Every minute an airliner with passengers on board rises into the sky. Most people in the cabin feel fear of flying, especially when it is their first time. I'm afraid to fly on an airplane, what should I do? This question is asked by approximately 40 percent of the population of our planet; they experience varying degrees of development of fear. It takes over a person so strongly, to the point of developing panic fears and refusing to fly. The fear of flying in an airplane is called aerophobia. About 10 percent of the population actually deals with a phobia. They refuse to travel abroad and prefer to travel by land.
What is aerophobia?
Aerophobia includes a whole range of fears:
- fear of unusual sensations during takeoff and landing,
- fear of heights and falling,
- fear of a plane crash,
- fear of feeling bad in a confined space,
- fear of death.
Also added to the cocktail called “aerophobia” is the fear of confined spaces and loss of control over the situation.
Despite the fact that aerophobia is characteristic of all categories of the population, it is worth noting that pregnant women and elderly people are more often susceptible to it.
How to overcome the fear of flying on an airplane - reducing anxiety
Breathing and relaxation exercises will help you get rid of anxiety:
- Breathing exercises. Sit comfortably, place your hand on your stomach. Take a deep breath in through your nose and exhale slowly for a count of four. Try to breathe from your stomach, not your chest. Do yoga, meditation helps to cope with fears. To achieve results, perform the exercise 5-6 times.
- Relaxation exercises. What to do if you are afraid to fly on an airplane - special exercises will help. Before doing this, determine which part is clamped. Often with anxiety, a person squeezes his shoulders. Inhale deeply and relax your shoulders. Then move on to another part of the body.
- Visual images. Close your eyes and imagine the place or country you are going to. Analyze, what do you see? If this is a tourist trip, mentally walk through the sights. You can turn on relaxing music.
Purchasing plane tickets
How to overcome the fear of flying on an airplane? Direct flights are one easy way to reduce anxiety. Purchasing tickets for direct flights guarantees less time spent on the plane. If you are afraid of turbulence, sit near the wing, there is less shaking here. For flights, give preference to long flights, they have less shaking. The larger the airliner, the quieter it flies. Fly on daytime flights. Night flights can increase anxiety because you can't see anything out the window.
What to do on board?
The main reason for the development of aerophobia is that there is nothing to do on the plane. Free time contributes to increased fears. How to stop being afraid of airplanes while in the cabin:
- Once on board, say hello to the crew. Inspect the interior and passengers, get to know each other. Flying with a group is not as scary as flying on your own. Chatting with passengers can take your mind off bad thoughts.
- Take with you literature that you have long wanted to read.
- Listening to music not only calms you down, but also insulates you from engine noise.
- Most airlines have Internet access on their planes. Visiting social networks is addictive. Time flies quickly, you will not even notice how you reach your destination.
- Download a movie to your tablet or smartphone, watch it directly on board, play games.
- Try to sleep. The flight can take several hours, during which time you can get a good night's sleep.
- If you start to panic, take a deep breath and exhale.
- During takeoff, squeeze the armrest to reduce anxiety. Tighten your abdominal muscles, stay in this position for ten seconds and release.
- During the flight, you should refrain from drinking alcoholic beverages. They not only do not reduce fear, but, on the contrary, increase it. The same applies to coffee, it increases anxiety and agitation. Green tea, on the contrary, calms and relaxes.
- Airlines include delicious food in the ticket price. Sweets help get rid of negative thoughts.
- How to stop being afraid of flying. Tell the people flying with you about it. Not only will you be able to calm down, but you will also receive recommendations on how to overcome anxiety from experienced passengers.
How does aerophobia manifest itself?
The first manifestations of fear and anxiety may appear several days before the flight.
A person develops excessive fussiness, nervousness, and begins to have problems sleeping. He frantically searches for confirmation or refutation of his fear on the Internet, in communication with friends and acquaintances.
The surprising thing is that aerophobes quite often have information about flight safety , accident statistics, and logically understand that the risk of dying is extremely minimal. However, in a moment of panic, all this knowledge does not work; a person simply cannot use it adequately.
It seems to him that right now and precisely to him, the very thing that is written about in the newspapers and filmed in the news will happen.
Before boarding the plane, a person suffering from a phobia tries to find reasons to cancel the flight. During this period, he can become extremely superstitious and suspicious, look for “signs” in the surrounding space, and analyze dreams.
To reassure those who had a “prophetic dream” before the flight, I will say that our emotional state is always reflected in our dreams.
By experiencing anxiety and not being able to cope with it, you yourself “deteriorate” the quality of your dreams.
On an airplane, mild discomfort can give way to real hysteria. Especially if some unplanned, unfamiliar sensations appear.
For example, during turbulence, changes in the sound of the engine, and even retracting the landing gear during takeoff.
Symptoms
Signs of aerophobia can bother people both in a flight situation and on the ground when coming into contact with information about airplanes, airports, disasters, etc.
In situations where progresses , patients may become agitated and experience extreme fear if airline symbols or even toy airplanes or helicopters come into their field of vision, and they often panic at the sound of aircraft engines coming from the TV or radio.
In such cases, the depth of fear is very great and it is necessary to consult a specialist in a timely manner. A psychologist, working through the problem together with the client, will help free the subconscious from “stagnant” fears and “hidden” problems.
Manifestations characteristic of aerophobia are:
- psychological characteristics: painful presentation and exaggeration of any incident of a flight, transformation of a fictitious or real situation into a tragedy or fantasizing about a possible catastrophe and one’s own death;
- emotional signs: stunned state of consciousness, slower reactions to surrounding stimuli, crying, anxiety, absent-mindedness, etc.;
- somatic symptoms: sweating all over the body, a feeling of coldness and tightness in the chest, dizziness, a feeling of near loss of consciousness, frequent heartbeats, nausea, vomiting, stool disorders, etc.
