Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

are you afraid to fly but still do it?

I am right there with you. And we fly a lot.

I definitely have some wine before getting on the plane. I listen to calming classical music. I think of the statistics and the extraordinary number of planes that take off and land from every corner of the world each day. I look at how calm and collected the flight attendants are. I think - the government loves to regulate everything, lol and if they say flying is safe and we can all do it, it must be. I look at families with small children and say, if this was so unsafe would that mother bring her baby on the plane?

I'm sure I sound nuts but honestly I tell myself anything and everything to force myself on planes. I hate it.

Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

I also have an extreme fear of flying. The only thing that has worked for me is Xanax.

Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

I don't consider myself an anxious person in any other aspect of my life except on an airplane. It's not fun, but air travel is a necessary part of my personal and professional life, so I power through. I try to think rational thoughts about safety records and the minuscule chance of anything bad happening, but that doesn't really help me. What sometimes helps me stay calm (ish) is if I see off duty pilots or flight attendants on my flight, I watch their reactions to strange noises or turbulence. Taking off is one of the most anxiety provoking parts of flying for me and recently I've been trying a visualization. When you think about watching a plane take off as a person standing on the ground, it looks so smooth and elegant. Effortless. But when you're a passenger on that plane it feels so different and definitely doesn't feel effortless and smooth. To me it really feels like the plane is fighting an epic battle against nature. I close my eyes and try to visualize what my plane looks like to someone on the ground and how completely normal and unscary that is. It's helped me on occasion. I'm sure xanax would do the trick, but I don't like medications when I can avoid them.

Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

are you afraid to fly but still do it?

So..... The day has finally come - my flight is this Saturday. Please send good thoughts that I can bring myself to get in the plane (twice!) and that the flight isn't too scary!

Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

are you afraid to fly but still do it?

Yes this is me. I hate to fly. It started after 911 when I was in nyc and physically watched the towers crumble. I still fly but the stress of a vacation is barely even fun. I am not even excited until I land safely.

I am not afraid of terrorists. I am afraid of being afraid. And what scares me is turbulence. And the idea of crashing. I take Xanax like an hour before the flight and as needed. I tell myself people do this daily, think of the celebrities! And then I tell myself if it's my time it's my time. However like the sicko I am I went to a really accurate pay I medium who said I was living a long life. So that helped me through my last flight lol.

I feel your pain.

Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

I am not a fan of flying either. I have to talk myself into. I also refuse to take medications I need to be on my game when I fly. By biggest fear is some lunatic on the plane.

I almost backed out of a flight last summer with my kids (it was their first flight) because I was so nervous. I just kept reminding myself that there are very few plane crashes in comparison to car crashes. That since 911 were looking out for crazies more than ever. Also I kept telling myself I wanted my kids to have experiences and memories and that meant flying.

Just try to think of the end game the place you are going and the memories you will make. If you are willing to take some type of anti anxiety medication maybe that could help you.

Good Luck

Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

Message edited 4/28/2016 10:49:44 PM.

are you afraid to fly but still do it?

I'm the same way as you. My last flight was in 2006. Before that I had no problems flying. On my last flight, back home from Aruba with my now DH and friends, we hit so,me really bad turbulence. I freaked out, started crying and never got on a plane again. I also started having anxiety about driving. DH and Inhave been arguing about taking enkids to Disney. He won't drive and I wouldn't fly. Finally, his family is going down to FL in June and his mom had an extra week with her timeshare and could get another room for the five of us. He said he would agree to go only if we flew. I agreed to fly only if we took the same flight as the family. There are 13 of us flying together. It will be my first flight. There are days I think about it and I'm excited because we are surprising the kids with their first Disney trip. And then there are nights that I'm lying in bed thinking about the flight and I get so anxious I start sweating and get nauseous. My friend has a dvd that is supposed to help you with your fear of flying. It's some kind of program and it teaches you to deal with all your flying fears. She is going to lend it to me. I also plan o taking a Xanax since there will be family there to help DH with the kids. Good luck!!

Message edited 4/29/2016 8:22:20 AM.

Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

are you afraid to fly but still do it?

I like to read while flying. Tends to get my mind off of what's going on around me.

are you afraid to fly but still do it?

DH said you can have electronics on all the time now so we're going to use an audio splitter so we can watch a movie during take off and during the flight. Hopefully that will help keep my mind off it. I also plan on playing Candy Crush the whole time so I have 2 things occupying my brain!

Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

I'm not a huge fan of flying at all, but I do it. I don't want to instill my fears into my children so I act like I'm totally fine for their sake and I swear I even convince myself!
What helped me was actually talking to a real pilot (my cousin) who let me know most of my fears are truly irrational and "impossible." He told me what every beep means on the intercom and what pilots do if really in danger. It really helped.

Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

No, I am terrified, and I won't do it.

People say I am "missing out." I don't really care what other people say; I am happy and content despite my unwillingness to fly.

ETA: I flew twice and was a wreck. The last time was about 10 years ago.

Message edited 5/1/2016 12:35:15 PM.

Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

I medicate with Xanax. I have to.

I would have nightmares months prior, not sleep at all prior to it and be sweating the entire time, even on the way to the airport and for the whole flight.

I love seeing new places and I don't want my kids to have the same fear, so I drug myself so that my anxiety is brought down and I appear normal.

Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

just for the record, Xanax doesn't make you loopy. At least it hasn't for me who has 3 kids and still needs to function. It really just takes the anxiety away and calm my nerves.

are you afraid to fly but still do it?

I made it to Baltimore! We had Anchorman 2 going since before the doors closed and I played my phone games, too. I also took a Valium but all I felt was weak kneed so I think I'll try the return trip without it. Flight wasn't too bad - concentrated hard on the distractions so I wouldn't think about being up so high. Now I gotta get through tomorrow's flight and breathe a sigh of relief!

Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

Yes, I hate flying, but I have to do it. I do have to admit it has limited me.

I take some pills, have some wine and I can't eat anything or else I'll vomit from the nerves. I do not help my situation at all because I also watch plane crash documentaries a lot.

I also am very particular about which airline I choose. I have a flight coming up in August and I'm not happy about one of the airlines chosen because I do not know it well. There was no other choice for this part of the world. I guess I'll see how that goes.

Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

I haven't flown since 1994. I have terrible anxiety over it and it looms over my head that we HAVE to travel to Greece in the next few years (long story). I literally don't know how I'm going to do it.

Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

Posted by PennyCat

I haven't flown since 1994. I have terrible anxiety over it and it looms over my head that we HAVE to travel to Greece in the next few years (long story). I literally don't know how I'm going to do it.

Re: are you afraid to fly but still do it?

You should try hypnosis. My mother is going to soon bc we need to fly at the end of May. She has never flown before because she is afraid. My nephew is graduating and she wants to go. We need to fly bc I will not drive 10 hours when we can fly for 1.5.

I am not a bad flyer at all. However, I do struggle with anxiety while waiting at the airport. I hate getting there so early and just waiting and waiting...drives me nuts! So, what I do is stay up late the night before and then just pass out on the plane. My kids are older now and they just plug into their tablets and are good to go.