Fear of flying is called Aviophobia, and millions of vacationers and business flyers who travel on commercial flights worldwide are affected by it, to a greater or lesser extent. Even though air travel is approximately thirty times safer than traveling by car, you hardly hear about people that have a fear of driving. Maybe television, radio, internet and print media contribute to this fear when they graphically cover commercial airline crashes and the large number of air passengers that are injured or perish.
Fear of flying on commercial flights can be triggered by a number of concerns such as the fear of heights, the fear of falling, the fear of the takeoff and the landing, the fear of crashing, the fear of flying over water, the fear of flying at night, the feeling of losing control causing panic attacks, air turbulence, stormy weather, the fear of hijackers or terrorists, motion sickness, and claustrophobia such as the fear of being trapped in the confined space of an airline cabin as well as being packed in like sardines with your fellow passengers, and also other phobias.
Some of the other symptoms of the fear of flying can be mild nervousness to extreme anxiety and panic attacks, a shortness of breath and tightness in your chest, chest pains, clammy hands, headaches, as well as nausea and vomiting.
If you think that your fear of flying is very severe, you can enroll in an intensive treatment program, However, if youre sure your fear of flying is not severe, there are some things you can do that may help to remedy this problem.
Firstly, sit in a seat that is over the airplane wings, preferably not a window seat, so you cant look down at the ground. When you sit over the wings you will also experience a smoother flight.
If possible, leave your seat belt on as much as possible, so if any air turbulence suddenly occurs, you wont get jarred or bounced about as much.
Eat light and try to avoid eating or drinking any food or beverage that contains sugar, caffeine, or alcohol.
It will help if you try to stay positive and always think only of positive thoughts.
You can occupy your mind by listening to soft, soothing music on your I-Pod.
Sometimes it may help to wear eye shades and sleep if you can.
You may feel less stressed if you can book flights at off-peak times as there are usually fewer airline passengers to contend with.
If you are thinking of taking any prescription or over-the-counter drugs to calm yourself down on your flight, be sure that you consult first with your family doctor or pharmacist. Keep in mind that if you are already taking prescriptions for pre-existing conditions, any new medication, even the over-the-counter ones, may interact adversely with them.
I have a true story that may help you with this problem. A number of years ago a good friend of mine had a real problem with the fear of flying. He was really concerned about dying in a plane crash. A funny thing is that he had no problem driving all over the country, or taking a bus or train when he traveled on his holidays.
Fortunately he got a job selling ads for a local community newspaper near a busy international airport. As he drove around to sell advertising to the stores in the area, he constantly observed huge commercial airliners taking off and landing every few minutes. He got used to hearing the deafening roar of airline engines day in and day out. Slowly, he eventually started to lose his fear of flying.
He finally made the big decision to vacation in Hawaii, which he had always wanted to do. The only obstacle was that he had no choice but to fly. He then took out flight insurance in case the plane crashed. He wanted to be sure he would leave something for his parents if he didnt get back.
Before boarding the plane he took a sleeping pill hoping would keep him calm. He deliberately booked a window seat because he really wanted to be able to see where he was going and what the earth and ocean looked like from the air.
When the flight attendant told all the passengers to fasten their seat belts, he cinched his belt up so tightly he thought that it would break. On the long flight to Hawaii he only removed his seat belt to go to the washroom. During the flight the only thing that really annoyed him was that his ears got plugged and hurt because of the changes in cabin pressure on the takeoff and landing. A helpful fellow passenger suggested that he should chew some gum and that seemed to solve the problem.
When he eventually landed in Hawaii he was so proud of himself! After all those wasted years of being hung up on that debilitating phobia, he finally had broken free. All it took was working near a large airport and watching as well as hearing the constant takeoffs and landings of these huge commercial airliners to reprogram his mind.
If you happen to have a fear of flying you must try and rid yourself of this debilitating, irrational fear. I know that your life will be changed forever when you break free and allow yourself to soar with the eagles and fly anywhere in this big, wide, wonderful world that you want to.
