hi all,i really dont no were to start,i 1st flew 17years ago and i was terrified,had 2 young babies with me,hubby and parents.iwas so scared my parents held my hand all the way to alicante,we flew with dan air!!!!
i cried all the way,i think it was the fear of the unknown.however i have been flying ever since as i wont let my fears beat me!!!! i confess that i do get diazapan from the doctor to help calm me down and i must admit as much as i still cry taking off and landing i dont get the sweaty palms and palpatations that i used to get.we had a really bad flight coming home 5yrs ago from tenerife ,turbalance was horrific,swore i would never ever fly again.spoke to doctor within 2 days of coming home(only cause i had to take son with bad feet mind) he was great he said next time just do a short flight 2hrs with increase dose of tabs and see how i go,cause i really didnt want it to beat me.i did,the flight was great,now im up to flying 4hrs to turkey(done it twice now)whoppeeeee!!!!!!! i think once i get on that plane i am never gonna see the land again and that were all gonna die!!!!!
i dont no what is worse not knowing what to expect or the knowing what to expect!!! i think if this plane goes down ive have done this to my family,cause its allways me that is looking to book the hols every year(twice a year).some people say to me,"just have a few drinks that will calm you down" but i think what if there,s emergency i need to have all my wits about me.i love my holidays with my family and friends,once were at our destination i dont think about the flying home i really enjoy myself,UNTIL THE DAY WE FLY HOME!!!! will i ever get over this fear???
but im dammed if i will let it beat me.kids both left home now, me and hubby would love to go faraway places but i no,that will never be!! i cant read,do puzzles or anything like that on the flight i just clock watch,can anybody give me any other advise other than to say"why do you bother going" as others tell me.

5 weeks monday for hols,starting to think to much already.
cheers laingy

Laingy,

Blimey, i'm just like you. Am going to Turkey on Monday and already been having nightmares and stomach ache. Was going to see Doctor about Diazepam but just not sure what to do. Have bought Bach's Rescue Remedy and Bachs Mimulus which is for genuine fears like flying only. Have been recommended this by the doctor in the past. Like you I feel like I'm going to my 'death'. Its awful. But I've accepted my fear and decided like you not to let it 'rule my life'. I did a 'fear of flying' course a few years ago so am not so worried about the noises etc. but have coped up until now with breathing exercises to stop my palpitations. They do work but its really hard work to concentrate for such a long time. Can you tell me what the effects of Diazepam are like and what the recommended dosage would be. I dont want to feel spaced out, just relaxed enough to enjoy the flight, as there are actually some bits of it I could enjoy! Sue.

Hi Sue ... you should really seek advice on the dosage, direct effect and any possible side effects of Diazepam (or possible alternatives) from your doctor, based on your own medical history. How medication affects one person may have no bearing on how it might affect you, and so any advice on this via the forums could actually be meaningless, perhaps even inappropriate.

David

Hi David,

I do appreciate what you are saying, and although I will be seeking advice from a Doctor it would just be nice and extremely helpful to hear someone else's point of view on the subject of these pills (someone who feels the same fear as I do). Whilst I hear what you are saying, you couldnt possibly know what it feels like unless you have this awful fear as many of us do on this site. Even though I feel I have done nothing wrong in asking, sorry I wont ask again. Sue.

Hi Sue ... I don't for one minute doubt how stressful this fear of flying may be. But my concern is that although someone else may share your fear, they may not share the same medical history or effects of medication.

For that reason, medical or medication advice should be taken from your doctor and with only a few days until your departure, it's perhaps something which you should be putting in motion now, in case any medication prescribed has to be taken for a few days before the actual flight.

It may be best to see your doctor with a completely open mind on this matter. I know that if I visited my GP and said that I would like to be prescribed Diazepam (or other medication) to calm my fear of flying, based on advice taken via a holiday forum, he would chase me. Your doctor may be able to suggest something other than medication.

Good luck.
David

hi suebar... ..i have just read your last post with sorrow,..i do know what you are going through "i been there done it and have worn the tee shirt as well",.but i must say i think david is on the right track regarding going to your doctor to see if he can help,.i took my courage from a bottle instead of seeking help from my g.p.i now wish i had gone to see him instead of doing my own way,...the best thing for me personally was reading ross comments i must have read them a dozen times and they helped me,........any way all the best to you and my regards....john-doe..

Hi Johndoe, I had already made an appointment to talk to my GP on Thursday. He wants to prescribe tamazepam to me in 2mg doses but I was just trying to find out what sort of reaction I could expect from them. Thats why i asked so many questions in the first place. For me I like to know what to expect. The worry that I may be spaced out on a certain dose is worse than the fear itself! I suppose the other lady who I was responding to is probably to worried to reply now. Never mind I'll just sort myself out and let you know how I get on when I get back. Thank you for your kind response. Sue.x

dear sue,please donot worry i started on only 2mg of diazapam and it NEVER spaced me out,i was always aware of everythink around me,but just calmer about things without as i said previously no palpitations or sweaty palms.it was only after we had that really bad flight from tenerife that i showed alot more anxiety about flying that the doctor increased them to 5mg.i donot start them a few days before only the day before i have 1,but on the day i take only the recomended dosage.which for me really works well. i still think about all those horrible things that can happen and sit listening to every noise on the flight.but i repeat it just calms me down.crying for 4hrs on a plane is not good for other passengers either.so i can cope with just the upset taking off and landing,i always feel so relieved on touchdown i wanna kiss the tarmac
.lol
just explain to the doctor your worries and fears without asking for diazapam.ive tried all those other remedies.never did a thing.im sure he will help you out.
best of luck sue,let me no how you go on.

