Dear all,
My name is Irena and this is my third year in Switzerland.
My thread will probably sound silly to someone: I have flown over 40 times in my life until now, and still I am afraid of flying. I get nervous before every take off, during turbulence and whenever I hear unfamiliar noise in the airplane etc, etc... I am pretty sure there are people around that feel the same as me.
I was wondering if there is any workshop or something similar about fearful flyers in Switzerland (possibly Zurich)? I found some seminars given from the "Swiss" airline but is in German and not so cheap.
If there are other people that share the same feelings, please reply. It always helps to discuss this issue with someone else.
Thanks,
Irena
Fear of flying is irrational ...... but fear of crashing is not.
Hi Irena!
I've flown hundreds and hundreds of times in my life, and am still a nervous flyer. I have my own little coping mechanisms (mostly distraction and relaxation, but usually I just count to 60 over and over turning take-off and turbulence - somehow it helps me), but I also have learned a lot about airplanes and flying and that has helped me some. I like reading http://www.askthepilot.com/
I share the same problem. What I have found useful:
- Don`t drink coffee before or on the flight (as it only makes you nervous)
- Put the blinder on the window
- Read something interesting
- Try to imagine you are in train
For me those have helped out the fear, but anyway I still do not enjoy flights. I probably could enjoy if I was the pilot
That also gives clues how my fear of flight works: I have no control over the situation, someone else is driving, I am not able to get out before the plane crashes or lands properly (some claustrophobia seems to be involved).
You can relax a bit by tweaking your mind that you are actually in train which is somewhat similar as being in plane but you have trust in it. Also reading helps as you can concentrate to something else than fearing something stupid