Fear of Flying

                A lot of people are afraid of flying, and each for their own reasons.  However, some of the most common stem from fear of enclosed spaces, heights, strange sounds, sitting in stale air, crowded situations, lack of control, and terrorism.  While air travel is still foreign to some of us, it is actually the second safest form of mass transportation in the world (following the escalator and elevator).  The odds of being in a plane accident are roughly 1 in 11 million while the odds of being in an automobile accident are 1 in 5,000.  That being said, your drive to the airport is actually more of a safety risk than the actual flight itself. 

However, if these facts don’t calm your nerves quite yet, here are some tips to help overcome your fear of flying.

1.       Inform the flight attendant of your fears as they often admit to making special effort to check in on scared fliers throughout the flight.

2.       Treat turbulence like bumps in a road and let your body move with the aircraft, rather than trying to fight the movement.

3.       Ask for a seat at the front of the cabin where there is less turbulence.

4.       Distract yourself with activities such as movies, reading, activity books.

5.       Consider taking a class geared towards those afraid of flying (which actually exist, believe it or not).  The final test is often an actual flight.

6.       Avoid caffeine which causes a hyper state of mind and increases anxiety often times.

7.       Listen to relaxing music to calm your nerves.

8.       Use the rubber band technique of snapping your wrist when you feel yourself becoming agitated to train your brain to clear out negative thoughts about the flight.

9.       Don’t look into the gory details of aircraft disasters which increase anxiety.

10.   Take deep breaths and use the sick bag as an anti-hyperventilating device if necessary.

http://www.nbcnews.com/id/7549546/ns/travel-travel_tips/t/tips-fearful-flier/#.VpfccfkrKUl