Scared of flying - help!

[flyguychi]

I'm a flight attendant and I fly on many flights a day, and I always tell people, "I am not a risk taker at all, if I felt unsafe I wouldn't be here." Believe me, even though some people think flight attendants are "dumb" or whatever, we know what we are doing. Everything is checked and rechecked every flight. The other day our refrigerator was making just a tiny bit more noise than usual and we had mechanics come onboard to check it out. Nothing wrong, but we always want to MAKE SURE!

People always complain about about "mechanical delays" and such but usually there isn't anything wrong, it is just us making sure. Or it is the backup to the backup that is having problems. So we fix that too. I would definitely look at the pilot's website to understand some of the things in the airplane (noises, phases of flight). Most fear comes from the unknown, so the more knowledge you have, the better!

Hope you have a wonderful flight!

 

[PoohsFan1]

I have one word for you XANAX. I always take it when I fly in fact I need to call the dr Monday for my disney trip. He gives me a low dosage .5mg. I use to take one about 1/2 hour before I flew but I've decided flying is easier if I get a good nights sleep so I take 2 the night before and make sure I go to bed early enough to get 8 hrs. I wake feeling great and very little anxiety. I always have it on me in case I need to take 1 before takeoff. Discuss this with your dr and see what he recommends for your anxiety. Good Luck

That is exactly what I do.....the funny thing about it is the only time we fly is when we go to Disney, therefore whenever I call up my Dr. for a presciption, her reply is "Going to Disney again?" . I usually take one pill 1/2 hour before take off and that always takes the edge off. I have found that my biggest problem is not the flight but the take offs. Once I get to cruising altitude, I am fine. If there is any turbulence, I simply just look at the faces on the stewardess or other passengers. If they look concerned then I know I have to be concerned as well, but always they act as if it's no big deal (which I have read that it really isn't). I know a lot of people hate the landings as well as the take offs, I am completely opposite. I actually love the landings because I know that once the pilot says that we are going to be doing our decent, it is about 30 minutes or so until we will be touching ground and at MCO

 

[OceanAnnie]

I know how you feel.

I haven't flown in a long while, because I'm not a fan of flying at all. Years ago a friend of mine gave me worry beads. I kept them in my pocket whenever I flew and when I felt especially panicked I said a prayer (silently) and rubbed those things like crazy (while they were discreetly in my pocket). It helped me. I don't want to fly without them.

I also packed really good magazines and a really good book to take my mind off of flying.

HTH.

 

[jakesmom_01]

I am not afraid to fly, but nervous about flying. I just think of it this way...driving from IN for 18 hours or getting there in 2 1/2 hours. We drove when we went in 2004 and it seemed like forever. So, now my DH wont drive. We go with my parents and my dad drives all day for work so he will not drive to FL. Now, I do like "road trips", but getting there in a shorter amount of time is so much better.

 

[Tink-n-Belle]

A few years ago I bought the book, FLYING without FEAR. Please get this book. It goes thru the phases of flying, such as take off, why we get that sinking feeling, the decreased accelaration when we get in the air, etc. It will help you understand the mechanics of flying and that it is really safe.

I do have to say that I am still nervous and taking an ADvil helps me calm down but the book has definitely helped. My anxiety about flying peaked in 1985/86 when I was about 20 years old. I used to love to fly before then, but I always fly on Delta and Delta had a crash that took off from the airport I traveled to all the time (Ft Lauderdale) and the connection with the airport and the airlines just sent me into the most fearful flyer.

One reason I think I was so fearful is I just didn't understand how the plane got up in the air!! And then stayed up. But do this experiment. Next time your in the car- stick you hand out the window and keep it flat--then tilt it up as if your hand is a plane. Your arm will rise and then tilt it down and your arm will descend and if you leave it flat you will still have your arm elevated--it doesn't fall. You see we don't see air, but its there, but when you do this you will feel the air under you and see that at high speeds you are floating on that air. (it describes more in the book). The book says that you are floating on a highway of air much like a road and that turbulence is just bumps in the road.

I'm 42 now and have 2 kids and I think that how sad would it be if I didn't get on a plane and experience life. I love Disney and 2 days in a car is not for me (I did this as a kid probably 25 times as we had a 2nd home in Florida and we used to travel from MA to FL all the time). Once I'm in the air I'm okay, its just the take off. But last time I flew we flew with a bunch of kids and during take off they were all super excited and they were cheering when we were going down the runway!!! It really mad me feel silly for being nervous and after that I just sat back and relaxed.

