Public transport gives me anxiety.

StarryEyed

There's the post I made last night!! Yippee!!! 😁

Thank you sooooo much for fixing that @Admin_Scope 🙏🏼👍❤️

Umbrellabel

Jumping in on this older post because I wondered if anything has changed for you since then. One thing that’s helped me on tense journeys is planning a “focus point,” like a simple game on my phone or a calming playlist, so I’m not scanning everything around me. Have you found anything that makes public trips feel a bit safer or easier?

66Mustang

I came here to add my thoughts on people looking at me, but have little that hasn't already been written

All I have to add is some stuff I’ve learnt about how we interpret faces – and sorry if I'm going over stuff you already know

With some conditions (PTSD being a primary but not exclusive one) you can develop something called "hypervigilance". This is a kind of primal survival mechanism whereby the brain scans for signs of any danger to keep you alive

They don’t have to be semi-rational, unfriendly faces are an example of a danger signal. A look of contempt might precede danger, even if not physical, as mere rejection/isolation could lead to exclusion in prehistoric times which often meant not surviving

A nice way it was described to me is it’s like a fire alarm (this being your emotions like anxiety) are working just as they should do; but the smoke detector (your receptiveness to triggers of those emotions) is much too sensitive

Because of all this, we assume the worst… In your case you know that 9 people out of 10, even 99 out of 100, who make a face aren’t doing it on purpose, it’s just their natural expression! However, wrongly assuming safety can cost us our life; whereas wrongly assuming danger “only” causes us anxiety; so we’re programmed to favour the latter as our primitive brain decides we'd rather live in constant anxiety than be dead

I hope this helps a little, I might be in a minority but I find understanding the mechanics of it helped me, it kind of removes some power from the problem to know how how and why it happens

WhatThe

Public transport is stressful. That's why people walk, cycle, drive or use cabs to get somewhere.

I don't think anybody enjoys using public transport, do they? People on city buses always look anxious, suspicious of others, take up two seats for as long as they can, yell on their phones, it's pretty horrible. Trains are easier and I will walk through several carriages to find somewhere quiet and not facing anyone.

I don't think we are meant to 'enjoy' public transport. It's a means to an end and if the end - cinema, library, work - is what you want, you'll put up with the discomfort of those journeys.

Facing backwords on any journey is easier on my eyes.

StarryEyed

@66Mustang what a fabulous description you've written.

@WhatThe I don't think any of us here are referring to a normal distaste for public transport. It's like saying to someone who has depression that everybody gets depressed, or someone with Alzheimer's that everyone has memory problems, or someone who has PTSD that everyone has experienced trauma....

WhatThe

StarryEyed,

I don't think we are either but that's a tad insulting to anyone with Alzheimer's or PTSD. The difference is nobody uses public transport 24/7 and there are plenty of options available if public transport is too stressful.

Avoiding other humans is another matter. This thread is about public transport.