Fear of Flying? Try this...

Photo by Eyesforlies taken yesterday

Do you have a fear of flying?  Are you a white-knuckler?  I can be at times. I really dislike takeoff because let's face it, if things fail, there is only one place to go and it isn't up! 

I am not too happy about turbulence either, but it has to be pretty severe and last more than 5 minutes for me to get uneasy. 

There are also times when I hear an unfamiliar noise and I don't know what it is--that gets me looking around in a tense, nervous state.

What do I do that calms me in these situations?  I look at other people and assess their fear response, because if something is wrong, I certainly won't be the only one reacting--others will too.

At first I survey those closest to me. Have they noticed?  Did they hear or feel what I did?  Do they think it is something to worry about? Or are they completely relaxed?  If they are relaxed, I can typically relax, too, though not always.

Sometimes my fear takes a hold of me, and I try to rationalize that the people I am looking at wouldn't react to a firecracker if it exploded nearby, so I need to continue investigating!  My next escalating step  to calm me down is to find the flight attendants.

One-by-one I assess their body language and facial expressions:  Are they stressed, tense, or being observant?  Are they alerted to something?  Is there any fear or concern expressed on their faces?

Ninety-nine out of one-hundred times, they completely reassure me that all is just fine and I can relax.

It is precisely then you will hear me exhale and exhale big!  Relief.

It's much like when I was young and I heard thunder and got nervous--wondering if a tornado was coming! When I heard a plane go over head, I knew the storm couldn't be that bad or they would have diverted.  That calmed me too.

It may seems silly, but I tell you this method works.  I use it other places besides airplanes, too.  I often assess others when trying to gain a perspective on a situation.  It's very useful.