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Tips for Overcoming a Fear of Flying
- Identify exactly what part of flying scares you before trying to overcome your fear.
- Learn as much as you can about airplanes and air travel.
- Join a support group, online or in person.
- Learn relaxation techniques.
- Use medication only as a last resort to deal with your phobia.
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Managed Since: 06/02/2009
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Money Earned: M$2.06
Page revenue is subject to change as we obtain data from our partners
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Introduction
- As many as twenty percent of the public suffers from some form of a fear of flying, also called aerophobia.Pegasus NLP: Fear of flying MedicineNet.com:Definition of Aerophobia It's a fear that can prevent you from advancing your career, keeping in touch with family, or visiting parts of the world that you've always wanted to see.
- People with a fear of flying may experience everything from muscle tension and sweating to dizziness and heart palpitations as a result of their fear, according to A Guide to Psychology.GuidetoPsychology.com: Fear of Flying But a fear of flying, just like any phobia, doesn't have to be permanent. If a fear of flying is affecting your life, you can overcome your fear with some patience and hard work.
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Step 1: Identify Your Fear
- For many people, a fear of flying stems from another phobia that flying in airplanes triggers. There are many aspects of flying that can trigger other phobias. For example:
- Fear of heights.Pegasus NLP: Fear of flying
- Fear of enclosed spaces (also known as claustrophobia).Pegasus NLP: Fear of flying
- Fear of terrorism.Howtodothings.com: How to Overcome Fear of flying
- Fear of pain. (For many people, flying is physically painful due to pressure changes causing headaches, sinus pain and ear blocks).GuidetoPsychology.com: Fear of Flying
- Before you can overcome your fear of flying, Flight Health suggests you identify what exactly about the flying process scares you.FlightHealth.org: Fear of Flying If you're not sure, ask yourself questions like:GuidetoPsychology.com: Fear of Flying
- When I plan a trip that involves flying, when do I start to feel uncomfortable or afraid?
- Is it before the trip begins, when I anticipate possible problems during the flight?
- Is it when I first enter the airplane and feel crowded?
- Or, is it when the airplane becomes airborne and starts to gain altitude?
- Was I always afraid of flying?
- Did I have a bad experience that I'm afraid will be repeated?
- Did I hear or see something that made me afraid of a possible scenario that could happen while flying?
- When I think about flying, what thoughts feel scary to me?
- Is it the possibility of crashing?
- Is it the height that the plane flies above the ground?
- Am I afraid my ears and sinuses will cause me sharp pain?
- There could be more than one fear factoring into your aerophobia.GuidetoPsychology.com: Fear of Flying Once you know the cause (or causes) of your fears, you can begin the process of overcoming it.
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Step 2: Get Support
- Remember that you're not alone. Thousands of other people are dealing with a fear of flying each day, and they can give you priceless support and advice from different points of view and stages of overcoming this phobia.
- About.com suggests you consider joining a local group of other people with a similar fear.About.com: Fear of Flying: Support
- You can ask a local therapist for suggestions, or even look in the yellow pages or on message boards.
- Try an online support group if there are no local groups available that work with your schedule.About.com: Fear of Flying: Support
- Be sure to look for one that's free of charge to avoid scams.
- Don't keep your phobia a secret from people you are close to. Tell your friends and family that you're working on your fear of flying. They'll be a great resource for support and motivation, but you have to tell them first!
- Some airlines even host special classes to help individuals with a fear of flying.Pegasus NLP: Fear of flying
- The courses usually combine education about flying from real-life airline pilots along with the support of being surrounded by other people facing the same fear.FlightHealth.org: Fear of Flying
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Step 3: Educate Yourself
- After you've identified the specific fear at the root of your fear of flying and established a support network, it's time to educate yourself about air travel. The more you know and understand about airplanes and flying, the less there will be to feel afraid of.
