Do you suffer from fear of flying? Are you reluctant to travel by plane? Are you sitting on board, cramped with sweaty hands, heart palpitations, hyperventilation and nausea? Fear of flying doesn’t just ruin your business trip; it also affects your work. It leads to stress, and stress leads to mistakes.
Causes
Fear of flying is very common. Over 30% of all adults suffer from fear of flying. It can happen to anyone. It’s often the result of other problems, such as claustrophobia, fear of heights or control issues. But it’s not very realistic. The risk of a car accident is much higher than the chance of a plane crash.
Treatment
Fortunately, fear of flying can be treated. During a fear of flying course, you learn what the causes are and what fear is doing with you. If you know why you’re afraid, you can better understand your own behavior. You also learn to deal with emotions evoked by fear, like panicking during your trip, getting sick or losing your temper.
Resolutions for 2017
No less than 98% of people opting for treatment fly without fear afterwards. Is overcoming your fear of flying on your list of New Year’s resolutions for 2017? Follow these tips or do a course to get rid of it for once and for all.
1. Knowledge
A steel structure of tens of thousands of kilos in the air, that’s a weird idea, isn’t it? The magic word here is air movement. Study the technique of an aircraft. The more knowledge you get, the less fear you’ll have.
2. Confidence
Remember that an aircraft is checked endlessly and thoroughly by mechanics as soon as it lands and before takeoff.
3. Separate fear from danger
It isn’t always easy to separate anxiety from danger because your body reacts in exactly the same way to both. Be sure to label your fear as anxiety, and remind yourself that feeling anxious doesn’t mean you are in danger. You are safe even when feeling intense anxiety.
4. Lower anxiety
Eliminate caffeine, energy drinks and other stimulants 72 hours before you fly.
5. Choose the right seat
The seat you get allocated usually won’t offer much legroom. When you fear flying, being in an enclosed space makes it worse. So try to choose a front row or exit row seat. Even if you have to pay a little extra, it’s well worth it. An aisle seat is also highly recommended, as it gives you the feeling of extra space.
6. Distraction
Search for distraction by reading a book, listening to music or solving a Sudoku puzzle. Start a conversation with another passenger. Don’t close your eyes (unless you want to sleep) because then you focus unintentionally on every movement of the aircraft.
7. Walk
If it is a long flight, take a walk every half hour. Take your time and focus on breathing deeply with each step.
8. Look at the cabin crew
Notice how comfortable they are and busy doing their work. Obviously everything is fine; otherwise these trained experts would have left the plane while they still could.
9. Medication
Tranquilizers can calm you down and partly take away your fear. Beware: they only treat the symptoms (and not the cause!) and make you slow and drowsy.
10. App
If all else fails, there’s an app. The Flight App provided by the VALK Foundation – a Dutch organization looking for ways to fight the fear of flying – can be used during the flight in airplane mode. It provides information to reduce stress if you’re nervous before or during your flight.
For more practical travel tips & gadgets, just sign up for our digital magazine Move On.