Unfortunately, you can't predict what type of flight you will have, but if you do read the above book, it will help alot. GOOD LUCK and know that you are not alone!!!

 

[nonnasally]

I am now very much relaxed for our flight in October--HOWEVER, what did the person mean who commented on the Airbus? I have flown on airbus craft many times, did I miss something? Thank you all for the great comments you shared.

 

[Princess Disney Mom]

Can you go to the airport a week or so before your flight and watch all the planes take off and land. This may help.

Take a magizine to keep you occupied during take off. An iPod for after you are airborne.

And no movies with airplanes in them before your trip.

 

[PrincessDreams2]

You can add me to the list of those petrified to fly. I've been flying since I was 12 and internationally since I was 14. I've been on 14 hour flights to China. Yet, the older I get the more petrified of flying I become. I flew to Vegas a couple of weeks ago. My last job was in the aviation industry. A couple days before my trip, a former co-worker that still works for that company sent me alleged photos taken from one of the passengers on the Air France flight as the plane was breaking up. (I have serious doubt that these were legit). Regardless, the images were disturbing and didn't help my phobia of flying at all.

You are right - those photos are totally fake. The are actually footage from the ABC series "Lost". Gotta love snopes.com!!

I would rather not fly, but it really is safest when compared to automobiles. Since I had my daughter, I am much more nervous flying without her than with her. ( I fly for business regularly) I am a firm believer that when it is your time, it is your time. There is a higher power responsible for that. If something were to happen to my plane, I would much rather have my daughter next to me than to leave her without a mother. I continue to fly, because I don't want to live my life in fear.

 

[SuzieN]

I, too, am scared of flying! To make matters worse, good friends of ours literally live around the corner from where the plane fell on the house in Clarence, NY. I will be flying solo for the 1st time in my life when I go to WDW in October and I am NOT thrilled about it. I will be meeting the other people I'm vacationing with there. I am willing to suck it up for a WDW vacation though!!

 

[landshark]

I always said I was terrified of flying, but I recently realized I actually love it--to a point. I love going to an airport and all the hustle and bustle because you know you're going somewhere fun (can you tell I don't fly much? ). Take-off is fun and prepping for landing is a big relief in so many ways. Turbulence really bothers me, but that's when I look around and see nobody else is freaking out and my boyfriend is fast asleep (flying doesn't even phase him since he's been on numerous long flights to Taiwan, Japan, New Zealand, and Italy). I also always tell myself "if all these kids can handle it, so can I". The thing that truly bothers me is not being in control, but I deal with the exact same situations constantly anymore when riding trains, buses, or in taxis and have no problem with those.

I disagree with the comment about not researching crashes. I did it to decide what carrier we would fly on this year, since I was unfamiliar with one of the options, and wound up reading about all the major ones as well. Crashes honestly do not happen very often and major airlines (AA, United, etc...) have so many flights worldwide that the percentages of a serious incident are incredibly tiny. In most cases, if a flight had problems that were logged, nothing terrible happened and these were addressed before take-off or after landing. This kind of information really helped justify all those rational thoughts people always tell you to think; it's easier to believe yourself when you actually know the facts.

Beyond that all I can suggest is to take reading/listening material to entertain yourself. Take travel sized games to play with your kids. If you're like me and can't stand the ear popping sensation, force yourself to take a nap--then you won't notice anything.

 

[Brian_WDW74]

I've moved this thread to the Community Board.

 

[BeachGirlFLA]

I don't know how to calm your fears because I don't have this specific fear since I've been flying since I was about a month old. However, I wanted to wish you the best of luck dealing with your fear. I used to be scared to death of needles and then I had an illness that forced me to have a bunch of medical tests. Somehow, during that illness I got over that particular fear. So sometimes going through what we're afraid of often enough is the best way to get over the fear.

 

[heathere3]

First off, I'd like very, very much to echo the other posters who say talk to your doctor about antianxiety drugs. My husband is one of those people TERRIFIED of flying. It took him 15 minutes to talk himself into taking the last step to get onto the plane for our trip to London. The drugs make such a difference. He takes one as soon as we get to the airport and is now able to just walk right on. He's still afraid, but he's in control of the fear, instead of it controlling him. Even last year when he found out we had to fly *over* a hurricane.


And PLEASE, please folks, try it before the day you fly. Brian (DH) took one morning as I was leaving for work. Stretched out on the couch with the cat settled on his chest. Next thing he knew, I was walking in the door home from work. The doctor had to change entirely which one she'd given him...

