How I Conquered My Fear of Flying
One of the best decisions I have ever made in my life was to face and conquer my fear of flying. My entire life changed for the better the day that I finally took my first flight. I equate my experience to reading a book. Before I flew for the first time, it was as if I had a book in front of me for my entire life, but I was only reading the first page over and over again. When I flew for the first time, I was finally able to turn the page and move forward with all that the book had to offer!
My fear of flying began when I was a small child. In fact, I was barely old enough to remember the experience. My mother and I were flying to Brisbane and I became severely ill on the plane. While common sense tells me that I was only suffering from a virus that happened to affect me when I was a passenger on a plane, I associated my illness with the experience of flying. This association intensified in my mind over time and I began to fear and avoid travel by plane at all costs
Over time, I began to fear flying so much that I could hardly watch a movie that involved airplanes without feeling like I was having a panic attack. I missed out on many cross country and international trips with friends and family because of my fear of flying. Before I finally conquered my fear, the closest I ever came to an airport was a visit to pick up my cousin at the ground transportation area outside the terminal. The experience was so traumatic for me that I could not sleep for two nights.
Thankfully, I met a friend in graduate school who was completing her doctoral dissertation in psychology. She took a special interest in helping me conquer my fear of flying. She helped me develop a step by step plan designed to gradually help me overcome my fear and actually look forward to flying. The first step involved reading books about positive flying experiences and memorable vacations that involved travel by plane. Next, I began watching a series of movies that featured people who had positive or life-changing experiences during a plane flight, or as a result of flying. I particularly enjoyed the movies during which a passenger was lucky enough to be seated next to a famous movie actor!
After I was able to read and watch movies about flying without feeling uncomfortable, it was time to actually go to the airport and sit inside the ticketing area for thirty minutes. In order to help me feel comfortable with this step, I wore headphones and played my favorite song. I visited the airport on two more subsequent occasions for one hour each, and each time it was a little easier to face the airport. My friend accompanied me each time and shared funny stories with me while time passed. The key to my success with each step was incorporating pleasureable activities into the flying-related task.
My final step involved taking a short forty minute flight to Brisbane. This was definitely the hardest step, and I was thankful that my friend accompanied me. I practiced some special breathing and relaxation techniques that I learned online. Once the plane door had closed and our flight departed, I actually breathed a sigh of relief because I felt that the worst part was behind me. I was flying on a plane and was not sick!
Now that I have conquered my fear of flying, I am now able to enjoy family vacations and the charm of other countries. I finally made it past “the first page in my book” and feel like I am in a whole new world. I have made it my mission to help others face their fear of flying so that they can travel and enjoy all that our world has to offer.
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