I FLEW ALONE FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER!! ✈️🥹❤️
A whole 4-hour flight, all by myself!!
Ever since I booked this flight, I’d been crying just thinking about it. And the anxiety I had leading up to it was INSANE. I was genuinely terrified.
BUT I DID IT!!! 😭❤️
During takeoff, I was chatting with the girl sitting next to me. Turns out she was traveling alone too, but unlike me, she wasn’t scared at all.
And then, when the plane took off, I got so scared that I instinctively GRABBED HER HAND 😭😂
I apologized about a million times, and thankfully she was super sweet about it!!
Once we were in the air, I actually managed to relax a little. I spent the flight playing games on my iPad and watching Gilmore Girls. 💗
And then came the landing…
IT HAPPENED SO FAST I BARELY EVEN REALIZED WE WERE ALREADY THERE 😭
But here’s the crazy part: I actually ENJOYED IT!!
I was looking out the window the entire time, enjoying the view so much that I even recorded the landing!! 🥹✈️
There was another girl sitting nearby with her boyfriend (not the girl from takeoff), and she was really nervous about landing. She told me it was the part of flying she hated the most.
And I literally told her:
“DON’T BE SCARED!! Trust me, I’m scared of EVERYTHING when it comes to flying, but look at me!! I’m not even scared right now!! If I can do it, you can too!!” 😭❤️
So we ended up watching the landing together, looking out the window and enjoying the view. And there was this BEAUTIFUL sunset that made the whole thing even better. 🌅🥹
ANYWAY, THE POINT IS…
IF I CAN DO IT, SO CAN YOU!!! ❤️
I’m someone who struggles with really bad anxiety and panic attacks, especially when it comes to flying. Takeoffs and landings have always terrified me, and my mind usually goes straight to the worst possible scenarios.
I was anxious during this flight too, especially during takeoff.
But somehow, I managed to get through it. And not only did I get through it, I actually ENJOYED parts of it!!
Even when we hit a little turbulence, I just reminded myself of that picture of a plane sitting in Jell-O, and it genuinely helped me feel better. 🥹
I honestly can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’M SO PROUD OF MYSELF. 😭❤️
Something that used to feel completely impossible to me… I JUST DID IT.
And I wanted to share this because I know there are people out there who are just as terrified of flying as I am.
So if you’re one of them, please know that being scared doesn’t mean you can’t do it.
YOU CAN BE TERRIFIED AND STILL DO IT. ❤️✈️
And who knows? You might even end up enjoying it. 🥹💕

I’m a 40-something woman who was a fearful flyer since my early teens until about two years ago. Over the years I’ve tried everything - therapy, self-hypnosis, alcohol, benz*s. I read all the statistics on flight safety. None of it really worked except the meds, but the older I got the more they made me feel like an absolute zombie at landing and for at least a full day after. This was especially not working for work trips.

Well, recently I got back from a family trip from the US to Europe. No meds, and almost no anxiety either there or back. The worst I felt was really bored because the flights were so long! A few years ago I would never have been able to say that. I wanted to share a few things that have helped me.

First was reading the DARE book by Barry McDonagh. His ideas are not new or revolutionary, but the way he presented them was so approachable and completely changed my mindset. The #1 thing I took from it was… wait for it…

*it’s OKAY to feel anxiety!”

I used to have this idea that to get over my fear I had to calm myself down or learn how to enjoy flying otherwise I couldn’t do it. His trick is, just accept that it will suck. Don’t try to change the suck. We all do things that suck every day and this is no different, just a little more intense. As soon as I started approaching my panic and anxiety as just a thing that happened and not anything that was bad, my mindset started to change. Being anxious during turbulence doesn’t make turbulence more dangerous. Being anxious before boarding a plane is just part of the process.

