[amyamy]

I've failed my driving test 3 times now, and it is pretty much all to do with nerves :\

My faults are never the same its just whatever I happen to balls up on the day haha!

The nerves have just gotten worse with each consecutive test, I had a lot of rescue remedy before the 3rd one but still managed to fail as I was leaving the test centre haha!

The rescue remedy definitely worked because I used it before a lesson and was soooo calm, but it obviously just wasn't enough to touch the nerves of the test!

I even paid for a hypnotherapy download haha but that doesn't seem to work either, I spend my time sitting through it thinking wow this is silly and a waste of 20 minutes...

Anyone got any other ideas or things they used to help with really bad nerves? I'm not generally a nervous person at all which is what makes it even more annoying!

[suggsina]

a few beers always helps to calm me down

[amyamy]

ah shame i'm not a beer drinker then i guess...

[Rascacielos]

You say you took it before a driving lesson too... so are you nervous on the road generally?

[amyamy]

(Original post by Rascacielos)
You say you took it before a driving lesson too... so are you nervous on the road generally?

well that was the lesson the day before the 3rd test by which point i was getting nervous already haha!

plus i'd just bought the stuff and thought i'd give it a go just in case it didn't quite agree with me and made me feel ill or anything! but it definitely did chill me out!

[winning11]

book your next one without telling anybody, obviously only the instructor as you need the car, right before the test do a quick 30 min drive to ease you into it, try and get an early slot on the weekend

well i had an early slot, it felt a bit like a ghost town which was weirdish but it might help you calm down if not many cars are about, when this is the case they usually take you up dual carriageways, that was my comfort zone

when you have lessons are you pretty much flawless and the instructor barely points out mistakes?

just think what's the worst that can happen by not passing? no one's going to die, you are making the actual test process bigger and more daunting than it actually is, think of it as another driving lesson or mock test but don't attach so much importance on to it

good luck and don't view it as your 4th test, think of the ones prior as practice attempts and view this as a fresh attempt with a new mindset of PASSING

[amyamy]

haha I didn't tell anyone apart from my instructor about the 3rd! not telling anyone about the 4th either lol! And i always do a short drive on the morning of the test prior to it!

I do usually take early morning ish ones but this next one will be the earliest so hopefully that might help!

And yep when I have lessons I don't have any problems haha that's what makes it so annoying!!

And I know its just so hard to think of it as just another lesson lol!!

grrrrrrrr so annoying because I know fine well i can drive!!! lol!

[S23a]

What you really should do is sit behind the wheel in an empty open space and just get fully comfortable behind the wheel. Do whatever you want; reverse, bay park, jump up and down, whatever! Literally bore yourself to death driving for a couple of hours around a car park in a car and most of your nerves will subside.

[M1011]

Perhaps you aren't ready to be a qualified driver.

[ROG.]

KALMS herbal tablets - increase amount as it gets nearer to test

[amyamy]

(Original post by M1011)
Perhaps you aren't ready to be a qualified driver.

Well I don't think thats the case since I drive perfectly fine when I'm not in a test situation and my driving instructor is despondent that I keep failing because I don't have any problems when i'm driving him around haha!

[amyamy]

(Original post by ROG.)
KALMS herbal tablets - increase amount as it gets nearer to test

hmm i was stuck between them or rescue remedy before the last one and loads of people said rescue remedy was better (cost me £2 more though so i wasn't too impressed haha!) but perhaps I should give that one a go too. hmm can i take them both at once lol...kalms + rescue remedy = a vaguely calm amy perhaps?

[Bubble87]

(Original post by amyamy)
Well I don't think thats the case since I drive perfectly fine when I'm not in a test situation and my driving instructor is despondent that I keep failing because I don't have any problems when i'm driving him around haha!

