Does anyone hate to fly as much as I do?

lightmoment · Apr 9th, 2009, 22:46

Well, it's not that I hate to fly as much as I'm scared to fly. I don't know why. I have never had a bad in flight experience before. I tend to travel by plane at least once or twice a year. I am planning to travel to India this year but am scared out of my mind to fly for that long by myself. Normally, my anxiety level is at its peak from the point where I step onto the plane untill it has leveled off in the air. I HATE THE TAKEOFF. That is the part the scares the you know what out of me. Normally after about 30 minutes to an hour it goes away but never completely. I can never fully relax. I flew to India a few years ago and was on edge the entire flight. And that's a really long time to be tensed up. If there is anything that will stop me from going to India this year it will be my fear of flying, and I really, really, really don't want that to be the case. Does anyone have any recomendations as to what I should do? Any tips to help ease my fear? I do not want to miss out a, what I know will be, awesome trip because of a dumb fear I have. HELP!!!

Rooobynn · Apr 9th, 2009, 22:54

That sounds like a pretty bad fear of flying you've got there! I don't particularly like flying and the slightest bit of turbulence and im sure the plane is about to plummet to the ground but because i love India so much i put up with the flight....

A few drinks to calm the nerves before flying(and i mean a few, i dont want to be refused entry on to the plane!), my ipod and plenty to read keeps me occupied and helps to stop me worrying.

bmovieneil · Apr 9th, 2009, 22:59

hi guys - now I know exactly what you mean. I was actually always fine with flying until i started flying regularly with a bad flyer - it kinda rubbed off on me i suppose. That and getting older and realising my own mortality didn't help!! So I'm not too good. It has never stopped me going anywhere but i dont relax AT ALL until the wheels touch the ground. I hate take off especially.
I actually flew to and from Norway a week or so ago and the flight is so short, the plane is so small you feel every last bit of turbulence which isn't any fun. I fly to India in October and I'm reassuring myself that a bigger plane will make the journey not as bumpy (from previous experience of long haul flghts) - cause the thought of flying all the way to India on edge the entire way sounds horrible!!

lightmoment · Apr 9th, 2009, 23:05

The turbulence is not what scares me as much as the take off. I used to be scared of turbulence but have managed to get used to it. My fear is that the plane will crash back to the ground as soon as we take off. I think I have that fear because it seems as if so many planes crash during take off although I thought that the most dangerous part of flying is the landing which has never seemed to bother me because I know that means my feat are about to be on the ground!

bmovieneil · Apr 9th, 2009, 23:15

i agree completely - the landing never scares me - same as you, the fact that I'm nearly on the ground makes me excited more than anything else.
One thing that does actually help me though is to constantly remind myself that there is someone driving (do you DRIVE a plane? I dont know!!). Sounds stupid, but sometimes i feel as if i'm in a big metal box and because i can't see the pilot it feels as if I'm completely in the hands of fate. I try to imagine a well trained pilot in control, he does it everyday and is prob completely relaxed and happy with no doubts or fears as he guides us into the air as he's done hundreds of times previously. Just picturing that does help me a lot. Makes me feel less vunerable.

jaws · Apr 9th, 2009, 23:23

I show the programme in bbc about a person who can
help to overcome fear by hypnotism so look up on that side it was bbc programme on india few months back .
The turbulence now stop me going less to usa then before .Sometimes before i fly i check my will call it a fear ????

lightmoment · Apr 9th, 2009, 23:48

I will check for that program on BBC. Anything to help me. But yeah, I guess it does feel somewhat weird to not see the person in control of the plane.

Nick-H · Apr 10th, 2009, 00:43

You hate the takeoff?

But coming down has quite a propensity to hurt if someone gets something wrong, too.