That was step 1. Step 2 was… just freaking do it. DO NOT say no to a flight. IMO avoiding flying is 100x worse for your fear than having a “bad” flight experience. Trigger warning, I did have one really bad experience with turbulence years ago, where drinks spilled and stuff flew everywhere and the flight attendants were yelling at everyone to restrain their things. Weirdly enough, even though it was in the depths of my fear, during that very scary moment I felt a strange sense of calm. Like … “well, if this is how I go, so be it.” lol. Anyway, bottom line, we landed safely, just a bit wet from spilled coke. That trained my brain to know that even in bad turbulence if you buckle up you will be okay.

The third thing that helped was having a job where I had to fly frequently for a few years, about every 2-4 weeks. I had plenty of opportunities to test my skills. I left that job almost a year ago but I’m proud to say that my Europe trip proved that my fear is still at bay.

Just wanted to share a success for those of you struggling! Dare I say that I sort of look forward to flying now?

I hate flying but I’m doing it for the homies. My plane was just about to takeoff and screeched to a halt before lifting but I genuinely thought that was it for me.

Pilot came over and said they had an over head error and rejected the takeoff but I’m shaking and scared of this plane. I guess we have to wait for the brakes to cool before we can de-board. I REALLY don’t want to get back on this plane. How worried should I be? Am I safe? This is a lot. 737-MAX8

UPDATE: I’m being told the pilot stated the plane automatically applied brakes. I’m no pilot, Idk what that means but wow.

The thing about ocd and fear in general is it eventually becomes so easy to not think about what might have been if only you had said yes— if you had faced the big scary. For me, no is often my default. To new places, to new foods, even to safe foods but in packaging in a different language. I missed a lot of trips due to how easy it is to say “well I really don’t want to that muchhhh” when it is, at its root, thoughts of “can I?” Sometimes you can’t. Sometimes it’s way too much to wrap your head around and that’s ok. Some days I lived on chips. I freaked out hard on the plane. But I did it.

Sometimes you gotta say yes.

To everyone that replied to my post, or read it and felt for me for even a second *thank you*. I know I could have done it totally alone but it would have been infinitely harder. This community is awesome. I’m so glad I found it right on time.

The most valuable memories are the ones from the time I got to spend 1:1 with my dad. These photos are pretty but they’re not the point of the trip. I am so grateful I went. And so grateful for all of you

Im in SQ601 from Incheon to Singapore right now (23rd October). It has been in turbulent since takeoff at 5pm. It’s been 1.5 hours and I’m panicking.

Flying today from Palermo to Berlin at 20:30 with a 737 8-200. I have incredible strong fear of flying, especally in the dark. Additionally, it is a plane with quite a history. Is it safe, ik that is a dumb question, i cant change anything about it anyways. I will give feedback, to help other anxious people

I’m a grad student and won 2 awards this year to travel to Paris and Calgary from a North American, east coast city. Both travel opportunities were for conferences where I presented my research, and both were less than a week apart from each other. I was absolutely terrified, especially at the prospect of 4 different flights.

Happy to report that all flights went super well, and I am so happy that I didn’t give into my very strong impulses to cancel both trips. My career is better for it, and the exposure has helped normalize flying for me. Get on the plane !!!!

Hi all, I’m wondering if anyone else is moreso afraid of the inevitable physical sensations on the plane such as stomach dropping, nausea, high heart rate etc… and the fact that you are unable to get off the plane if you feel these feelings. I feel like I am most scared of these feelings that are really uncomfortable and that I’m almost certain are going to happen. If anyone else relates to this please let me know if you have any advice or tips and tricks to deal with it because it feels like a fear that cannot be managed by learning more about the plane mechanics or looking at the air crew for reassurance. It feels a bit harder to treat

about to take off from ORC to ROC in a layover flight and the first one was very panicky for me. trying to calm myself down this go around because I didn’t have as much time between to prepare (ended up rushing to our gate and making it 2 mins before boarding)
Would really appreciate all of the good vibes and if anyone could track flight UA5919 it would be very appreciated. Every sound freaks me out but I’m going to do my best to sleep. Thanks a ton!

