it would put me under a lot of pressure.
Parking is another one. I get scared using busy car parks in case I mess up. The other day I tried to park between two cars and it was really dodgy, I honestly thought I was going to scrape one of them.
If anyone's been through any of this, how did you get past it? Any tips for motorways (especially merging), following satnav, parking, or just dealing with the nerves in general would be really appreciated. Also I feel like I've only driven when I need to, I've not just when out for a drive for fun, would you say this would be beneficial?