I love those bits, especially in bad weather. It's the hours in between that are tedious.

annerobyn · Apr 10th, 2009, 02:54

I too am not a lover of flying. Generally whoever I sit beside (usually someone I know, thank goodness) has a black and blue arm by the time we land. As I get older my disdain for flying increases. But I also love to travel and have to decide which is more important. Seeing the world which means flying, or staying home and not flying. The choice is simple to me. Simple yet nerve-wracking. Bring reading material and music and remember you are safer "up there" then you are in traffic on land.

Enjoy yourself.

AwayFromHome · Apr 10th, 2009, 14:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by lightmoment

I will check for that program on BBC. Anything to help me. But yeah, I guess it does feel somewhat weird to not see the person in control of the plane.

lightmoment,

take a moment to look up some statistics on flying, and it will be apparent how safe it is. Cliched response - but true!

And if you can handle the autorickshaws in India, how could you be afraid of a take-off?

Paleface · Apr 10th, 2009, 15:16

Quote:

Originally Posted by lightmoment

Does anyone have any recomendations as to what I should do?

Then there are sedatives... Rohypnol used to be fun (loss of inhibitions) and can even leave you not remembering the flight at all - a plain old sleeping pill or two dropped in the terminal, could do you right...

Nick-H · Apr 10th, 2009, 17:22

I used to think it was stupid to take a sleeping pill in any situation in which there was even a small chance that having one's wits about one could be life-saving --- but I gave in, and a very mild one made my last 10-hour journey seem half the length.

Paleface · Apr 11th, 2009, 15:43

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nick-H

I used to think it was stupid to take a sleeping pill in any situation in which there was even a small chance that having one's wits about one could be life-saving ---

Yes one doesn't want to be out of control... but there's not much one can do trapped in an aircraft cabin - i hardly fly, once in 5 years or so, for the long haul graduating to a slightly stronger pill gets one there in what seems like a few minutes, marvellous.....

lightmoment · Apr 13th, 2009, 20:36

Hum, maybe I should try a sleeping pill. I have taken pills for sleep and for anxiety before but if I'm too worked up over whatever situation it might be than they do not help at all. I should probably just get over it. Think about how worth it it will all be when I get there and the memories I will have when I return. Siigghhh, easier said than done though.

Paleface · Apr 13th, 2009, 20:49

Regular over the counter sleep pills are on the weak side, try Something a little stronger perhaps, as suggested earlier, test run on a leisure day would be good - Otherwise you seem to be on the way to dissolving the fear isn't it?

Apr 9th, 2009, 22:46	#1
lightmoment Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: North Carolina Posts: 45	Does anyone hate to fly as much as I do? Well, it's not that I hate to fly as much as I'm scared to fly. I don't know why. I have never had a bad in flight experience before. I tend to travel by plane at least once or twice a year. I am planning to travel to India this year but am scared out of my mind to fly for that long by myself. Normally, my anxiety level is at its peak from the point where I step onto the plane untill it has leveled off in the air. I HATE THE TAKEOFF. That is the part the scares the you know what out of me. Normally after about 30 minutes to an hour it goes away but never completely. I can never fully relax. I flew to India a few years ago and was on edge the entire flight. And that's a really long time to be tensed up. If there is anything that will stop me from going to India this year it will be my fear of flying, and I really, really, really don't want that to be the case. Does anyone have any recomendations as to what I should do? Any tips to help ease my fear? I do not want to miss out a, what I know will be, awesome trip because of a dumb fear I have. HELP!!!

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Apr 9th, 2009, 22:54	#2
Rooobynn Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Scotland Posts: 35	That sounds like a pretty bad fear of flying you've got there! I don't particularly like flying and the slightest bit of turbulence and im sure the plane is about to plummet to the ground but because i love India so much i put up with the flight.... A few drinks to calm the nerves before flying(and i mean a few, i dont want to be refused entry on to the plane!), my ipod and plenty to read keeps me occupied and helps to stop me worrying.