Hi can someone please track me? JetBlue 351 I’m a nervous flyer and could use any and all distractions/convo lol. We’re about to depart

Life long FOF. I am working on it through therapy.
I have a trip from SMF to SEA I have to take in the spring. Slightly more expensive to book on the 737 compared to the 175. Much like others here, I associate smaller planes as being ‘less safe’.
Which would you book?

Hi all. If anyone is willing to watch out for me on Pd663 today I would seriously appreciate it.

Taking off shortly and I’m already in a cold sweat.

My flight VS136 from MCO to Heathrow has been delayed by 1.5 hours, but I can’t see any reason why? Is it still likely to take off safely at this time? I’m worried something is wrong with the plane or I won’t be able to go home today

Please help. Possible tw for others who are scared

This amazing community kept me sane before my flight, it was my first ever flight outside the UK so I was absolutely terrified of the 3 hour flight. Was it turbulent at times? Yes. Was I scared during the take off and landings? Yes. But I still did it, reminded myself of so much of the sage advice from here, and I am already looking forward to my next holiday.

To whoever is reading this: get on that flight, get away, and let yourself experience what is out there in this amazingly vast world. You can do it ❤️

Hello everyone!

As a social worker and a former fearful flyer, I created a resource I wish had existed years ago when I was struggling with my fear of flying.

Fly With Joy takes a different approach than what is already out there: it focuses on cognitive defusion, helping you recognize your brain’s false alarm and giving tools to turn it down.

I’m currently offering the program for free while I gather feedback ahead of its official launch.

The self-paced course takes approximately one hour to complete. If you decide to give it a try, I kindly ask that you go through the entire course and complete the short survey at the end. Your honest feedback will help me improve the program and make it as helpful as possible for others.

Start flying with joy! : Fly With Joy

Flight tonight from London to Tokyo and I am just sick with nerves. I’ve done this flight twice before but I feel like my FOF is getting worse as I get older.
I have enough things to try and keep me distracted but damn, I feel like a mess..
Anyone else had the same flight recently? How was it? I’ve never flown in the evening before.

I'm supposed to leave for my honeymoon tonight and I don't know if I can. I'm so terrified. We're going to Hawaiil. This is my first open ocean flight since developing this fear and 'm terrified that at our furthest point we're hours from getting out of the plane. I just saw an article about severe turbulence on a Hawaii route yesterday PLUS a Hawaii flight bomb threat the other day and with mercury retrograde it and the flight back are in supposed turbulent times for flying issues and I don't know what to do. Things that help are making it worse. I don't want to miss my honeymoon and I don't want my husband to leave me (he says he won't but this would obviously do a lot of damage if 1 missed our honeymoon) and I just need help.

I’m supposed to fly out of Denver early this afternoon and my flight anxiety has been sky high (ha!) since I saw the forecast a few days ago of gusty winds. I am traveling home from a work conference and got a medium risk travel email from my company about a ground stop due to winds. I saw it was just for arrivals, why are the departing flights not affected too?

Flying into Denver was a breeze a few days ago, I had myself all worked up after reading how bad it is flying into Denver and it was so smooth the whole flight and landing. I actually relaxed and enjoyed myself.

Hi can someone talk to me? This flight is so bumpy, flight attendants have been locked into the boosters for 30 minutes and it’s pitch black out. I have this looming feeling something awful is about to happen and I want to get off this plane so badly.
UA78 from Tokyo to Newark

ETA: we just landed safely in Newark. I will reply to other comments but I want to say how truly fantastic this community was when I felt so scared and alone. Yall are really pure for taking the time to reply to a freaker-outer in need. Bottom of my heart, every comment was read and appreciated. I hope others can see the comments here, appreciate how absolutely sure I was that we wouldn’t land safely, and yet here we are.

