fear of flying

[ed miliband]

i've only flown a few times, but i've always felt nauseous and anxious for a few days before and after flying. before i put that down to being ill or hungover, but i've recently realised that i'm subconsciously afraid of flying - it never seemed particularly obvious to me before, but when i think about getting on a plane, even going to an airport, i feel sick.

i don't think it's a fear of the plane crashing or of heights (as i a kid i used to wish we'd get to fly to our holiday destinations so i could look down on things), but of confined spaces and a loss of power - to return to my younger self, i used to be terrified of lifts/elevators; i like to know that i can just walk out the door and everything will stop, for example, but with a plane you're enclosed for a certain length of time and with no room for manoeuvre as it were. it's probably completely irrational, but no less so than fearing flight 'cos you think the plane will drop out the air.

now, i'm planning on going to see my pal in berlin in january and i could possibly get a coach, but it's much cheaper and quicker to fly of course, so that's what i intend to do. but i can just imagine myself wondering into the airport alone, sweating and looking anxious and shifty, as if i'm carrying a fuckload of smack, probably not even getting the plane...

so, any tips? in an ideal world i'll be able to go to my gp and get a diazepam prescription, but that ain't gonna happen for a quick flight over the north sea. i know it's ridiculous and irrational, but... doesn't make it any less real.

other than not being a coward, what do you lot say?

[BIXX]

I would say buy a bunch of NyQuil in the airport shop after you get through airport security if possible, for the trip itself. It gives you a feeling of control in a way (you are choosing to sleep, think of it that way).

My recommendation for right now:
Meditate heavily before your trip (self-hypnosis). Breathe deeply, and imagine your body is filled with that fear of planes, and assign it a color (I use green) and take a moment to visualize it. Then, with every breath, imagine a bit more draining out of your body. Eventually, imagine all of the fear leaving your body.

I did this every day for a couple weeks to get rid of my own fear if planes. Hope it works for you!

[Vladimir Innit Lenin]

mate I get nervous about flying, even though I enjoy it.

This may sound odd but a lot of fear of flying comes from mis-conceptions about safety, and I find it helps to actually know about the aerodynamics of planes. Like I used to get scared when there'd be turbulence, or when the engine noise changed etc., but now I understand a bit more about the mechanics of planes, I realise that most flights are just normal.

Above all, when i'm on a plane for hours, i just say to myself, "look, you can either spend hours worrying and stressing and becoming ill, or just relax, you don't have control, so just relax".

It's tough but just try to flick that switch, and don't build it up in your head in the days beforehand.

[Vladimir Innit Lenin]

above all realise you're not a coward. Lots of people are scared of flying. It's just something irrational that you can overcome.

[Os Cangaceiros]

so, any tips? in an ideal world i'll be able to go to my gp and get a diazepam prescription, but that ain't gonna happen for a quick flight over the north sea. i know it's ridiculous and irrational, but... doesn't make it any less real.

other than not being a coward, what do you lot say?

I'm pretty sure that doctor's will sometimes prescribe single doses of sedatives for their patients who are afraid of air travel, not sure if that's how it works over there though...

[Ethics Gradient, Traitor For All Ages]

I see people looking sweaty and freaked out on airplanes pretty frequently and I've never seen them get any grief for it so I wouldn't worry about that. I would get a window seat as close to the front as you can get and bring something to really concentrate on during the flight. The only option you really have is to zone out as best you can, I definitely get the loss of control thing but I think the amount of control people feel that they have in a car for instance is sort of an illusion. You can be a fantastic driver and still get wasted by some jerk doing 50 over the limit and texting no matter how much control you think you have. It's just a bus that happens to fly, try not to put too much more thought into it than that.

[ed miliband]

I'm pretty sure that doctor's will sometimes prescribe single doses of sedatives for their patients who are afraid of air travel, not sure if that's how it works over there though...

here, i think, only if you have to fly a lot for work related things. also i don't think they'd prescribe me anything given my recent medical history, but i'm gonna go to the doctors anyway.

[The Feral Underclass]

i've only flown a few times, but i've always felt nauseous and anxious for a few days before and after flying. before i put that down to being ill or hungover, but i've recently realised that i'm subconsciously afraid of flying - it never seemed particularly obvious to me before, but when i think about getting on a plane, even going to an airport, i feel sick.

i don't think it's a fear of the plane crashing or of heights (as i a kid i used to wish we'd get to fly to our holiday destinations so i could look down on things), but of confined spaces and a loss of power - to return to my younger self, i used to be terrified of lifts/elevators; i like to know that i can just walk out the door and everything will stop, for example, but with a plane you're enclosed for a certain length of time and with no room for manoeuvre as it were. it's probably completely irrational, but no less so than fearing flight 'cos you think the plane will drop out the air.

now, i'm planning on going to see my pal in berlin in january and i could possibly get a coach, but it's much cheaper and quicker to fly of course, so that's what i intend to do. but i can just imagine myself wondering into the airport alone, sweating and looking anxious and shifty, as if i'm carrying a fuckload of smack, probably not even getting the plane...

so, any tips? in an ideal world i'll be able to go to my gp and get a diazepam prescription, but that ain't gonna happen for a quick flight over the north sea. i know it's ridiculous and irrational, but... doesn't make it any less real.

other than not being a coward, what do you lot say?

