7 Ways To Ease Your Flying Fear While Traveling

There are times when anxiety overwhelms us. Be it past traumas or fear of the future, it is our nature to set things in order. Anxious minds find it hard to focus. They often find themselves in an urge to control things happening around them. Their failure to do so leads them to develop phobias or fears of specific situations.

From the fear of closed spaces (claustrophobia) to the fear of water (aquaphobia), we experience contrasting emotions throughout our lives. Nevertheless, these phobias are entirely normal and are nothing to feel upset about or feel embarrassed about.

We can adapt ourselves to comfort our fears every time we encounter them. There are particular techniques and concentration methods that could help people deal with their nervousness. One such commonly experienced phobia is the fear of flying. To understand how to manage it, we should first get a brief idea about this phobia.

What is the fear of flying?

Referred to as aerophobia or aviophobia, the unease of boarding a plane includes the accompanied anxiety that triggers this fear. It could be from childhood or developed further in adulthood. This fear is the ultimate sense of consistent distress involving intense physical and mental discomfort when on a flight.

Most people fear a sudden panic attack before travelling. They expect the worst outcome that initiates the onset of their distress. The fear drives their instincts so much that most people never board off a flight ever in their life. They live with the constant fear of harm and uncertainty when thinking of travelling somewhere.

What causes aerophobia?

Even though there is no specific cause for aerophobia, certain factors trigger an individual’s response. It can even be triggered if the individual has a fear of heights. Your brain has the power to condition your response to travel by plane. You may develop your fear over time. However, it only gets worse if not paid attention to soon.

Some probable causes for the phobia of flying could be:

• The turbulence felt by the flight passengers.
• Another could be a rough landing experience
• Past trauma
• I came across a traumatic travel incident
• Negative news carrying flight accidents
• Other external factors contributing to this phobia
• Or no specific factor in triggering the fear

Seven ways to alleviate the fear of flying

To begin with, dealing with any phobia can be a struggle. However, small steps towards understanding and confronting your fear might help you face it. Here are seven ways that could help you deal with your aerophobia.

1. Educate yourself

The main root of your anxiety could be your lack of knowledge of the subject. Doubts create confusion which is why our thoughts indulge in irrational outcomes. In this case, you can educate yourself of your flight’s travelling history or any past accidents and maintenance issues. You can identify the triggers that frighten you to keep a check on your anxiety. The goal should be to find what scares you and work on it to alleviate the anxiety that follows this fear.

2. Share your experience

To turn off your fear of flying, you can talk to other people that share the same experience as you. Hearing their thoughts might help you identify what things or situations set off your anxiety while flying. Sharing the struggles of your catastrophic thoughts might set things right for you to work on. Once you recognize that you are not alone in fighting the fear of flying, you sense acceptance and motivation to manage everything that is on the way.

3. Learn about the safety measures

The doubt that the unsafe flight you are travelling in could be a possible reason for your phobia. The moment you think of flying in an aircraft, you start thinking about the probable dangers or its risk of crashing.

You can manage to learn about the safety measures of your flight before boarding it. It might aid you with a sense of assurance that you are safe throughout your journey. Knowing the features of your plane could give you the confidence and courage to survive any flight emergency.

4. Breathe to relax

When you acknowledge your anxiety is taking hold of you, you should prevent it by calming your physical symptoms. You might encounter feelings like shallow breathing, raised pulse, blood flushing to your face, or even shivering. Dragging consciousness to your physical reactions might shift your concentration from fear to focus. When you rectify your breathing status and other symptoms, you trick your brain into controlling your fear.

5. Talk to your co-passengers

Turning to your co-passengers for a healthy conversation can be a good distraction while on a flight. Even though this might not solve the problem, it might get you busy to take your mind off your fear.

You can enquire about your fellow passenger about their life, their career, or their goals. Getting to know different people is always fascinating and provides a different perspective of life. This trick will not only serve your purpose of distraction from fear but also entertain you.

6. Distract yourself

You can equip your journey with some distractions to occupy yourself while travelling. You can try your favourite songs as your playlist. Music can calm anxiety and divert our thoughts. Gaming could also be a healthy alternative to music. It demands focus and concentration, which is precisely what your anxiety opposes. Pick a game and spend time playing it rather than worrying about the future of your flight.

7. Anxiolytic drugs like Kratom

The consumption of particular anxiolytic medication might help you to get things under control. Kratom powder or its capsule may assist you in dealing with the fear of flying. High-quality Kratom has anti-anxiety properties to relieve restlessness and other symptoms accompanied by the fear of flying. It reduces mental discomfort and enhances the mood.

Conclusion

Even though this fear is rare, there is nothing irrational about this. It is as genuine as other phobias that we hear. However, refraining from boarding a plane should be avoided. It is because exposure works well in tackling fear. The more you hide your fear, the more it consumes you.

Like other phobias, you may get rid of aerophobia through therapy and consultation. You will learn what sets you off about flying in a plane and the accurate signals that push your anxiety.

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Tags: Flying , Air Travel, Guest Post