In order to get rid of aerophobia on their own, many people take sedatives before a flight and try to detach themselves from the upcoming psycho-emotional stress. However, it is possible to fight the disorder in this way only in mild forms.
Experts do not prescribe strong sedatives for aerophobia; plant-based medications and consumption of herbal teas are recommended. But in cases where the phobia consumes consciousness, the pills are ineffective and powerless.
Take the aerophobia test from Marina Koroleva
Take the test
The likelihood of a plane crash does not depend on whether you are afraid of flying or not. © Marina Koroleva - psychologist - neurophysiologist - doctor
When is it necessary to consult a specialist?
- If you realize that under the influence of fear you are capable of behaving inappropriately (or such cases have already happened)
- You feel intense irrational fear in the days before you fly
- Fear a few days before the flight does not allow you to do everyday activities and deprives you of legal capacity.
- You avoid flying by plane, preferring land transport even when it is long, expensive and inconvenient
ICD-10 code
Official psychiatry and psychology have not yet recognized aerophobia as a separate disease.
Experts consider it a phobic disorder and tacitly classify it as a group of mental disorders characterized by irrational fears ( F40 ).
The emergence of such fear, which absorbs the real state of things, does not allow many people to lead a normal lifestyle and significantly worsens their emotional state.
Patients often cannot even explain what they are afraid of in the air, or isolate from their consciousness the reasons for their fear, i.e. describe your sensations and feelings during the flight. And due to life circumstances, people with this disorder are forced to fly, so advice from experts on how to overcome aerophobia on an airplane is very relevant for them.
Crystal clear
According to the creators of Fresh Lavatory, this restroom is capable of cleaning itself: after a passenger leaves it, ultraviolet lamps disinfect the cabin, and water automatically washes the sink. The air toilet is equipped with sensors, which allows you to avoid touching the tap and other buttons. No germs!
The future of passenger aircraft
Laws of physics
Some people are terrified of flying precisely because they are cut off from the Earth. Not everyone understands the principle of aerodynamics, so they don’t fully understand how such a heavy metal colossus with a bunch of passengers on board and a large amount of luggage can stay in the air for several hours.
If you are flying for the first time, to calm your imagination and stop being afraid, it is worth familiarizing yourself with some design features of aircraft:
- Airliners are equipped with powerful engines that can not only lift a plane into the air, but also hold it for a long time among the clouds;
- There is no need to be afraid that the engines will break down: the plane has at least 2 of them. If 1 motor fails for some reason, the 2nd one will take over its function. Even if both engines fail at once, the plane will be able to land carefully, like a glider;
- The wings, which are quite firmly attached to the body, help the airplane stay and glide in the air. The chance that they will fall off in flight is reduced to zero;
- All systems equipped with airliners have duplicate programs. As soon as a failure occurs, the backup system immediately comes into operation (and there are at least 4 of them in passenger aircraft);
- You don’t have to worry about the risk of getting into a plane crash due to the pilot’s poor health - the planes have a reliable piloting system that allows you to carefully land the car according to the program built into it;
- The flight of each aircraft is controlled from the ground by air traffic control services, with which the pilots are in constant contact. Pilots will be immediately notified of all unusual situations and changes in weather conditions;
- The turbulence zone, which not every plane encounters, should not be scary. The aerodynamic parameters of the design are calculated taking into account this natural phenomenon, so that the aircraft has a sufficient margin of safety to withstand such shocks;
- There are professionals on board who do not consider themselves kamikazes. They calmly carry out their duties, as they are confident in the reliability of the “steel bird”.
Pre-flight technical inspection of the aircraft
Additional Information! For an extraordinary situation to occur, fate will have to try, because each plane is carefully checked by technical services before departure. They use special diagnostic devices, so faulty equipment will not even be allowed onto the runway. Customs inspection at the terminals has been strengthened, which prevents dangerous baggage from getting on board.
Expanding the boundaries
The new wide-body Airbus A330neo features improved engines that reduce fuel consumption by 14% and emissions by 10%. The innovative LED lighting system allows you to paint the aircraft interior in any color: the palette includes 16 million shades. The vessel is designed for 252 or 310 passengers, depending on the layout. The A330neo should begin operations in 2017.
The future of passenger aircraft
Why you shouldn't be afraid to fly on an airplane
The most common fears during a flight are the same for many people.
Turbulence Not a single plane crash has occurred due to turbulence; this condition does not threaten modern airliners, which are designed taking into account all physical phenomena and the effects of air flows.
Engine Failure Passenger airplanes have a glide system that is controlled by an autopilot. If all engines fail, although this situation is extremely rare, the aircraft will be grounded at the nearest airport or on the ground.
The plane is old and will break down. In aviation there is no concept of “old” or “new” plane. There are concepts of “serviceable” and “faulty”. Before the flight, each ship is checked; faulty aircraft are not allowed on the flight.
Pilots are drunk/out of their senses Pilots undergo a medical examination before departure, so this situation is impossible.
Pilots will begin to act recklessly. The actions of pilots are completely controlled by the “autopilot” system, which warns of errors.
They also want to live, so they do not intend to risk their lives. This should help remove the fear of flying. Such thoughts arise in any sane person. Just accept it as a fact that flying is much safer than driving a car. It is worth studying the statistics, which will show the real figure regarding flight safety.
