I am terrified to fly, but I occasionally have to. I bought tickets Friday for a trip I have to take in October and am nervous.
Any tips or reasons why I should not be? How do you rationalize being in a big hunk of metal being blasted through the air?
AHHH! I hate to fly!
"Those who plan do better than those who do not plan, even though they rarely stick to their plan." - Winston Churchill
I'm not scared to fly and it doesn't make a difference what type of plane I'm in.
"And all this terrible change had come about because he had ceased to believe himself and had taken to believing others. " - Leo Tolstoy
How do you rationalize being in a hunk of metal blasting along a road? You're at greater risk of being in a car accident. Is fear of flying rational? If not then it will be hard to rationalize it away!Originally posted by H
I don't mind flying at all, and kind of enjoy take-off and landing.
A passenger next to me was really nervous, and grabbed my hand during landing! I didn't mind. He was a Swedish football player
His fear was what we first started talking about. You can use it to meet chicks!
Oh, I was scared to death the first time I flew...especially being only 5 or 6 mos. after 9/11. I end up throwing up right before landing...that sucked ass.
From that moment on, I take Drammamine. It calms me down, I don't get motion sickness, it's great. I can even cautiously look out the window (but not during rapid elevation change!!!).
Just take some Drammamine, put some tunes on, and sit back and ENJOY THE RIDE!!
That's how I try to think of it...we're just driving through the air. Close your eyes when you're taking off and once you're in the air, enjoy the ride.
I never freak out months ahead of flying. I only get a little scared right before it happens, but I don't let it get to me.
Doing a little bit of praying at take-off and landing helps out a lot as well. I mean, I'm probably not going to die, but it does help calm my spirits.
Also, try to do a morning or early afternoon flight if you can. The sun is very calming and peaceful, IMO.
I hope this helps!
"Life's a journey, not a destination"
-Steven Tyler
I could tell you some stories that would ensure you never step foot on an aircraft ever again ...
I'm not scared to fly, but I do not like landing through heavy clouds and turbulence. It's irrational with the level of automation in flying nowadays, but I like to see the ground so that I know the pilots can see the ground.
As JNL said -- it's really safer to fly than to drive.
I have seen
old ships sailing
like swans asleep
I love to fly and want a window seat.
Oddball
Why don't you knock it off with them negative waves?
Why don't you dig how beautiful it is out here?
Why don't you say something righteous and hopeful for a change?
From Kelly's Heroes (1970)
Are you sure you're not hurt ?
No. Just some parts wake up faster than others.
Broke parts take a little longer, though.
From Electric Horseman (1979)
Me too. Been flying since age 5, when I went off alone to visit relatives in FL. Never had any issues flying, I think because I started so young.I love to fly and want a window seat.
"Growth is inevitable and desirable, but destruction of community character is not. The question is not whether your part of the world is going to change. The question is how." -- Edward T. McMahon, The Conservation Fund
I have always enjoyed flying, but now that I am older and am more aware of my mortality, I admit to being nervous when I fly, especially during takeoffs and landings. But it is a strange feeling because even though I am nervous, it is all exciting at the same time.
I fly into Reagan National in D.C. once a year and you can see the Pentagon on the approach to the runway. One little bump or turn and I think "uh-oh" and squeeze my husband's hand. But two minutes later we are on the ground and I am fine.
The way I look at it is if it is my time, then it is my time. I love to travel so much and if I couldn't fly and get away as much as I wanted, I would be a very unhappy person. So it is worth the small risk. And as others mentioned earlier in the post, the risks of being killed in a car accident are greater. But for me it is the element of control that makes it seem more dangerous that it really it.
I always bring my I-pod with me and listen to music, that seems to help calm any shaken nerves. Also, a drink before boarding helps.
urbanchik
I love to fly. Especially take off and landing. It is alwys so exciting to be going someplace far away.
It is all a matter of perspective!!!
flying is not a problem for me. I actually enjoy it, but haven't done much of recently.
I'm sorry. Is my bias showing?
Don't like flying at all, drive whenever at all possible. Its not so much that I am scared its that I am extremely claustrophobic. I hate being in a tiny little airplane and I REALLY hate using the restrooms in a plane. I will be getting on a plane here in two weeks and am not terribly excited about it!!
Flying doesn't bother me at all. I've done so much flying in the last couple years that I don't even scramble for a window seat anymore. I much prefer the aisle, although it sucks to have your knee slammed by a beverage cart.
Maintaining enthusiasm in the face of crushing apathy.
I enjoy flying, although since I had been in flight school and became savvy to what could happen, I get a little nervous. (But nothing a double gin and tonic won't take care of)
For a while there I was more nervous than now, but I love the whole experience of flying and checking out the airport, etc. (I am an aviation buff) It is also good when they have tunes on the plane and one channel you can listen to the Air Traffic Control frequency
You get all squeezed up inside/Like the days were carved in stone/You get all wired up inside/And it's bad to be alone
You can go out, you can take a ride/And when you get out on your own/You get all smoothed out inside/And it's good to be alone
-Peart
It's much safer than being in a hunk of metal/fiberglass/plastic on a highway. My only problem with flying is the landing part. My ears are very sensitive and cannot take the constant increase in pressure on the descent.
