I've never feared planes. I was a bit leery the first time I went in one, mainly because I had to travel by myself, but I spent more time worrying about security checkpoints and having the proper documentation than whether or not the plane might crash. But both my mom and my wife get really anxious on planes, especially during landing and takeoff, and I suppose I can't blame them too much. You are soaring thousands of feet in the air in a giant metal tube. What's your take on flying? Do you mind it at all? Will you shell out extra money just to take a different form of transportation?
Having spent the majority of my life hopping on and off planes - both for business and pleasure and at times almost as regularly as other forms of transport - even after having experienced a fair amount of truly hair-raising moments - no I'm not at all afraid of flying. In fact as statistics continually show that it is actually the safest form of travel and the chances of meeting an untimely demise are way, way more likely - on the drive to or from the airport or by being hit by a bus than they would be travelling by plane - air travel is probably the safest part of any journey.
I don’t fly very often, but if I want to get off this rock it’s pretty much my only option. So I’m glad I was never afraid of getting on a plane. In fact I kind of enjoy it. My mom, though, she’s never liked planes. I think the last time she got on one, I was a teenager. So it’s been quite a while. In a way I can understand her fear, but I’m happy we don’t have that in common.
Fear of flying is a really common problem and I guess even seasoned air travelers will sometimes get the nerves. The main problem for me is perhaps the fact that you are kept in an enclosed and sealed tube for extended hours at a time and of cause, fearing that something might go wrong while you're in it. But as gata montes has mentioned, air travel is one of the safest methods of traveling, much safer than traveling by land. I usually just try to distract myself with the entertainment system or asking for more food and drinks! Avoid thinking and checking about the time of the journey or the route map as that can make you impatient and anxious!
I don't think this is a good thread for me because I have a flight to Vietnam on Friday night. In fairness to me, I am a traveler to other countries and this year I've gone to Beijing, China and to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Maybe I can say that I am used to flying now unlike before when I had difficulty breathing while the plane was taking off.
I know this sounds crazy but I get more anxiety about taking a shower than riding in a plane now that I've been on it (it's not that I'm scared of anything happening it just feels more enclosed) I've only been on one vacation in the airplane but after the first few times it was no big deal at all. My ears didn't even pop. The only downside really is you do feel kinda squished because the seats were full and that it's difficult to sleep but you can always sleep in the airport if need be.
I flew in the good old days of the 70's and didn't mind flying. This was before all the hi-jacking of planes by desperate people though, so I never feared flying. In 2006 I went on a trip with a college club and enjoyed it a lot. It was a short flight to the outer island so it wasn't too long only about 45 minutes. We landed and went right away to a McDonalds for breakfast. We were starved for we took the pink eye early in the morning before the birds awake! We had fun on this trip and the plane ride was so smooth! I like transportation services and would love to travel on all sorts or different kinds of public transportation one day!
That is a big part of my 'fear' of flying - the getting everything right as far as documentation, luggage, and being where I need to be at the right time so that I don't get left behind or incur some other tragedy. I have never flown before. There is a certain element of fear involved in the actual flying, but not as much as the possibility of missing a flight or doing something wrong when it comes to documentation.
I haven't been on a plane since I was 12 or so and it didn't occur to me at the time to be afraid. It was the coolest thing ever.. I was above a patchwork world and eventually soaring over a field of clouds that looked like I could step out and walk on them. At one point I was able to see a storm BELOW me. We've come a long way in such a short time.. flying is unbelievable. I'm so much more aware of my mortality now that if I ever fly again, I might just drop to the fetal and cry the whole way LOL. Hopefully not.
I'm not keen on the take off but everything else is always fine for me. I don't worry about getting there or documentation - just make sure you've got everything you need well in advance and allow yourself plenty of time to get to the airport.
I like flying in planes, and understand the stats that it is WAY more dangerous to be in a car then in a plane. However as humans we were not meant to fly or be so high up in the air, so I totally get why a lot of people get freaked out about planes. The media doesn't help, they play up every crash. Even though thousands of planes fly everyday with 0 issues, we only hear about when they crash and burn and people get hurt or killed.
Also, I get terribly travel sick and I am twenty-five years old next month. I have always gotten travel sick, and nothing appears to be able to temper it, so if I am still getting terribly travel sick in vehicles which I have been using my entire life, then I don't know how my body would react to flying. The last thing I'd ant to do is vomit all over everyone.
I don't know if it would make any sort of difference, but once you get into the air you don't feel the motion of the plane all that much. They're pretty tame compared to cars and boats. This, of course, assumes you don't hit turbulence, which can radically change that dynamic... regardless, I also get motion sickness in most vehicles, but I don't think I've ever had a problem with planes, aside from the pain of air pressure on your brain as the plane descends. (Don't fly when you have a head cold. It hurts.)
Awwww Thank you for the reassurance. What about turbulence and things like that though? I am fine on boats and such too, which is strange. It is just when it comes to cars and other vehicles that I get terrible travel sickness, and literally have to focus on not throwing up. It seems as if I have tried everything, but nothing appears to work. Even the thought of getting a taxi to the airport causes anxiety within me. Ok, thanks for the heads up, no pun intended lol
I'm the same way with cars, at least. It depends how far off the ground I am. In the back seat of a car I start to get nauseous within ten, fifteen minutes, depending on the smoothness of the road. If I'm on, say, the second floor of a train, though, I have less trouble. I don't know if it will help at all, but I've heard you can mitigate travel sickness by staring straight ahead, and not looking out windows. Wouldn't matter a whole lot in a plane, since you barely notice movement unless you're taking off or landing, but I find it makes a huge difference to surviving a car ride. Planes are only as stable as the weather outside, unfortunately. Most flights I've had were nice and smooth. Only once did I get caught in bad weather - a snow storm, of all things - and sitting on the tarmac waiting for people to defrost the plane was worse (more annoying, really) than being in the air.
Since i love traveling, I never have any problem in flying or in any kind of transportations. May it be traveling alone or with a company. Good thing about traveling by plane is that it is faster compare to other kind of transportations. I always prefer traveling by planes. I'm just thankful that I don't have a phobia or experience anxiety when riding a plane.
Yes, the back seat is always the worst. Most of my family members are gracious enough to let me sit in the front seat when I am traveling because they know I'll get nauseous. Coaches are also really bad for my nausea. The heat off of the vehicle is awful. Trains aren't so bad. Thank you for the advice. I will definitely give it a shot.
I have been afraid to ride airplanes for years, but this year I conquered that fear of riding airplanes. I took my first plane trip to Las Vegas and at first I was a little nervous but then I remembered that God is with me and I was okay. I didn't like the turbulence but I wasn't surprised by it. I plan on taking the airplane more because I want to travel more and driving takes way too long.
I'm actually looking forward to the time that I can afford to travel, since I have never rode a plane before, so I'd like to experience it. I do have a cousin who's terrified of flying, and he's never rode on a plane before and he will never do so since it's his phobia.
I enjoy traveling very much especially between USA and Germany due to my own cultural background. Therefore, I have flown a lot in my life. The only times I get nervous during flying is when the turbulences get really strong. It just makes me feel very anxious and sometimes I get really scary thoughts about what if something happens but try not to let that take control and instead try to relax a bit. What really helps is occupying yourself with either listening to music, watching movies or talking to the person next to you.