Ask him to sit in on your test. Then you've got someone else on your side

[Going_To_California]

You're probably feeling more pressure to pass each time, I really wanted to pass first time, and then when I took it second time I wanted to pass even more (my best friend had just passed second time, not that I'm competitive, you understand )
I messed up my first test, my examiner wasn't very friendly, didn't even say hello and that made me even more nervous really.
My second examiner was a lot nicer and we had some conversation which made me feel more at ease - it was more like a lesson than a test. I thought I'd failed my second test due to a pretty bad mistake I'd made, I think the examiner passed me because he thought his talking had distracted me, and even though it probably played a role, I felt less stressed than I had in my previous test.
I'd say if you book your test again, try to talk to your examiner (unless you like total silence when driving!) maybe stress that you're taking it for the Xth time and would really like to get it done, before you graduate, for example. It's just something relevant to say that shows you really care about passing.
Also, try to go in and not think about your previous tests, learn from the mistakes you've made, but don't dwell on having failed before.
Good luck

[Bubble87]

(Original post by S23a)
What you really should do is sit behind the wheel in an empty open space and just get fully comfortable behind the wheel. Do whatever you want; reverse, bay park, jump up and down, whatever! Literally bore yourself to death driving for a couple of hours around a car park in a car and most of your nerves will subside.

I might try that! Taking my first test in two weeks

[Palatial Veranda]

I'm sorry to hear about this

I have been in a similar situation. I think I failed my driving test about four times. Each time I took my test I experienced a build-up of incremental anxiety until, eventually, on my fifth time I passed. I don't know how, I was pretty much driving the wrong way down the dual-carriageway out of nervousness.

There is no enchanted cure to those vexatious driving test nerves as the exorcism of trepidation has to come from within. There are plenty of steps you can take to refine your preparation and consequently boost your confidence on test day.

What I did after my third or fourth test was change instructor because I wasn't feeling so comfortable with the previous one. I didn't tell anyone when I booked my test and most importantly for me, I changed the test centre. Although I was still incredibly nervous I did manage it.

Keep going at it. You will pass, trust.

[Besakt]

(Original post by amyamy)
I've failed my driving test 3 times now, and it is pretty much all to do with nerves :\

My faults are never the same its just whatever I happen to balls up on the day haha!

The nerves have just gotten worse with each consecutive test, I had a lot of rescue remedy before the 3rd one but still managed to fail as I was leaving the test centre haha!

The rescue remedy definitely worked because I used it before a lesson and was soooo calm, but it obviously just wasn't enough to touch the nerves of the test!

I even paid for a hypnotherapy download haha but that doesn't seem to work either, I spend my time sitting through it thinking wow this is silly and a waste of 20 minutes...

Anyone got any other ideas or things they used to help with really bad nerves? I'm not generally a nervous person at all which is what makes it even more annoying!

http://voices.yahoo.com/review-dont-...y-2563999.html

[amyamy]

(Original post by Besakt)
http://voices.yahoo.com/review-dont-...y-2563999.html

I'm not really bothered whether its scientifically proven to work or not i'd take the placebo effect if it gets me through and it definitely did have a calming effect on me, just not a big enough one haha!

[CarlosADI]

Hi Guys.
Sorry to hear so many of you have been failing the practical test due to nerves. As an Approved Driving Instructor, I always try to calm my pupils by explaining to them that

i. its not the result that matters its the performance (remember you have spent a lot of money to be there, so its your time with the examiner. All they want to see is that you are safe on the road, so show them what you can do and don't drive any different to the way you drive in your lessons!!)

ii. try not to tell too many people that u have a test coming up as this adds pressure.

iii. Music can help!! Did you know that you can play music in your test? As long as the music is soft and not aggressive and its low enough so that you can hear the examiner, the examiners do not mind!! (in fact most will welcome this as it makes the test more interesting!!)

iv. have the AC on and the windows slightly opened so that you can hear more of what going on, on the roads (especially good for manoeuvres!!)

This are a few tips to help you through your big day!!

Good luck guys and feel free to ask me anything else!!

Carlos

[A.galloway]

When you get in the car just take a couple of deep breaths and don't think of it as a test, just think about it as another lesson, my instructor also told me that should you make a mistake don't get all flustered about it as it will lead to others, just accept it and keep going.