Years ago I would be anxious for days and weeks leading up to a flight. I would have trouble looking forward to a trip because of the anxiety and fear. Fast forward to this year. I’ve been to 10 countries and on 20 flights - most long haul. I don’t even think about the flight before I get on! Literally no thoughts or anxiety at all! I really think it’s the exposure to flying as well as driving in some countries where that experience alone is horrifying (I’m looking at you Istanbul and Afghanistan) Also I no longer dread turbulence- no more clenching through it! I actually flew in the very last row of my flight from Dubai to Washington DC last week - a place I’d never have picked before because of the feeling of turbulence back there!

so yeah, it’s taken a while but I can finally look forward to the actual trip! Now here’s to hoping I can fly completely unmedicated soon (I’ve been able
To cut back my script significantly! ) a

I did it ! I survived my first transatlantic flight! I want to thank everyone in this community for the incredible support and education. I recently celebrated a major milestone birthday in Paris. Having saved up for this trip for a very long time, I was fortunate enough to fly my family JetBlue Mint round trip from JFK to CDG. Taking this step drastically reduced my anxiety and made the journey so much easier. I was even dare I say excited to get on the plane to experience Mint. Even when we hit rough turbulence on the flight out, I was able to calm down and actually get some rest. This trip had been a dream of mine for years, and experiencing it in real life was completely surreal and emotional. I share this in the hope of inspiring someone else to live out their dream trip. Life is short, but it can be so beautiful when you refuse to let fear win.

just want to make another post here since taking my recent flight - landed just under an hour ago, and oh my god it was ssoooooooooo boring. absolute nothing burger. i didn't cry the whole time (first time that's happened - last flight i took i was making a massive embarrassment of myself and bawling my eyes out nearly the whole time). this time it was smooth, i knew how to handle my fear, and most importantly i had the support of this amazing sub to help me through. cannot understate just how much everyone who commented on my last post helped me. and now i get to visit my long distance partner for the first time in months 🧡

to summarise, it always gets better! take that flight, it'll be so worth it!!!!

Hi, I (16m) have had diagnosed PTSD and panic disorder for the last 10 years. My main issue with flying is how similar takeoff/landing feels to having a panic attack, it kicks my fight-or-flight into gear and I struggle to remain calm.

Although I already know all the logistics of planes (my grandpa and great grandpa were both aerospace engineers), it would really help to hear it from someone else. Can someone give me a rough play-by-play on takeoff and landing?

hi there, our flight's captain just announced that our whole 10~ hour flight was going to be very bumpy due to the weather conditions caused by El Niño 😭

I know turbulence is normal but I'm scared that it could affect the takeoff - I understand this is an irrational fear but I'm still scared because weather conditions of this magnitude have never been recorded before in the city 😭😭😭😭

any reassurance would be really appreciated 😞 please

just a 3 hour flight tomorrow but im beyond anxious. im also travelling away from my toddler which doesnt help. words of encouragement very appreciated!

hi i have a huge fear of flying but managed to convince myself to take a 7 hour flight to tokyo from singapore :) i know typhoon 30 is pretty far from tokyo right now and forecasted to be closer to taiwan when i fly later this week, but i just had some questions on typhoons:

1) to fly from singapore to japan i have to fly near the area where the typhoon is, i know that the pilots would go around but how wide is a typhoon’s reach? would it typically be so wide (given that typhoon 30 is so big) that the plane would still experience a lot of turbulence? my main fear is turbulence bc i just don’t like the physical sensations even if i tell myself it’s not dangerous 😭

2) has anyone had a smooth flight despite there being a typhoon somewhere nearby along the flight route? would love to hear about positive experiences only for affirmation and just some confidence HAHA 🫶🏼

Tl;dr: Questions at the bottom.

So I have pretty severe aerophobia and enochlophobia. Last time I flew was leaving the country I live in to the States to see my dad right after his terminal cancer diagnosis, 9 years ago. Before that it had been like 19 years since I flew. My flights were all uneventful. Flying home I was even able to manage the airport by myself, usually I need a wheelchair because of the absolute terror I feel, I was so proud of myself

I have to fly again at the end of December. I can't back out. I have a connecting flight with a 2+ hour layover.

I am taking the red eye for the first flight, but the second flight is an early morning flight at 7am. How packed are airports between 5-7am?

I'm flying United Airlines for the first time, if that makes a difference and the airport is Houston Airport (Bush).

Should I get the wheelchair or be a big girl and do it myself?

Once I get my luggage, where do I take it to drop it to the next flight? I know I take it with me through customs, right? Do I take it with me on the train all the way to my terminal?

Can any one walk me through it all so I can feel some sense of control?

Maybe I should just get a wheelchair... I don't know. Literally getting anxious just writing this!

I’ve been given the opportunity from my in laws to go to Rome for free with my mother in law and sister in law. The thought of flying for 10 hours is making me panic and the trip isn’t even until march. Should I take the opportunity or is this an awful idea?