Come to terms with your eventual demise, don't live in bad faith and remember that you'll probably be dead before you hit the ground.

[The Feral Underclass]

Also, I am going to be in Berlin in January too.

If you see a tall man on the plane with a beard and some hipster specs, it's probably me.

[The Feral Underclass]

Don't take tamazepam. I tried this once and it doesn't stop you from feeling anxious it just makes you really sleepy and incapable of moving as well as feeling anxious.

[Art Vandelay]

Im scared of flying as well. In all honesty when I know Im going to be flying I purposely stay up the entire night before, so that by the time I board my flight in the a.m., Im so exhausted that I sleep through the trip. The only other thing I've found that helps is if I bring a laptop with some movies in my carry on. If I can't sleep on the flight, getting lost in a movie helps take my mind off things.

[Lily Briscoe]

I used to have a boyfriend who was petrified of flying (to the point of panic attacks) and, ironically, had a job that required him to fly fairly regularly. He had two methods of coping with it. The first is that he would get seriously drunk before entering the airport, and then continue to drink at one of the bars in the airport before boarding (he was obsessive about having an isle seat on the plane though, since he would be getting up to pee every five minutes). The second was some kind of deep-breathing technique. I'm not really sure what it entailed, but you might be able to look up deep-breathing techniques online for some instructions or something.

[Os Cangaceiros]

In all honesty when I know Im going to be flying I purposely stay up the entire night before, so that by the time I board my flight in the a.m., Im so exhausted that I sleep through the trip.

This is actually very effective, I've done this myself. (Although I'm not afraid of flying, I just find it very boring and uncomfortable, better to be asleep in one time zone and wake up in another)

[The Garbage Disposal Unit]

Damn, I thought this was going to be about the Erica Jong novel (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear_of_Flying_%28novel%29). Maybe it will be helpful? I think in retrospect it's probably problematic, but I really liked it as a teenager.

[F9]

just get in mind that flying is the safest way to travel and try to get over it. statistically speaking, the chances to die on your way to the airport are a lot higher than from the actual plane trip:)

Of course it doesnt make you a coward, its a common fear, i know plenty of people having the same!pharmaceutics could help you relax, yes, but getting over it i think its the best way, and really there is no reason to be afraid of flights, i have this discussion often with others as well, i know its not easy to get over it, like any other fear, try any other medium approach, but put this as your end goal eventually;)

Fuserg9:star:

[Art Vandelay]

just get in mind that flying is the safest way to travel and try to get over it. statistically speaking, the chances to die on your way to the airport are a lot higher than from the actual plane trip:)

He said that it doesn't so much have to do with his fear for his safety, but rather his fear of confined spaces and losing control. For me it does have to do with safety, even though I'm aware of the statistics and how comparably flying is the safest way to travel. For me, its knowing that if I crash in an automobile, there is the possibility of surviving, whereas with a plane if that thing goes down, you're basically fucked.

[Creative Destruction]

i'm pretty terrified of flying. i've tried the "letting go of control" thing but not having control is what freaks me the hell out, and it's hard coming to terms with it. i still haven't found a good coping mechanism for flying. i've just resolved to drive or take the train when possible. when we move to Norway, though, i'm going to have to do something. i have a history of extreme anxiety, so i'm thinking about getting a doctor to prescribe me Xanax for the flight.

[Art Vandelay]

i'm pretty terrified of flying. i've tried the "letting go of control" thing but not having control is what freaks me the hell out, and it's hard coming to terms with it. i still haven't found a good coping mechanism for flying. i've just resolved to drive or take the train when possible. when we move to Norway, though, i'm going to have to do something. i have a history of extreme anxiety, so i'm thinking about getting a doctor to prescribe me Xanax for the flight.

If your anxiety gets that bad, I'd really suggest it. I've only ever had a panic attack on a flight once, but I spent about an hour walking back and forth from the bathroom to my seat so I could puke. Its always the worst when your anxiety makes you physically sick to your stomach, let alone when that happens in the confines of a plane, thousands of feet in the air.

[Lobotomy]

It's just something irrational that you can overcome.

I don't think it's irrational at all, honestly. flight is an extremely recent phenomenon and humans did not evolve to fly. I think it is perfectly natural for a person to freak the fuck out when they are thousands of feet in the air, even if they are in fact safe.

I too am terrified of flying, but like OP I am not afraid of crashing. I am just afraid of being in airplanes. the noise, the smell, the sound, it's all awful. I have to take xanax every time I get on a plane.