cheers laingy

Hi Laingey, thank you so much for replying. I thought as 2mg was the lowest dose it probably wouldnt do much but it sounds from you like it may be enough for me. So do you feel drunk/light headed or anything on these things? I want to just feel normal without like you said the palpitations and panicking. Hope I dont get you into trouble discussing this! These doctors may know what they're talking about but its nice to talk to someone who has actually taken these things! I am about to pick up the prescription, so I will let you know how I get on. Thanks. x

sue everybody is different,but with me it just literally made me feel relaxed.however a friend of mine nees to take 10mg as the weaker strength does nothing for her.you dont feel drunk at all but as i said earlier everybody is different.
take care and have a good holiday

cheers laingy

Thanks Laingey, I think I will try one this evening then and let you know how I get on when I get back. Thanks so much for your help and advice. Sue.x

Sue,

Good luck, have pm'd you

Hobbsy, thanks very much.Sue.x

To everyone who has been so kind in helping me. I had a very bad day yesterday. 6.30am feeling positive, taxi due in minutes. Thanks. I'm off!!!!! Sue.x

hi everyone, im flying to america for the first time in 4 weeks, i always loved traveling, either by plane or car, but last year i went by myself to visit my sister in liverpool and there was very bad turbulance. I think everytime after that i've been so scared of flying and the fact that i flew by myself must have played a part. But its the fact that it takes bout 8 hours to fly to america which is ages and wat happened in september 11th. im tryin to take my mind off it but i cant help it. everyone tells me i shouldnt worry too much but its a bad habit

Hi Foxyie, I can totally understand how you are feeling. I've been terrified of flying for quite a few years now (though I don't fly regularly). I went to Florida back in April 2002, 7 months after 9/11. How I managed it I have no idea, but somehow I did and I'm sure you can too! As much as I am afraid, I don't want to miss out on trips abroad, because once I'm there it's great! I think you just have to take it one step at a time, try not to dwell on it too much leading up to the flight. Try looking on the web for sites which offer advice (as I have done - it helps). I travelled to Spain last year and we are going again in 3 weeks time, it wasn't as bad as I'd built it up to be (mind you, my daughter is only 3 and most of my time was spent keeping her occupied!). I start worrying about it months before I fly and I think by the time we go my imagination is just running riot! Try telling the flight attendants how you feel and I'm sure they can reassure you.
I hope you have a great time, and hopefully conquer your fears - even if just a little bit!!

you know that feeling you get when you take off....like your eyes are rolling into the top of your head??

anyone know how to stop that as i really dont like it.

maybes im being soft but any help would be appreciated.

thanks

I have been reading all Ross's reports hoping to understand why I am so frightened of flying. We head off to Cyprus in 10 days and am dreading the 5 hr flight. You nervous flyers out there will be like me, even reading this thread my stomach is turning and I feel my blood pressure must be up. I am also determined to fly. and do so quite often, once even as far as the far East! On one flight I took Valium, a good swig of Bachs Rescue Remedy, an asprin incase of DVT, and was airsick for the first time ever. Considering I should have put a couple of drops of the Remedy, no wonder I was sick I would like to ask Ross a question which I'd love to know the answer to. Since we hear so much about DVT on long flights, being asked to excercise our legs, and even wear flight socks, how come we never hear that pilots get this, though they are sitting for hours on end?

That's a very good question digby. I have always thought that this DVT which is caused by flying long haul is a load of rubbish and so do other pilots. People have been flying long haul since the sixties without any problems, it's only the last few years that all of a sudden it's dangerous to fly long haul because you'll get DVT.

It's scare mongering from the press and a few so called doctors and professors who want to make a name for themselves. I had seen one interview with some professor who was explaining why it is dangerous to fly long haul because of DVT and when the guy interviewing him asked why pilots don't seem to suffer from it he quickly decided to change the subject. A pilot will spend more time in the air in one year than a fare paying passenger will do in their whole life, yet we don't seem to suffer from it.

There was a report recently from a university stating that there is no link between flying and getting DVT.

The press love to blow things up out of proportion when it come to aviation, we pilots laugh when we hear reports of headlines like this "AIRCRAFT IN 100 FOOT DEATH DIVE PASSENGERS FEAR FOR THEIR LIVES" now a 100 feet in a aeroplane is nothing we don't even notice it up front but some passengers like to blow things up to the press and the press make it even worse just to make a event out of a non event. I have even read "TWO AIRCRAFT WITHIN 2000 FEET OF A COLLISION PASSENGERS COULD SEE THE FACES IN THE WINDOW OF THE OTHER PLANE" and we think ummm we fly within a 1000 feet of each other which is normal and as for passenger could see the faces of the other passengers then please give me what they are drinking.

Try to relax for your flight nothing is going to happen and try to avoid taking anything or to much dutch courage because you may have a reaction and end up getting off loaded. Try and think of it like this, we pilots do this every day weekin weekout without any problems, aircraft are so reliable these days most pilots will only ever see a problem in the simulator in their entire career. If it was dangerous to go don't worry the pilots will be the first in line to say "bugger that I'm not going".

Enjoy your holiday.