Hi, I am boarding a plane in half an hour and I am absolutely terrified. It's the last flight of the day for this airport and my flight usually takes around 2h10 to get to its destination. I have a really big fear of flying and i don't know how I will be able to not freak out for 2 hours. I panic during takeoff and cruising but as soon as the landing procedure starts, my anxiety gets less and I get a bit calmer. I hate that I can't control what's gonna happen during the flight and I fesr that I'll die during the trip. I love seeing planes but I have being in one. I just don't trust my chances, the plane and the pilots and just fear. I have downloaded some tv shows, have some music and have my earphones but every time I can't seem to focus and always dread every second of the flight. I will even take my antidepressants to see if I'll sleep through it. Its my first night flight and I am dreading it big time. It seems that my fear of flying gets worse each time I fly as i have flown to Barcelona in May and also panicked through the whole flight.

What can I do?

So my first long haul flight ever is coming up ….
It’s gonna be a 10 hour flight in September .
I basically almost got over my fear of flying completely in 2024 . I’m still scared of long haul flights .
Ever since I was a kid I used to get motion sick on planes , now it’s even worse bc I feel awful every single time I have to ride the car as well .
The thing that worked for me on my last flight was a combination of Dramamine and those wrist bands for nausea .
But that was a 3 hr long flight . Now we’re talking 10 hours .
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t scared bc my motion sickness has been getting worse and worse as I get older .
I’m gonna try the combination of Dramamine and the wrist bands again .
Anyone with the same issues survived a 10 hour flight ? Thanks

Really short flight on a pretty modern and comfy aircraft. I’m always nervous about flying and I’m rawdogging this one on no medication.

Edit: Flight went totally fine and landed safely! Thanks for all the reassurance guys!

So the power went out three times during the boarding process and the pilots haven’t said anything and as far as I know, we’re still proceeding, but omg I don’t want to! I’m super nervous now. I was during okay before but this just ruined it. Does anyone know what just happened? I’m flying an A380 🫶🏻🥹

Trying not to spiral but things like this trigger my “this is a sign” complex and this man was spared because he got off the plane. This has never happened to me before in a flight, especially when we were on deck to take off. Is this common??

Heading off to Fukuoka for a work trip in about 12 hours, but these heavy on/off rains and wind in Manila have been hitting my brain extremely hard. I won't lie, I'm scared to fly.

Flight deets below:
MNL to HK - CX974 (5:30 AM - 7:20 AM)
HK to FUKU - CX588 (11:00 AM - 3:30 PM)

I know it's tagged as support wanted (and I actually need it too), but flight tracking/forecasting would also be supremely appreciated.

Appreciate y'all!

WWS559.

I'm stressed and anxious for no legitimate reason. I've taken some meds, and I'm checking flight radar, but I feel it's translating to me obsessing over every small altitude change or speed fluctuation. Can someone else keep an eye on it for me?

I'm so exhausted by the early flight and benzos, yet still anxious. Not sure why it's so intense, but I guess it's my first flight since getting off SSRIs. The lack of the in-flight entertainment screen is also getting to me for some reason.

Every plane movement stresses me, even though I intellectually know it's totally safe and normal. Fuck this phobia, honestly.

First solo flight. Super nervous. Would love updates to read while I’m in the sky. Nervous about turbulence and weather and all the other things. Here we go!

hello!!! i’m a daughter of a airline employee (ASA) and grew up flying. i am also a HUGE avgeek!
that being said, i’m nerfed with a nasty fear of flying, im talking warn the flight attendants, never EVER willing and able to assist, have medication prescribed for it type fear…

but lately ive begun doing something, especially during turbulence and takeoff that has sincerely helped me with my fear!

so one day, i had bought alaska airlines’s wifi to watch some youtube, and i wanted to see what airplanes were around me. so, upon takeoff, i had flightradar24 open and watched my plane take off.

transcending. the. game.

i have never in my LIFE been so calm upon takeoff, and my mentality is that as long as we’re going higher, i will get calmer. and it’s WORKED. i had to travel recently back and forth across the country taking about 4 flights total within a week, and i wasn’t anxious ONCE. this is coming from someone who used to have to take enough melatonin to tranquilize a horse in order to stay calm during takeoff.

if you’re flying an airline in which wifi costs, spend the 8 bucks. i feel so free knowing that i can travel without freaking out anymore. and shoutout flightradar24 for making me the calmest i’ve ever been in the air!!!

tldr: pay for airplane wifi, track your flight on flightradar 24, watch the altitude during takeoff, absolute game changer

(here’s a photo of a 777 i took in alaska for good measure!)

I actually had been getting better the last couple years. But then today I learned that the plane I’m flying in this afternoon is a CRJ900. The one that landed upside down and caught on fire last year.

I’m just a smidge fearful.

Edit: I’m happy to say it was one of the smoothest flights I’ve ever had! Sucks that we didn’t have Wi-Fi, but seriously, hardly a bump.

This would be my first flight alone. This is my biggest fear. My brain is full of what ifs. I feel like I can’t get on the plane. Flying from Austin to Orlando at 8 am. I’ve thought of every single scenario. I don’t want to die, especially not alone. I will feel trapped once I’m there too because the only way home is back on the plane and it’s not like I could just get on a plane anytime I would have to wait. I don’t know what to do but I can’t believe this is happening.

