A few years ago I was terrified of flying. And I mean TERRIFIED. I would literally prepare for the worst before a flight. So many people would try and reassure me by saying “driving a car is more dangerous than flying in a plane” and that never worked. Over the years though, I can now fly somewhat calmly, and I’ll share my tips on what actually helped my fear of flying!
Organize your items
Having all of your travel documents, passport, and even your earbuds, in a spot where you know you can easily find them can help ease your mind. If I don’t have to worry about where my passport or any of my travel essentials are, then that is one less thing on my mind. I can then focus on trying to relax.
Distract yourself
Download a movie you really want to watch on your phone or tablet and watch it on the plane. If there’s a book you want to read, buy it or download it before you go. Do something that will truly distract yourself. One time, a movie kept my attention to the point where I wanted the flight to last longer so I could finish the movie.
Be tired
Okay, so hear me out on this one, since this may not be a typical tip. If I am really tired before a flight, then it’s easier to fall asleep on the plane (even during a take-off!). I have never taken sleeping pills or anything though. I want to make sure that I’m not THAT drowsy when I land. It is entirely up to you.
Watch flight crew videos on Youtube
This is probably one of the things that helped me the most with my fear of flying. I watch flight attendant and pilot videos/vlogs on YouTube. One of my favourite YouTubers is pilot 74 Gear and flight attendant WonderfullyAle
Knowing the day-to-day life about what it is like for them to fly as a career, and without any fear, gave me comfort in thinking that I could too.
If watching YouTube videos isn’t your thing, then I check to see what the flight attendants look like while flying. If they look calm and are just going about their job then I try and be calm too.
Scared of turbulence?
This was something that always scared me, and two things helped with this:
- In YouTube videos, a frequent question that the fight attendants were asked if they are scared of turbulence. Their only concern about turbulence was making sure it was safe for the bar cart to go down the aisle (since it’s heavy and could easily roll down the aisle). Not ONCE did they even think about something happening to the plane. Didn’t even cross their mind!
- Another thing that helped was this analogy: picture a boat on the sea. It’s bobbing up and down, riding the waves without any troubles. That’s exactly what a plane is doing. It’s riding the air waves, just like a boat going through water. Now when a plane is shaking around because of turbulence I envision it as riding an air wave.
Just keep flying
The more you do it, the easier it can get. In one year I took 3 different trips with multiple layovers, and after awhile I started to feel a bit more comfortable each time. Practice makes perfect right?
It probably also helped that at one point we had to wait on the tarmac for an extra 15 minutes, so I was able to watch other planes land. A plane would land literally every 1-2 minutes. That’s A LOT of planes that fly every day. I just try to remind myself how many planes are flying around, and how rarely things happen.
Remember: not all plane rides are the same
In the past, I would compare each flight to what I thought they should be like, and if they differed in any way. If the plane seems to be approaching the runway faster than normal, was bumpy, noisy or making so making turns, etc. then I would think something was wrong.
Butttt! The weather changes all the time, so it could be that they are making adjustments for the weather. Or for the length of the runway they sometimes need to adjust their speed, there are SO many reasons. I try and stop comparing the flight to how I think they should go, and take it for what it is.
Are you scared of flying? Were you ever scared of flying and also have less fear over flying, or completely cured of it? Let me know what your tips are for overcoming your fear of flying in the comments below!
Thank you for these tips. I look at the attendants as well, and if they are calm, I feel calm. Also, if the plane continues to move (levelly) forward (and not nose down!) during turbulence, that is great! And… I also remember the power of the jets and that turbulence won’t stop such a powerful engine.