What helps you overcome air jitters?
Feb 18th, 2003, 11:05 AM
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What helps you overcome air jitters?
Am a tentative flyer at best and will be leaving mid March for Belgium. With all the uproar going on, I need something to calm me for the 8 hr. flight. Any suggestions. Can't be totally out, traveling with kids. Thanks!
Feb 18th, 2003, 12:50 PM
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From one Jane to another- I feel your pain! Xanax has helped me. It keeps me comfortably relaxed and keeps me from panicking at every single bump. Taking one does not knock me out but sometimes, I will add a glass of wine and have a nice little nap. I have tried Valium also but it doesn't calm me down the way Xanax does. Good luck!
Feb 18th, 2003, 01:05 PM
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I went through a spell of flying fear and found that a long flight cured my problem as I had to resign myself to the situation. Others here have mentioned Ambien as a way of catching a four hour sleep. Unless your kids are real young, maybe this will work for you.
Feb 18th, 2003, 01:12 PM
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I grab my husband's arm, close my eyes tightly, and say a prayer. . . then I watch the movie if its good or read a book if its not. I rub something called Badger Balm (essence of lavender and other relaxants).<BR><BR>I ignore all advice about not drinking. I have something before dinner and something with dinner, then I tend to take a Tylenol PM. I wake up before breakfast, feeling rather refreshed, drink coffee, orange juice, and water. I spray my face with Burt's Bees Lavender Mist, then grab my husband's arm, close my eyes tightly, and begin praying again on the descent.<BR><BR> <BR>
Feb 18th, 2003, 01:34 PM
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Visit www.fearofflyinghelp.com . There is a message board and fear of flying course which is run by an American Airlines captain. It is free though he does accept donations to help pay for the website.
Feb 18th, 2003, 03:51 PM
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Xanax!<BR>It takes the edge off without knocking you out.<BR>My husband and I describe it as "you know what's going on but you just don't care (worry)"<BR>Probably a .25mg would do. Anything stronger makes me sleepy. We take it when we fly and it makes things much more pleasant.
Feb 18th, 2003, 04:25 PM
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Egads--really?<BR><BR>Hmmm, I'll have to find something else then, or maybe give up the wine. Nothing does it for me like Tylenol PM. But maybe I should be checking out Ambien. Can I still have wine with that?<BR>
Feb 18th, 2003, 04:42 PM
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I usually have one glass of red wine and do the New York Times Sunday Magazine crossword puzzle. But, I do this to overcome boredom, not jitters, because the only thing that makes me jittery is the Stock Market and my mother. Another thing I like to do is chat up the gay flight attendants on the plane (there are always at least 3) and talk about what Karen was wearing on the latest episode of Will & Grace.
Feb 18th, 2003, 04:52 PM
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I have a terrible fear of flying too. I have my own mantras I repeat during takeoff "your safer in the air than on the ground", "chances of anything happening on this flight are one in 640,000" and "taking this flight is going to get me to Italy, England etc (add your destination), a place I've always dreamed of going......". You'll be fine = )
Feb 18th, 2003, 05:09 PM
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Dear JaneOO<BR> Try yoga. It is really relaxing. If you do not want to do the poses then learn about the relaxation breathing that always starts and ends a yoga session. Happy traveling.<BR><BR> Peace, Raven
Feb 18th, 2003, 05:37 PM
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Jane: I am getting more and more fearful of flying as I get older - don't ask me why, but it's true, and I fly a LOT, so it's a problem. I don't take drugs, but I do take a drink or two onboard on overseas flights - don't want to drink too much because when I get off I've usually got a very long day of taxi and trains and rental car drive ahead of me. <BR>A friend of mine who is a former air flight controller made me feel a lot better when he told me that the inflight turbulence absolutely NEVER contributes to an airplane's demise. There has to be something a LOT more problematic than turbulence to bring an airline down, and when was the last time a plane went down over the Atlantic ocean unless a bomb was involved? That has made my flying persona a lot more calm.<BR>Those bumps are just like the bumps you experience driving over snow or ice. It's nothing more, nothing less. The plane skids over stuff that makes it bump up and down, sometimes mildly, sometimes wildly. When you're up that high in the air, the pilot can't make things smooth for you every minute of the way. The diciest moments are takeoff and landing. Don't worry about what happens in mid-air - it's almost always just air current things that the pilots can't control but that can't bring the aircraft down. <BR>Think about all the aircraft that take off and land safely every day. Yours will be among them.<BR>I'll be gripping the seats in April when I head for France, but no amount of fear of airplanes, or political nonsense, will keep me from heading back to the Dordogne.
Feb 18th, 2003, 06:05 PM
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<BR>elle, LOL, I do the same thing. <BR>I grab my poor husbands hand and squeeze as hard as I can and pray..although my prayers are more like making a deal with God, you know the sort, let me get there alive and I will be good,etc? So far, with half a Xanax to get out of the house, and my husbands hand, I have made a lot of trips safely
<BR>I think StCirq has the best way of looking at it. If you think of how many planes take off and land a day in every city in every country....well, you will be fine too
<BR>I think StCirq has the best way of looking at it. If you think of how many planes take off and land a day in every city in every country....well, you will be fine too
Feb 18th, 2003, 06:24 PM
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I think you may have answered your own question. If you're traveling with kids I would think you will have to spend so much time and attention on them you won't have much time to worry about the flight.<BR><BR>Keep all of you attention on the kids. Attend to their every need for attention. Give them things to do which require most of your attention. I'm serious. When you land you won't have thought about your anxiety.
Feb 18th, 2003, 07:28 PM
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jane00,<BR><BR>Another personal vote for Xanax here, but may not be your solution. I've tried Ambien, which does ok for me for a shorter flight - and might be ok for some people for an 8 hr flight.<BR><BR>I'm not so much an anxious flier, no visions of nosedives or anything, but after a few hours ... I ..JUST.. want to be OUT of this big metal tube full of people and out of this uncomfortable seat... now! Way too much energy.<BR><BR>Xanax has done a much better job of keeping the edge off of our longer 18 hr flights to Australia. It does however, make me sleep a lot more soundly, so with the kids and a shorter flight, Ambien may be better to your needs.
