Teaching a brand new driver to drive and it's a lot harder than I expected...

[Anonymous]

I am DREADING this. Bleah.

[Anonymous]

With my now adult children, teaching them how to drive was tORTure for me and I was such a nervous wreck, but survived it! Even if they have it at school, where we live you have to log quite a few hours of practice driving with an adult so the school training really wasn't enough.

I now understand why my mom was so nervous teaching me, and why she would grip the door handle til her knuckles turned white. And mom said her mom and her dad would get into the car when she was learning - her dad would sit in front with her and give her instructions, and her mom would get so nervous she would lie down in the back seat That was in the 1940s or 50s. So it makes everyone nervous!

[Anonymous]

Is this the Virginia guide you meant?
http://www.doe.virginia.gov/instruction/driver_education/parent_teen_driving_guide.pdf

Love it, thank you.

[Anonymous]

I singly recommend hiring a professional driving instructor. My parents spent ages trying to teach me to drive, but we never got off of tiny neighborhood streets. My second day with a professional instructor I was on I-66, because while my folks knew how to drive, the instructor knew how to teach driving.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I singly recommend hiring a professional driving instructor. My parents spent ages trying to teach me to drive, but we never got off of tiny neighborhood streets. My second day with a professional instructor I was on I-66, because while my folks knew how to drive, the instructor knew how to teach driving.

OP here again. The bolded part above is exactly what I discovered (and HATED) -- that while I've been driving for decades and never caused an accident (was rear-ended once many years ago), I just don't know how to TEACH driving... especially to a young teen.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is this the Virginia guide you meant?
http://www.doe.virginia.gov/instruction/driver_education/parent_teen_driving_guide.pdf

Love it, thank you.

Yes

[Anonymous]

LOL!

And I laugh only because I've been there done that. It's so nerve wracking initially. I can only laugh on the other side of this situation.

My son did not leave that empty school parking lot for quite a while. Then we ventured out a little more each time. He ended up being a much better driver than I thought. But I held onto the arm rest--and my breath--the first few times we were in the car together.

OP, it does get better.

So there's no real advice. All we can do is offer e-hugs, words of encouragement, and the peace that you are not the only one. We all cringed the first time our children got behind the wheels of a car.

Parenting. Ah, the joys.