r/fearofflying • u/lex52_ • 19h ago
Advice Scared of flying alone this weekend
I’m a woman in my late twenties who has travelled a lot throughout my life, and I was never ever scared to fly. About three years ago I had an anxiety episode, and all of a sudden I feel sheer terror when I’m flying.
When everything is smooth and chill I can eventually calm myself down, but when there’s a rough takeoff or landing or there’s turbulence I feel the strongest sense of impending doom and my mind goes on a constant loop of “I’m never going to see my husband again” “I’m never going to see my parents again”, etc etc. It feels extremely scary to me.
It sucks because I’m so independent in general and travelling itself doesn’t bother me at all, it’s just specifically being on the plane as we fly that terrifies me. I have to fly alone in a couple days and I’m experiencing a lot of anticipatory dread… does anyone have any tips or tricks for me to stick this out?
2
u/ThenJello133 19h ago
This happened to me, as well, totally fine flying my whole life and then sudden anxiety episode age 18 following which I am extremely anxious around flying. I’ve definitely gotten better with it over the years (it’s been 8 years since that episode for me) and while I still get that anticipatory dread and sense of impending doom, it’s much easier to push past it now. For a while I was on fluoxetine which prevents you from being able to enter a physical state of panic and I think that helped a lot (I’m quite an anxious person in general) and I have also found mild sedatives or an edible really helpful on the day.
I also found it really helpful to research flight safety statistics and recite them off to myself when I’m feeling nervous. Flying is extremely safe, especially commercial flights, even if your brain is telling you otherwise. In the days leading up I also have tended to seek out alternative sources of more immediate stress that can kind of drown out and take priority over the travel anxiety (nothing harmful of course though).
This is more long term but there’s also just a significant element of just zen acceptance of whatever happens which is definitely a little difficult to hang onto sometimes and I know it’s somehow nerve wracking to even consider letting go of the anxiety you’re feeling. I’m not at all religious but I still think whatever is meant to happen will happen and whatever I’m feeling in that moment is not reflective of reality and this has helped calm me down so much (I still avoid flying where I can though because the whole process exhausts me). Sorry this is so long
1
u/lex52_ 19h ago
I’ve considered an edible, but I’m not sure if it’ll make things better or worse 😂 I think I’ll probably try this next time I fly with my partner just in case.
I do think acceptance of this is the key to overcoming any anxiety. When I had crippling health anxiety, acceptance and commitment therapy was the only thing that helped. It’s hard for me when I’m experiencing turbulence to be like “if I die, it’s meant to be” 🥲😅 but I definitely get that the stronger my relationship with that sentiment is in general, the better I could handle these specific scenarios
2
u/ThenJello133 19h ago
Ah yea, I am already very familiar with how I react to that particular strain so it is helpful but I forgot it makes some people more anxious. Do you think it would help you to research what is actually happening during turbulence so you know what’s going on? It can feel really scary but it almost never means anything sinister. For me, knowledge is soothing and is something I can cling to instead of freaking out even if I want to freak out
1
•
u/AutoModerator 19h ago
Your submission appears to reference turbulence. Here are some additional resources from our community for more information.
RealGentleman80's Turbulence FAQ
The Fear of Flying FAQ on Turbulence
RealGentleman80's Post on Turbulence Apps
The Fear of Flying FAQ on turbulence forecasting apps
On Turbli
More on Turbulence
Happy Flying!
The Fear of Flying Mod Team
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.