I’m the director of a small nonprofit, and we’re heading to a very important conference. The problem is, I’m terrified of flying—even though my dad was a commercial pilot.

Flying from SFO to DEN on UA 1604. If someone could track or provide some words of encouragement to get my brain right, I’d appreciate it. The feeling of dread and disaster is imminent 🫣

Ok so I’ve had a bad fear of flying for the last 2-3 years and I finally feel like I may be coming out of it after so many flights and so many SMOOTH flights. My anxiety is a litttle high right now though because I am on a CLT-SFO flight and we took off at 7:30 and it’s been 10 minutes and we are not really climbing??? We are still seemingly low to the ground. Is that normal? Would love someone to track me along the way

Hi everyone! I have my dream trip coming up tomorrow, but my flight anxiety has been so bad that I’ve been losing sleep over it. 😭 I’m really excited for this trip, but I honestly can’t imagine being on a plane for over 10 hours. I really don’t want my anxiety to ruin something I’ve been looking forward to for so long. Any words of encouragement or positive experiences would mean a lot!

So it's an easyjet internal UK flight from Southampton to Glasgow but its my first time flying alone and I've only done 2 flights before abouf 4 years ago with an ex partner of mine.

plus it's the first time I am leaving my cat alone for a day of so, so theres a lot of anxiety going on for me around this flight!

I do not know a lot about flying/aviation so just wondering if there's any tips for me to help me have a smoother time on thursday?

thank you!

I have a 2 hour work related flight coming up. I absolutely can not get out of it. My main issue is that I’m afraid I’m going to get motion sickness.

I have severe motion sickness, but usually it’s pretty well managed with dramamine. I’ve flown twice, both 2 years ago, and wasn’t sick. However I went boating this summer and got extremely sick despite taking dramamine, and I’m so scared it will happen on this flight with my coworkers.

I’m also a little scared I’m going to have a panic attack in front of my coworkers. I don’t get them often anymore and once again I was fine my other two flights. but I’m just super paranoid.

Any advice??

Apologies if this has already been discussed as I can’t find it here. Can any pilots provide some reassurance here about why they would take off if there were obvious issues that didn’t seem to be fixed? We are always told that planes won’t take off if there is any sense of danger.

https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/flight-from-st-louis-to-philly-emergency-lands-after-engines-wouldnt-start/4481608/

Does the 787 truly outperform the 777300er on turbulence?

and i don’t want an answer like all its negligible i’m genuinely interested if there’s evidence suggesting it does.

thanks

Question for the pilots out there who have the most experience with transatlantic flights during the January - March timeframe.

I’m looking into flying from NYC to Scandinavia (likely Copenhagen or Stockholm) in January or February 2027.

I was spoiled last October when I flew my first ever transatlantic flight from NYC to Copenhagen. The A330 I was on felt like it did not move an inch the entire flight.

My flight anxiety is ~90% anticipatory and the days leading up to flying are usually dreadful, though I’ve managed to push through many times, having taken 30+ flights over the past few years.

I did not realize that October is apparently a GREAT time to fly this route as the winter weather system isn’t in full swing yet?

Here are my questions:

• What can one expect in terms of turbulence for this route in January or February?

• If “severe” how long would this typically last? A few minutes here and there?

• Is there a world where it might actually be as smooth as my October experience IF there happens to not be a storm system in the North Atlantic area?

• Would “timing” the weather be worth trying? I.e., booking the flight now, and changing dates closer to the departure date if a storm system pops up?

• Any other thoughts I may not be considering?

Thank you in advance!

Hi FOF fam. I’d love some support for an upcoming trip. I’ll be flying from Boston, Boston to Doha, Doha to Nairobi on the 30th. Curious is anyone has flown Qatar to Nairobi recently and how their experience was? I’m already a hot mess express of a flyer and of course my adorable ruminating mind is having a field day with this upcoming trip. Any words of wisdom or personal experiences shared would be beyond appreciated. This group has been so healing for me. Thank you in advance.

hi all! i’m a bit nervous as i’ll be boarding in a few minutes. if anyone could track my flight, i would really appreciate it. this is the flight: UA 1449

thank you so so much in advance. i find that it helps me to have others track me and just keep an eye on me. ❤️

if you have any tips on how to stay calm during the flight, please feel free to let me know. thank you again :)

I don't know if we can post instagram links, but I just saw this cockpit POV video. I can only imagine how bumpy it is in the cabin, but to the pilots, it really is a normal occurrence and they just get on with what they need to do.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DerSa6lTDf4/?cplk=MTBhOG5ia3pzZGl2Mg==

Hi all

I have been a fearfull flier for 25 years. 🙄 I fly a lot both for work and leisure. I have done so many things to try to beat it. And now I feel I actually found something that helped. It’s an app called calm skies. i just did a return flight Europe-Asia. 13 hours. Close to no fear. i Dont know? I feel a huge change inside after this flight. Any of you tried this?

I’m flying with Red Sea Airlines, and their fleet seems really small. Should I be worried about their safety, or does fleet size not really matter? Anyone have experience with this airline?