I am recognizing that the voice inside my head
is urging me to be myself but never follow someone else
Because opinions are like voices we all have a different kind". --Q-Tip
I am terrified of flying and had not been on a plane in 20 years, until this summer when I have made a couple short flights.
Something with the pressure, but I always get major ear pain when flying away from Denver. Usually Denver to Memphis. Whenever I land in a lower altitude city my ears always kill for about 3 hours on the ground after the flight.
I usually pop 4 advil and take a nap, then I feel better.
Next month: Flight from Denver (5,280 feet) to Seattle (Sea level)
You get all squeezed up inside/Like the days were carved in stone/You get all wired up inside/And it's bad to be alone
You can go out, you can take a ride/And when you get out on your own/You get all smoothed out inside/And it's good to be alone
-Peart
I love to fly, pop something fun on the Ipod, enjoy the geography below and just think about whatever fun place Im going (or happy to be headed home from)
The flights out of National Airport are indeed breath taking. Try it in the evening with a hint of fog and the monuments just glow.
"They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety." Ben Franklin
Remember this motto to live by: "Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, martini in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming 'WOO- HOO what a ride!'"
My fear is not flying per se but I intensely dislike the tight quarters/crowding associated with modern cattle car flying. I feel very "tight" and stressed when I fly because of that.
Nothing an upgrade to first class and a complimentary bloody mary can't fix. Nappy time!
Like BKM it's not the flying that bothers me. In fact, I love sitting at the window seat and identifying the towns and cities as we fly over them. I just hate being on an over crowded flight, in cramped seat for a long period of time. Delta and those crappy MD-80's they have in their fleet is the absolute worst for that.
Not afraid to fly. I dread it because of the inconvenience factor - stress of making connecting flights, the cramped conditions on the plane, screaming and fussy kid (mine) and so on. I only really relax when I am on that last flight of the day and I know I am going to make it to my destination (unless the plane crashes or blows up).
I recall a flight on Big Sky Airlines when we were traveling with our then-eighteen month-old. He had to ride on my lap. The flight was very bumpy and at one point we hit big tubulence and suddenly my son was off my lap and to the left of me in a flash. Fortunately I didn't lose my grip and got him back on my lap during his descent.
"I am very good at reading women, but I get into trouble for using the Braille method."
~ Otterpop ~
I love to fly. I guess it comes from being a power junky, but something about the way everyone gets sucked into their seat as the jet starts to take off is just too much fun.
I would love to fly a fighter jet someday.
I flew from Milwaukee to Philly on the one-year anniversary of 9/11 and it was the smoothest, most relaxed plane ride that I had ever been on. Oh and I got a neat little American Flag Pin as I got onto the plane.
Tips: Chew gum, don't drink a lot, and take a nap.
When compassion exceeds logic for too long, chaos will ensue. - Unknown
I haven't been on a tin greyhound being hurtled through space since 1987. Prior to that, I'd probably flown over 250 times.
I used to love flying, including take-offs and landings. I can remember flying on turbo props on Mohawk, Allegheny, and Piedmont in the 70's and regional commuter flights while in the Navy.
Then, I started developing a flying phobia... the Arrow Air crash in Gander, NF didn't help - flying into Gander from Iceland and seeing the destruction shortly after the crash wasn't pretty, nor was Arrow Air's stretch DC-8 (an extra section welded into the fuselage) w/ leaks included.... also, dropping 4500 feet in 8 seconds wasn't too fun either... though it did shut up that crying kid.
So, after that I probalby flew 10 more times round-trip from Charleston, SC to Atlanta in the mid-80's.... cheap flights for weekend fun in the big city. One time before getting clearance to land, the plane banked a little to sharply for me and that did it... every time a plane did any banking or there was a change in engine noise, I spazzed.... got to be where my heart would race 3 hours prior to the flight.
I guess someday when someone close dies, my ass will have to get on plane. Same thing for going overseas....
I know there's beta-blockers and valium for dorks like me.
Of course that is what I am flying on.
"Those who plan do better than those who do not plan, even though they rarely stick to their plan." - Winston Churchill
Ah-Delta's MD 80s. That was the plane I was trapped in Saturday. At least it was a short hop (Cincinatti to Atlanta) and very, very uncrowded.Nothing an upgrade to first class and a complimentary bloody mary can't fix. Nappy time!
Like BKM it's not the flying that bothers me. In fact, I love sitting at the window seat and identifying the towns and cities as we fly over them. I just hate being on an over crowded flight, in cramped seat for a long period of time. Delta and those crappy MD-80's they have in their fleet is the absolute worst for that.
The plane I hate more than any other is the Boeing 757. Those giants have literally the most uncomfortable seats I have ever experienced. I'm surprised my back didn't go into spasms on the five hours between Atlanta and Sacramento
Airbus isn't gaining market share only because of European Community subsidies, imo.
I'm with Jax on this one. Last time I flew I got a charlie horse in my foot somewhere over Kansas, I swear it took 6 hours from there to get to Indianapolis. If we aren't pressed for time, we take the train.
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