[bcbm]

i figure i will die on the plane so fuck it, then get drunk.

[Vladimir Innit Lenin]

I don't think it's irrational at all, honestly. flight is an extremely recent phenomenon and humans did not evolve to fly. I think it is perfectly natural for a person to freak the fuck out when they are thousands of feet in the air, even if they are in fact safe.

I too am terrified of flying, but like OP I am not afraid of crashing. I am just afraid of being in airplanes. the noise, the smell, the sound, it's all awful. I have to take xanax every time I get on a plane.

yeah but what I mean is that it is irrational to be afraid of flying in an extremely safe, well-built plane, but not scared of being in a car, which is one of the most dangerous modes of transport around. Or a train, or whatever.

I'm not saying I don't understand it - I get a bit tense too, i'm just saying that once you realise it's irrational, you can relax a bit better. In my experience anyway.

Also lol @ TAT being a hipster. Knew it. :)

[Igor]

flighting is so weird. like i've never really been scared of flying and i think it's kinda cool but there are moments when i'm suddenly just very, very aware of the fact that i'm literally sitting on a chair flying somewhere over the sea and while it's not fear per se there's this sense of mild uncomfort when i realise how trapped i am there

[Vladimir Innit Lenin]

thing is even if the engines stop working, the way an aeroplane works means that you won't just drop, it'll glide.

[ÑóẊîöʼn]

I've never flown at all, so I might well have a fear of flying and not realise it.

Although my experience with heights leads me to believe that I'll be alright, as long as I'm not somewhere like at the top of a wobbly ladder or inching along a narrow ledge on a tall building. I find such things quite nerve-wracking.


I don't think it's irrational at all, honestly. flight is an extremely recent phenomenon and humans did not evolve to fly. I think it is perfectly natural for a person to freak the fuck out when they are thousands of feet in the air, even if they are in fact safe.

Irrational is not the same thing as inexplicable. Evolutionary explanations don't change the statistics that show the relative safety of flight compared to other travel modes, although they could provide clues as to how we might address such fears. It's interesting that ed miliband mentions the loss of control factor, as I suspect that's actually a large part of the fear for a lot of people, perhaps feeding into the whole "if something goes wrong I'm as good as dead" thing mentioned by Mr Populi.

[The Garbage Disposal Unit]

The zipless fuck is absolutely pure. It is free of ulterior motives. There is no power game. The man is not "taking" and the woman is not "giving." No one is attempting to cuckold a husband or humiliate a wife. No one is trying to prove anything or get anything out of anyone. The zipless fuck is the purest thing there is. And it is rarer than the unicorn. And I have never had one.

Fear of Flying

[Os Cangaceiros]

yeah but what I mean is that it is irrational to be afraid of flying in an extremely safe, well-built plane, but not scared of being in a car, which is one of the most dangerous modes of transport around. Or a train, or whatever.


isn't train travel the safest form of travel?

[Vladimir Innit Lenin]

dunno but still got the lack of control cos you're not driving the train

[Os Cangaceiros]

Whenever I'm on a train I think, the worst thing that could possibly happen is the train derails, but even then there's a high probability that I'll survive...assuming the train doesn't crash into a fireworks factory or something

[Zukunftsmusik]

thing is even if the engines stop working, the way an aeroplane works means that you won't just drop, it'll glide.

I'm perfectly aware of this, but I still have the feeling the plane will drop at the smallest sign of turbulence or anything similar. I fucking hate flying.

I'd get drunk, but airport bars are expensive as fuck.

[The Feral Underclass]

If you see a tall man on the plane with a beard and some hipster specs, it's probably me.

Or about 93% of ex-pats in Berlin.

[ed miliband]

Or about 93% of ex-pats in Berlin.

even sounds like the friend i'm going to see, 'cept he's a short-arse.

[Trap Queen Voxxy]

I usually take like a fuck loads of klonopin, valium, librium, xanax, thc, h, etc. when I have to fly. I hate it, especially considering they now tell how how high you are and how fast you are going on those little screens in front of you on some planes. Fuck all that.

[Flying Purple People Eater]

I love flying. You can finally find out whether those weird environmental anomalies that you saw on Google Maps were just glitches in photography splicing or the real thing.

I hate the take-off and landing, though. Horrible.

I usually just look out the window at the landscape, or read a novel.

[Os Cangaceiros]

I usually take like a fuck loads of klonopin, valium, librium, xanax, thc, h, etc. when I have to fly. I hate it, especially considering they now tell how how high you are and how fast you are going on those little screens in front of you on some planes. Fuck all that.

One of my friends got so high off weed "knife-hits" before going to the airport that he forgot his entire duffel bag. He got on the plane with only a book, LOL, wearing a t-shirt. We returned to the house and I burst out laughing when I saw that his duffel bag was lying in the drive-way, about three feet away from where my car had been parked.