 

[Disneenut]

I have one word for you XANAX. I always take it when I fly in fact I need to call the dr Monday for my disney trip. He gives me a low dosage .5mg. I use to take one about 1/2 hour before I flew but I've decided flying is easier if I get a good nights sleep so I take 2 the night before and make sure I go to bed early enough to get 8 hrs. I wake feeling great and very little anxiety. I always have it on me in case I need to take 1 before takeoff. Discuss this with your dr and see what he recommends for your anxiety. Good Luck

I am with you and i agree with spider 100%

i find ear plugs help too... I would rather sleep but find myself listing to all the noises on board. The soft foam type plugs work great.

 

[smcdaniel4688]

I am very afraid of flying, but found myself getting ready to board for the first time for our DW trip in Sept 2008. We almost always drive! My DH flies all the time for work, but this was a first for me and my kids: DD7 and DS3. They were so excited. I was decidedly not. First thing is that you cannot let your anxiety show because it will affect your children and their experience. I know that, for me, sitting over the wings was NOT a good idea. I cannot look out the window AT ALL until we are at a very low altitude and I can make out everything on the ground. Take a distraction for yourself. I know that it helps to stay busy with your kids, but I also took some gossip magazines with me to read. I recommend an ipod or earplugs. The noise from the engines is suprisingly loud and my ears kept popping so the sounds of the engines "changed" to me and I let that freak me out. Seriously, looking back on it, I feel really dumb about that! LOL! Getting up to use the bathroom is something I had to do with two kids, and that was actually a help. If you start to get freaked out, simply look at the flight attendants. When they look calm and like nothing is wrong, it helps me clam down too. And it really does go by fast! By the time you reach your cruising altitude and calm down, it is time to descend! Just remember that it is normal to have bumps and little jolts duing takeoff sometimes. And just take heart: flying there means that you will be at the most magical place on Earth even quicker! Enjoy your trip and let us know how it goes!

 

[PrincessKara22]

I'm terrified of flying but I just think about how great it is at Disney (or wherever we are going) and try to always book an airline (like jetblue) that has a tv to provide distraction. I wish the flight from Boston to Orlando was shorter (I know it's only 2 1/2 hours much less than the flight to and from London but for some reason my flight to orlando always seems so much longer!) bc its the place we fly most frequently but I just try to pretend I'm a rich jetsetter and take my xanax and watch tv or read a great novel or magazine and then before I know it we're at Mickey's!!!

 

[Gagirl69]

I flew the first time this past march with my children. We flew from the east coast to the west coast to see my dh. I'd alway's said I wouldn't fly, afraid of the plane crashing. Well, I had 3 months to work my nerve up. I was nervous but once we got in the air...it was easy peasy. Honestly, I would jump on a plane right now. It's not bad at all. I didn't take any meds either. I figure now I can cross it off my bucket list. Been there, done that.

 

[luvchip]

I too hate to fly, but after our 5th trip driving to Disney my husband said "no more driving" (we live in Michigan). I have since flown 3 times to Disney and even made a trip to Hawaii. I have read alot of articles and a couple websites about fear of flying and this has also helped. I do get xanax from my doctor and begin taking the day before. I prepare my ipod with calming music, get a cold wet cloth when we board the plane, sit back and let the xanax do it's job. I think by reading about flying and all the noises, turbulance, take-off's and landings has also helped me be not so afraid. When we hit turbulance I just imagine that I'm driving down a road filled with potholes. When we flew to Hawaii I even sat over the wing the whole trip to LA and wasn't afraid to look out the window. Before if I was over the wing I wouldn't look because I thought I might see bolts or parts of the wing coming off. It is a terrible fear and I hope the op can find their way to get through flying. Good Luck.

 

[Chelley00]

I HATE to fly. Loathe, despise etc. This is why we drive




My excuse is that its cheaper to drive. This next trip is just DD and I, and it would be cheaper to fly, but I just can't bring myself to do it.

I should have never opened my mouth. Today someone where I work offered their frequent flyer miles because he said I shouldn't be driving with my daughter alone for 17 hours (my mom was thinking of riding along, but wasn't sure if she could get the time off) With those, plus the Airtran coupons, our round trip flights came in under $100, and we definately can't drive it for that. Apparently I now have to suck it up and fly, without drugs because I don't want to be drugged and leave my daughter to care for herself

But it means I can add another day to our trip since we are seriously cutting out the drive time!

Oy. My daughter better pick out a really nice nursing home for me.