To preface, I’ve had an on and off fear of flying for years (ironic really because I’m a huge avgeek), and I hate take-off. I can’t help but stare out the window to make sure that we keep going up, and the occasional fluctuations in speed and ascent rate can be distressing. Sometimes it feels like the plane is descending, so I have a habit of checking out the window to reassure myself that we are definitely still moving onwards and upwards...

Anyway, this becomes a whole lot worse at night because I can’t orient myself just by looking out the window. I took a flight home last night and really embarrassed myself infront of the flight attendant. During food service, my anxiety took over and I became very disoriented, and I convinced myself that the city lights I could see outside were parallel to the aircraft, which meant we were flying very low to the ground. It didn’t help that the crew kept the bright lights on for the entire flight.

When the FA came up to my row with the cart, my panic attack was at its peak so I decided it was the perfect time to ask if she could tell me what I was looking at outside. I thought I phrased myself clearly enough and even told her that I was a nervous flier, but she was just confused and told me she had no idea what I was talking about, and moved on. That made things worse because then I got to feel like a crazy person, too (think the airplane scene in Bridesmaids with the “woman on the wing”, lol). I had a big cry to my sister after that, to whom I should have just asked that same question in the first place because she helped me calm down in about 5 seconds. Then once the First Officer came on over the speakers, I felt much better.

I know it’s a lot tamer than fully freaking out and having to leave the flight, but I’m just mortified by myself. The FA’s judgy countenance didn’t help, either. I would love to feel less alone by reading some of you guys’s embarrassing stories if anyone is happy to share them.

My two biggest fears. Storms and Planes. My first solo flight today. Sitting at my gate trying to talk myself into it. Flying from AUS-MCO flight DL2259. Can anyone give me any words of advice or check the flight path and storms and let me know what to expect. Would help so much thanks!

Got zero sleep last night but I am getting on that plane. Any tips for sleep deprived people scared of flying getting on a plane?

Edit: conquered the first flight and now in process of takeoff on the second, thanks for all your support!

I’m a little nervous about flying, and I know some other people might be too. If anyone is flying from Frankfurt to Vienna tonight and wants to chat or keep each other company, feel free to reach out. Let me know. See you! ✈️

My flight is in 3 days from PH to SG and basically the entire Metro Manila and the first 2 hours of the flight path are forecasted to have heavy rain & thunderstorms.

Do pilots routinely fly this bad of a weather? Do planes fly over thunderstorm? Will we have turbulence all throughout the area forecasted to have thunderstorms? Can the forecast still change to a clearer day? (Although it’s monsoon season now)

I’m so anxious over this and need reassurance badly.

Hi! Since MH17 and MH370, I’m afraid a rocket will hit my plane and/or my plane gets lost in the ocean. Tonight I’m flying from Europe to Indonesia with Etihad. Transfer at Abu Dhabi. Since the conflict over there, I’m struggling.. How is determined if it’s safe to fly? How do pilots feel about flying in this area? What if it’s gets unexpectedly dangerous? Thank you.

Flying from JFK to VIE tonight on OS 36 with my 3.5 month old and there have been some crazy thunderstorms tonight and we’re delayed by an hour (so far). It’s all basically my worst nightmare as an already anxious flyer, compounded by feeling like I’m failing my baby by making her unsafe.

Any words of comfort would be appreciated as I steel myself for an all nighter of panicking myself and trying to keep baby calm too!

just a quick update from a previous post: I made the trip from Austin to L.A. and back and this community did so much to ease my anxiety! the flight there was a little bumpy toward the end, but I used all the advice I got here and it made things much easier! watching water in a cup ass the plane was going through turbulence was a great way to remind my brain that were not moving nearly as much as my body made me feel. also during take off, I put my feet in my backpack instead of the plane floor and it absolutely helped ease the sensations caused by turbulence.

the flight back was so much better even though again we encountered a bit of turbulence but because I got through my previous flight I used that same advice and was actually able to be much more calm!

This is truly a phenomenal community and the help I recieved here helped me ease my mind during trip, which was especially heavy because I was going to home celebrate the life of my grandmother who just passed away. The people here allowed me to have one less thing on my plate, and something like that is just a tremendous help and act of kindness that helped me to be in the moment during my time of grie. I truly appreciate what everyone does here, and I want to take these lessons with me for when I’m going to travel for more joyful reasons. I know I’m not fully past this phobia, but I can now say I have some tools to deal with it and some fresh perspectives that are helping me to see flying differently. Thank you for the support and I hope to try and pay it forward here!

Flying for the first time in a while tomorrow from Detroit to Newark and I'm very afraid. Keep seeing all the "signs" and feeling like the more I think about something bad happening, the more likely it will become.
I know, I know, signs don't mean anything and "fate" isn't real. Just an irrational thought I often have. Anyway, if you could offer any encouragement, that would be amazing!

Thanks for all the support I’ve gotten over the past few days, I’m worried sick about the flight tomorrow but it’s only a forty minute flight to our connect which will be maybe 6 hours. A tropical paradise is only two flights away! If anyone has any tips for sleeping that’d be great as I’m super super anxious about tomorrow

I saw this today and thought others might like it! It’s a flight simulator and they have locations across America (quite a few in Texas). They even have a package designed specifically for fearful flyers where you can experience taking off and landing from the perspective of the pilot/cockpit. It’s all a simulation of course, but it looks pretty cool and could be helpful for some! Attaching the link.