I was an innocent and hopeful sophomore in high school when I took the written driver's permit test. I say innocent and hopeful because I was so young and naive, thinking that within a year, I'd be cruising. I believed I would gain that freedom sooner than later. I could not have been more incorrect.

I barely studied for the test, however, I managed a solid 86 on the written exam. That only served to encourage me.

My father wasn´t on the same page as me because I only validated my written exam when I was 17, meaning it had taken me a year to go to the DMV for the driving permit. Quickly, I did the vision test just so that I was only left to practice for the road test.

This is where the story really begins.

I thought I would have no problem driving, it seemed so easy and to this day, I believe it is simple. It's not rocket science, that's for certain. My friends mostly caught onto it quickly, so I thought there was no way I was going to struggle with it.

When I first got into the driver's seat, I was filled with such fear and a crippling sense dread that I immediately requested I'd be taken home.

From that point forward, I avoided getting into a vehicle. There was no way I could drive. There were so many lives at stake — the people on the road and my own. There was no way that I could make those turns. I can't drive with trucks around.

I came up with every excuse in the book not to get into the wretched driver's seat. My road test was steadily approaching and I hadn't practiced in the slightest. I made the uninformed decision to reschedule it. Mind you, I was already eighteen the day that it was scheduled for but of course, I did not see an issue with this.

Unbeknownst to me, I only got one shot with that permit after my eighteen birthday and from that point forward, if I did not pass it or did not show up, I would have to do it all over again.

Again, I did not know this, so I continually rescheduled the road test with a promise that I would practice driving. The last time that I changed it, it was set to be in the beginning of August.

I decided to try to get over my fear by taking driving classes. I didn´t trust my parents' car nor myself to drive without the security of a brake on the instructor's side. I tried to drive almost every week, slowly getting past the fear. The week right before my exam, I was still nervous about driving and did not feel confident, but it was a significant improvement from before.

I would still take it, even if I failed, I believed it was worth a shot. It was only until my driving instructor suggested that I should call the DMV to make sure I was still taking that test that I found out the truth.

A week before my test, I called the DMV. They promptly told me that it was not possible for me to take the road test because I was already eighteen and the policy stated that the one test I had in February was my first and only shot.

I was pretty devastated. I had worked hard and convinced myself to do it. Now, I had to start the process all over again.

Here I am, thinking that I may just never get my license and I will have to resort to Uber to get me everywhere.

What a tragedy, really.

All I can think to do is study for my written exam and curse my annoying anxiety for urging me to put this off for so long.

Moral of the story, when you feel yourself saying that you can't do something, chances are you can and you need to do it as soon as possible before the opportunity passes you by.