Say No To Fear Of Flying


People often have to travel. Either it’s a business trip or vacation journey. Distances can be very long, and it is extremely important that you are comfortable during a long domestic or international flight. Fear of flying actually makes it almost impossible to feel comfortable in a plane. Is it possible to fight the fear and enjoy the trip? Here are some tips you can use to get over you fear.

1.  First of all remember, that people usually fear the unknown. So, get prepared and know what to expect. Learn as much as possible about the procedure of boarding, what you may hear and see while in the plane, the physics of flight (e.g. turbulence doesn’t mean you’re falling).

2.  Look for statistics about flight events, it will certainly convince you that flying is much safer than driving a car.

3.  Physical comfort during the flight is really important too. The better your physical body feels – the deeper is tranquility, the more enjoyable your journey is.

  • Prepare in advance: book a ticket to reserve a good seat. Need room for your legs? Consider an exit row or aisle seat. Planning to have a good nap? You’d better have a window seat.  Remember that a seat near a lavatory isn’t a good choice: queuing people will probably disturb you bumping or knocking your seat.
  • Next step you should take is to minimize your luggage. The fewer bags you have – the fewer troubles it’ll cause. One bag or a backpack will easily go in the overhead bins, leaving all the space for you to stretch and feel comfortable. Though don’t forget to take some things that will be really helpful: a travel pillow and noise-canceling headphones for a comfortable sleep, a toothbrush to freshen up.
  • Take some snacks with you. Food on some planes isn’t that good, or maybe you need a special nutrition that isn’t available on the plane. That’s why it would be a good idea to have some sweets, protein bars or any other snacks during the flight.
  • Don’t sit all the time during the flight, move around, do some stretches and exercise if possible to improve blood circulation and prevent your body from aching. Many airlines provide a special video to help their passengers with that, but even if there is no such video feel free to do it yourself.
  • Watch your hydration: in the plane the air is usually dry, which can cause some discomfort by dehydrating your system. Drink plenty of water, use eye drops, saline nasal gel, lip balm and hand lotion if you your eyes, nose, lips or skin feel dry.

4.  Pretend you’re in your car or on a bus. Put your headphones on, close your eyes, turn on some soothing music and imagine you’re driving on a highway. Any turbulence? Nonsense, just bumpy road.

5.  Think about entertainment. Your fear will get even worse if you get bored. Chose airlines that provide audio and video on demand, or take a book or a couple of magazines with you to distract from troubling thoughts and kill the time.

6.  Avoid looking at the time or the in-flight map. Watching how much time has passed and how much your current position has changed doesn’t make the plane move faster, but it makes the flight feel much longer, which is a good contribution into your nervousness.

7.  While taking off or landing you may feel unpleasant pressure in your ears. There are a couple of ways to relieve the feeling:

  • open your mouth;
  • chew a gum;
  • take some medicine (before choosing which medicine to take consult your doctor);
  • use pressure relieving earplugs.

8.  If nothing helps and you still feel your knees shaking, perhaps a way out will be taking some sedatives. Be sure to consult your doctor in advance to choose the best variant for you and the proper dosage. If you don’t like the idea of taking sedatives think about a little bit of alcohol to relax, which is available on most major airlines.


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