- Start by learning the basic components and mechanics of an airplane.NASA.gov: Parts of Airplane
- Identify the causes of the various noises and bumps that airplanes make during normal operation.Anxieties.com: Trusting the Airlines Industry
- Learn how airplanes handle turbulence.AirSafe.com: Turbulence Risks
- Go over procedures that should be used in the rare case of an emergency.KevinCoffee.com: Fear of Flying
- Check out statistics about air travel.GuidetoPsychology.com: Aircraft Emergency Tips for Travelers
- Learn at least one relaxation technique to help you deal with stress and fear.
- Keep in mind that different relaxation techniques will work better for different people.MayoClinic.com: Relaxation Techniques Every kind of relaxation will take practice to master.MayoClinic.com: Relaxation Techniques You'll know you're doing it correctly when you really feel completely relaxed during the technique, both physically and mentally. Popular relaxation methods include:
- Meditation involves focusing your attention on one simple phrase or thought and letting go of all other thoughts for a set amount of time.WebMD: Meditation
- Progressive muscle relaxation involves consciously tensing and then relaxing different muscle groups in your body, often working from your toes up to your shoulders and neck.MayoClinic.com: Relaxation Techniques
- Visualization involves imagining, in extreme detail, that you are in a peaceful and relaxing environment.MayoClinic.com: Relaxation Techniques
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Step 4: Desensitize
- Desensitization is a behavior therapy method used for overcoming lots of phobias, including a fear of flying.MindDisorders.com: Systematic Desensitization A Guide to Psychology notes that there are two ways to desensitize: systematic exposure and real-life exposure.GuidetoPsychology.com: Systematic Desensitization
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Systematic Desensitization
- Systematic Dessensitation involves imagining yourself in a frightening situation then using a relaxation method such as meditation or visualization to dissipate your fear.MindDisorders.com: Systematic Desensitization Desensitization requires that you've already learned a relaxation technique that works well for you.GuidetoPsychology.com: Systematic Desensitization Systematic desensitization works like this:GuidetoPsychology.com: Systematic Desensitization
- Relax.MindDisorders.com: Systematic Desensitization
- Make what's called an "anxiety hierarchy."GuidetoPsychology.com: Systematic Desensitization
- To make a anxiety hierarchy, list up to twenty situations related to air travel that make you feel nervous or afraid.GuidetoPsychology.com: Systematic Desensitization
- Organize your list in order from the most frightening situation to least frightening situation.MindDisorders.com: Systematic Desensitization
- Starting with a situation from the "least frightening" side of your list, imagine yourself in the situation and use your relaxation technique to counteract the fear it causes you.GuidetoPsychology.com: Systematic Desensitization
- Repeat this until the situation is no longer scary in your imagination.MindDisorders.com: Systematic Desensitization
- Next, choose a slightly more frightening situation from your anxiety hierarchy and repeat the entire process again.GuidetoPsychology.com: Systematic Desensitization
- Work your way up the anxiety hierarchy until your relaxation techniques can dissipate the fear from even the most frightening situation you can imagine.GuidetoPsychology.com: Systematic Desensitization
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Real-life Desensitization
- For many people, mental systematic desensitization is enough to take all the fear out of the real-life situation. Others may need to do some real-life desensitization to solidify the new, fear-free behavior.MindDisorders.com: Systematic Desensitization
- For example, real-life desensitization might include using relaxation techniques to take the anxiety out of situations such as:GuidetoPsychology.com: Systematic Desensitization
- Packing your suitcase.
- Driving to the airport.
- Watching planes take off and land.
- Sitting in an airport.
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Step 5: Use Medication as a Last Resort
- If you simply must travel in an airplane and you are unable to conquer your phobia before the trip, a doctor or psychiatrist may be able to prescribe medication. A Guide to Psychology says that medication can help you deal with the fear and relax during your flight.GuidetoPsychology.com: Fear of Flying However, remember the site's advice that medication is only a temporary cover-up for your issue and not a permanent fix.GuidetoPsychology.com: Fear of Flying Keep working to overcome your aerophobia, rather than depending on medication every time you need to fly.
