Officially known as aerophobia, fear of flying is a very real concern for millions of people. I am one of them. It does not keep me from flying but I do look for alternatives. I would prefer driving, taking a train, or any method that avoids a flight. I do love travel however and at times a flight is required. My career as a corporate recruiter also required an inordinate amount of flying. Flying was woven into the profession – it was necessary and could not be avoided.
The longer the flight the more I suffer. A short 45 minute trip to Atlanta I can handle- though I do not like it. That is not the case for a flight to San Francisco or Vancouver. It is even worse if the final destination is Lima or Amsterdam. The apprehension starts as soon as I book the flight even if it is months away (and it usually is). The closer I get to the trip the more my anxiety increases. The 24 hours prior to the flight, I am close to panicking. I usually cannot sleep and will babble about the fear to anyone who will listen. Despite the fact that I have flown hundreds of times it never gets better. In fact, as time passes it seems to get worse.
Fear of flying is a form of anxiety that is not easily vanished. The reasons behind the fear vary but generally fall into two categories. The first type is an abject fear of the actual flying or airplane. Turbulence, shaking and loud noises are three of the worst offenders. When this happens I watch the flight attendants for signs of panic. I know that flying is much safer than driving and I wholeheartedly believe it. The knowledge does not prevent fear and panic however. Is that irrational? Yep, but the very nature of anxiety and phobias is irrational.
The second category is the loss of control. You are handing over the entire process to someone you don’t know. Although this happens in buses and cabs as well, they are tethered to the earth. The plane certainly is not!
So what do you do? Try distracting yourself by focusing on something else–a book or a movie. Calm yourself with deep, rhythmic breathing. There are programs rumored to be quite helpful that you may want to try. SOAR is one of the best known and most effective. Sometimes there may not be an immediate solution – at that time you may want to consider an anti- anxiety medication -talk to your doctor about this option.
Hey all, I wanted to introduce myself. I found this forum while looking around and chose to join after looking over a few threads. There’s tons of helpful information here. I’m looking forward to reading more and joining in.
Thanks for sharing. I read many of your blog posts.
Fear of flying is not an easy thing to tackle. It takes determination and time.