10 tips to beat the fear of flying
Posted on: September 25th, 2008 by Gareth RobinsonI know someone who rode and even briefly flew a single-engine plane that belonged to a friend’s co-worker. My friend swears that he has never enjoyed roller-coaster rides. Even trying to ride the little kiddie ones at the theme parks or carnivals, his inner ear would despise him and claustrophobia would settle in. For someone who was used to riding public transportation from an early age, the fact that he felt this loss of control was rather unusual, but it was unnerving all the same. An innocent two-minute roller-coaster ride would make him scream. My friend could not believe that a ride would not stop because he was telling it to stop – with all his lungs. He knew that he could control neither the feeling he had deep inside nor his gag-reflex. Fortunately, he did not lose his lunch on any of those rides. But he did not want to take the chance so he retired from his riding days at the tender age of eight.
Rollercoasters and Planes – not for people wth delicate ears
But riding a plane is a different story. It would be my friend’s first chance to be amongst the clouds since he was too young to remember and the experience would be lovely – as long as he didn’t crash. After a brief introduction they skirted down the runway at a speed of 140 km/h. Lifting off the ground was phenomenal. My friend did not know at that time all of the physics behind it (nor does he know fully now), but he knew that airplane flight works and has been working for about a hundred years. He knew that there were much larger and heavier planes up much higher than they were every day.
How on earth can such a large thing stay in the air??
That settled his stomach and nerves well until they were at the half-way mark, a beautiful country lake that, unfortunately, created too much turbulence for his weak stomach. By the time the plane uncontrollably dipped and rose again the third time, there was no turning back. Let us just say that even the combined efforts of the seven bags available at his disposal, the premature landing, the time spent at that bathroom, the unremarkable and short flight to the original airport, the slow drive home, and even the stillness of his bed did not make my friend’s stomach feel any more at ease.
Lakes from the air – lovely to look at, but not kind on the stomach
Anyone can be struck by a fear of flying, or aviophobia. There are variations in the nature of the fear itself, in how strong the fear is, and in how irrational the fear can be (after all, most phobias are irrational in nature). Aviophobia may have resulted from a person having had a traumatic or near-traumatic experience aboard an aeroplane, or having witnessed something tragic, such as a crash. Maybe they are claustrophobic. Maybe they have some unresolved issues with a seemingly unrelated issue. A traveller’s reactions to the fear can range from just a bead of perspiration to outright frantic antics such as screaming and hyperventilating. Even the otherwise most calm and collected person can demonstrate such behaviours. The irrationality of the fear can be judged by how much it takes for that fear to be abated; some people can just see or hear about a flight and be set-off.
Cure the fear…
Although no one “cure” works for everyone and what may prove right for you may not for your neighbor, here are ten things that you can do to beat the fear of flying:
10) Take along a magazine or book that you can really immerse yourself in to distract your mind from the flight. Listen to music
9) Arrive early to the airport. Watch the planes come and go and let that soothe your worries.
Arrive at the airport early. If you’re going to Terminal 5
at Heathrow, that’s a given anyway
8) Understand the dynamics of aircrafts and how they work.
7) Talk about your fears with a person you trust. Sometimes, we just need to talk through our difficulties.
6) Develop some sort of routine to go back to when the mind begins to panic. Rub your thumb against your index finger; take a deep breath; cross your eyes; wiggle your toes. Just try not to draw unnecessary attention to yourself.
5) There are classes designed to help would-be passengers confront their fears head-on. Look into it.
4) Meditate or pray. It doesn’t have to be religious, but it can be.
3) Chew gum. It will help during the decompression and will give you something further to do
2) Talk to your seat neighbour.
Talk to other people about flying. But perhaps not him.
1) Seek professional counselling or therapy if need be. Many of us have relatives and loved ones who are geographically far removed from us. We must do what it takes to make sure that they are visited as often as possible.
About seven years later, my friend would fly again. Only this time, he would travel a much longer distance in a much heavier can of aluminium and steel. In fact, he would take-off a total of five times in seven days; on two separate days he would do it twice. Was he a bit apprehensive about being trapped, about the possibility of turbulence, about the remote plausibility of being thrown from the skies by the sudden emergence of a mountain where there are none? Yes. Was he able to beat the fear of flying? Yes – but not without effort.
He actually did nearly everything on the list up above. He tells me that deep breathing and a more fundamental understanding of the nature of flight helped him to calm down tremendously, even during moments of turbulence. He kept going back in his mind to how wonderful the physics of flight is. Gravity is a force that pulls us down to earth because we are heavier than air. The aerodynamics of a plane allows it to shift between the heavier air below it and the lighter air above it as a boat does water.
Although the constant motion did make him a bit squeamish, by following these tips, he was able to beat the fear of flying. He believes that you can too.
Regardless of what you know, flying is good fun