Apr 9th, 2009, 22:59	#3
bmovieneil Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Worcester, UK Posts: 36	hi guys - now I know exactly what you mean. I was actually always fine with flying until i started flying regularly with a bad flyer - it kinda rubbed off on me i suppose. That and getting older and realising my own mortality didn't help!! So I'm not too good. It has never stopped me going anywhere but i dont relax AT ALL until the wheels touch the ground. I hate take off especially. I actually flew to and from Norway a week or so ago and the flight is so short, the plane is so small you feel every last bit of turbulence which isn't any fun. I fly to India in October and I'm reassuring myself that a bigger plane will make the journey not as bumpy (from previous experience of long haul flghts) - cause the thought of flying all the way to India on edge the entire way sounds horrible!!

Apr 9th, 2009, 23:05	#4
lightmoment Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: North Carolina Posts: 45	The turbulence is not what scares me as much as the take off. I used to be scared of turbulence but have managed to get used to it. My fear is that the plane will crash back to the ground as soon as we take off. I think I have that fear because it seems as if so many planes crash during take off although I thought that the most dangerous part of flying is the landing which has never seemed to bother me because I know that means my feat are about to be on the ground!

Apr 9th, 2009, 23:15	#5
bmovieneil Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Worcester, UK Posts: 36	i agree completely - the landing never scares me - same as you, the fact that I'm nearly on the ground makes me excited more than anything else. One thing that does actually help me though is to constantly remind myself that there is someone driving (do you DRIVE a plane? I dont know!!). Sounds stupid, but sometimes i feel as if i'm in a big metal box and because i can't see the pilot it feels as if I'm completely in the hands of fate. I try to imagine a well trained pilot in control, he does it everyday and is prob completely relaxed and happy with no doubts or fears as he guides us into the air as he's done hundreds of times previously. Just picturing that does help me a lot. Makes me feel less vunerable.

Apr 9th, 2009, 23:23	#6
jaws Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: LONDON Posts: 297	I show the programme in bbc about a person who can help to overcome fear by hypnotism so look up on that side it was bbc programme on india few months back . The turbulence now stop me going less to usa then before .Sometimes before i fly i check my will call it a fear ????

Apr 9th, 2009, 23:48	#7
lightmoment Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: North Carolina Posts: 45	I will check for that program on BBC. Anything to help me. But yeah, I guess it does feel somewhat weird to not see the person in control of the plane.

Apr 10th, 2009, 00:43	#8
Nick-H This is just a cameo appearance Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Chennai, India Posts: 36,180	You hate the takeoff? But coming down has quite a propensity to hurt if someone gets something wrong, too. I love those bits, especially in bad weather. It's the hours in between that are tedious.

Apr 10th, 2009, 02:54	#9
annerobyn Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: canada Posts: 58	I too am not a lover of flying. Generally whoever I sit beside (usually someone I know, thank goodness) has a black and blue arm by the time we land. As I get older my disdain for flying increases. But I also love to travel and have to decide which is more important. Seeing the world which means flying, or staying home and not flying. The choice is simple to me. Simple yet nerve-wracking. Bring reading material and music and remember you are safer "up there" then you are in traffic on land. Enjoy yourself.

Apr 10th, 2009, 17:22	#12
Nick-H This is just a cameo appearance Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Chennai, India Posts: 36,180	I used to think it was stupid to take a sleeping pill in any situation in which there was even a small chance that having one's wits about one could be life-saving --- but I gave in, and a very mild one made my last 10-hour journey seem half the length.

Apr 13th, 2009, 20:36	#14
lightmoment Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: North Carolina Posts: 45	Hum, maybe I should try a sleeping pill. I have taken pills for sleep and for anxiety before but if I'm too worked up over whatever situation it might be than they do not help at all. I should probably just get over it. Think about how worth it it will all be when I get there and the memories I will have when I return. Siigghhh, easier said than done though.

Apr 13th, 2009, 20:49	#15
Paleface Maha Guru Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Garhwal Himalaya Posts: 1,785	Regular over the counter sleep pills are on the weak side, try Something a little stronger perhaps, as suggested earlier, test run on a leisure day would be good - Otherwise you seem to be on the way to dissolving the fear isn't it?