Visit FlyingWithoutFear.com if you want more info on how you as a vacationer, or a business traveler can learn to lessen, or totally eliminate your fear of flying. This neat company offers a free online self-help course that we highly recommend you take. It is conducted by a currently flying airline captain.
Fear of flying on commercial flights can be triggered by a number of concerns such as the fear of heights, the fear of falling, the fear of the takeoff and the landing, the fear of crashing, the fear of flying over water, the fear of flying at night, the feeling of losing control causing panic attacks, air turbulence, stormy weather, the fear of hijackers or terrorists, motion sickness, and claustrophobia such as the fear of being trapped in the confined space of an airline cabin as well as being packed in like sardines with your fellow passengers, and also other phobias.
Some of the other symptoms of the fear of flying can be mild nervousness to extreme anxiety and panic attacks, a shortness of breath and tightness in your chest, chest pains, clammy hands, headaches, as well as nausea and vomiting.
If you think that your fear of flying is very severe, you can enroll in an intensive treatment program, However, if youre sure your fear of flying is not severe, there are some things you can do that may help to remedy this problem.
Firstly, sit in a seat that is over the airplane wings, preferably not a window seat, so you cant look down at the ground. When you sit over the wings you will also experience a smoother flight.
If possible, leave your seat belt on as much as possible, so if any air turbulence suddenly occurs, you wont get jarred or bounced about as much.
Eat light and try to avoid eating or drinking any food or beverage that contains sugar, caffeine, or alcohol.
It will help if you try to stay positive and always think only of positive thoughts.
You can occupy your mind by listening to soft, soothing music on your I-Pod.
Sometimes it may help to wear eye shades and sleep if you can.
You may feel less stressed if you can book flights at off-peak times as there are usually fewer airline passengers to contend with.
If you are thinking of taking any prescription or over-the-counter drugs to calm yourself down on your flight, be sure that you consult first with your family doctor or pharmacist. Keep in mind that if you are already taking prescriptions for pre-existing conditions, any new medication, even the over-the-counter ones, may interact adversely with them.
I have a true story that may help you with this problem. A number of years ago a good friend of mine had a real problem with the fear of flying. He was really concerned about dying in a plane crash. A funny thing is that he had no problem driving all over the country, or taking a bus or train when he traveled on his holidays.
Fortunately he got a job selling ads for a local community newspaper near a busy international airport. As he drove around to sell advertising to the stores in the area, he constantly observed huge commercial airliners taking off and landing every few minutes. He got used to hearing the deafening roar of airline engines day in and day out. Slowly, he eventually started to lose his fear of flying.
He finally made the big decision to vacation in Hawaii, which he had always wanted to do. The only obstacle was that he had no choice but to fly. He then took out flight insurance in case the plane crashed. He wanted to be sure he would leave something for his parents if he didnt get back.
Before boarding the plane he took a sleeping pill hoping would keep him calm. He deliberately booked a window seat because he really wanted to be able to see where he was going and what the earth and ocean looked like from the air.
When the flight attendant told all the passengers to fasten their seat belts, he cinched his belt up so tightly he thought that it would break. On the long flight to Hawaii he only removed his seat belt to go to the washroom. During the flight the only thing that really annoyed him was that his ears got plugged and hurt because of the changes in cabin pressure on the takeoff and landing. A helpful fellow passenger suggested that he should chew some gum and that seemed to solve the problem.
When he eventually landed in Hawaii he was so proud of himself! After all those wasted years of being hung up on that debilitating phobia, he finally had broken free. All it took was working near a large airport and watching as well as hearing the constant takeoffs and landings of these huge commercial airliners to reprogram his mind.
If you happen to have a fear of flying you must try and rid yourself of this debilitating, irrational fear. I know that your life will be changed forever when you break free and allow yourself to soar with the eagles and fly anywhere in this big, wide, wonderful world that you want to.
Visit FlyingWithoutFear.com if you want more info on how you as a vacationer, or a business traveler can learn to lessen, or totally eliminate your fear of flying. This neat company offers a free online self-help course that we highly recommend you take. It is conducted by a currently flying airline captain.
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