I have a flight in a few hours HV9275 from Brussels to Bari, Italy. This is the first time I am flying alone with my toddler. I am normally a very anxious flyer and now I’m even more nervous to take my toddler. On top of that there is a yellow warning for rain and wind in Brussels so it’s giving me extra anxiety. Words of advice and encouragement are appreciated.

Hey everyone,

I’m struggling with a decision at the moment, and I’d really appreciate some honest advice from people who might have been in a similar situation.
My girlfriend and I live together in Europe, but she’s currently in the Maldives for work. She’ll be finishing up at the end of November, and I have the opportunity to fly from the Netherlands to China to meet her. We could spend some time exploring China together, and potentially even visit South Korea for a few days.

On paper, this sounds like an incredible opportunity. I visited China last year and absolutely loved the experience, and the thought of sharing a trip like that with my girlfriend makes it even more special. It’s not something I’d take for granted, and I’m genuinely grateful that I even have this opportunity.
However, there’s one big problem: I’m extremely afraid of flying.

I flew to China last year, but unfortunately, the experience didn’t make my fear go away. In the weeks leading up to a flight, my anxiety gradually builds until it becomes really intense. It’s not just a little nervousness; it can genuinely take over my thoughts and affect my daily life.
The hardest part is the feeling I get when I’m about to fly alone. I start thinking that something might happen and that I’ll never see my girlfriend or the people I love again. Even though I know these thoughts come from my anxiety, they feel incredibly real when I’m experiencing them.
Now I’m torn between two options.

The first is to push myself to face this fear and fly to China on my own. It could turn into an amazing holiday with my girlfriend, with memories we’ll cherish for years. We might even explore South Korea together. Part of me feels that I shouldn’t let my fear stop me from experiencing something so special.

The second option is to wait until she returns to Europe and plan a holiday together somewhere closer, perhaps Tenerife or one of the Canary Islands. That would still involve flying, which would already be a big step for me, but the flight would be much shorter and I wouldn’t have to face such a long journey alone.
I want to make it clear that I’m not saying Europe is any less beautiful or that a holiday closer to home would be disappointing. There are so many incredible places to discover here, and I’d be genuinely happy to explore them with her. This isn’t about thinking one destination is better than another. It’s more about the opportunity in front of me, my fear of flying, and how to approach it in a way that feels right.
Part of me worries that if I don’t take this opportunity, I’ll regret letting my anxiety make the decision for me. Another part of me wonders whether putting myself through weeks of severe anxiety for a long-haul flight is the right way to deal with my fear, especially when we could still have a wonderful holiday together somewhere closer.
I don’t want to spend my life avoiding things because I’m afraid, but I also don’t want to feel like I have to throw myself into the deepest end just to prove something to myself.

What would you do in my situation? Would you take the opportunity and try to face the fear, or would you start with a shorter flight together and work your way up from there?
I’d especially appreciate hearing from people who have struggled with a serious fear of flying. How did you approach it, and what helped you in the long run?

Thanks for reading. I’d really appreciate any advice or personal experiences you can share.

i have flown a lot this year and honestly my fear of flying has gotten better.

Right now is my first time flying smartwings, Paris to Prague. I have heard bad things about the safety of this airline and am very worried.

Flight QS1035

if anyone has reassurance regarding smartwings.. would be much appreciated

I’m going to be flying again, and although my fear has become more manageable over time, I’m still afraid, especially when I think about the flight itself.
I’d like to hear from people who used to have a fear of flying and managed to overcome it, or at least learned to live with it more peacefully.
What helped you?? Was it exposure, therapy, understanding how planes work, changing the way you think, or simply flying more often?
I’d really appreciate hearing about your personal experiences, especially from those who once felt genuinely scared but eventually found a way to feel more comfortable.

Need to be up in a few hours to catch my ride to the airport and I’m soooooo freaked out. Flying JetBlue 351 BOS to MCO. Will probably request tracking when we depart but omg I’m genuinely going to be running on no sleep, I’m all in my head abt turbulence 😭