r/Edinburgh • u/Ok-Giraffe-4332 • 11h ago
Resource Driving instructor good with autism and anxiety
Hi,
I am looking for a driving instructor who would be good for someone with autism and anxiety. They would like to be able to drive and need assistance in doing so. Thanks.
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u/Fit-Marsupial1451 10h ago
Also on the hunt as an Autist, so commenting encase anyone has any decent recs
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u/sdfgsteve 8h ago
I went with Steve at Compass Pro Drive, and explained about my autism in an introductory email. He was extremely good.
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u/Fun-General-3351 6h ago
Jonathan and Dimitris at Drive me Bananas have experience with neurodiverse learners and I found them to be very calm and patient.
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u/Good_Lettuce_2690 7h ago
If they are that bad should they be on the road? What if they freak out in stressful traffic?
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u/Evening-Forever2542 7h ago
That will be for the instructor to say and as they start off in quiet areas and have a dual control system and work on learning over time there is no initial risk. Then you have to pass your tests to drive on your own.
They might just need reassurance and patient teaching from someone who understands their concerns. Or they might need some CBT for anxiety alongside their lessons. Plenty of autistic people drive and are great drivers who follow the rules perfectly.
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u/Knees_arent_real 6h ago
If you'll excuse the sweeping generalisation, I feel like it's inherently in autistic people's nature to better follow the rules anyway.
I'd share the road with 100 anxious autistic people before sharing it with a single chavvy twat in a modded Honda Civic.
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u/thestripybee 3h ago
Autistic people are perfectly able to drive without “freaking out” actually.
The issue is needing instructions to be given in a specific way, or needing specific requirements and extra patience and care while being taught.
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u/callybeanz 5h ago
William at Let’s Go Green is super patient and kind. He was my instructor, and while I am not neurodivergent, my partner is hoping to become a driving instructor specialised in teaching folk who are. When I spoke to William about it he told me (without any identifying details obviously) about a few people he teaches/taught including someone non-verbal. He’s very very nice. And also dyslexic and dyspraxic in case you happen to have those overlapping conditions :)
Hope that might be helpful to you. You can do it!