Man with lifelong fear of flying reveals why Americans shouldn't worry as expert also weighs in
Nervous travelers have been worrying about taking to the air given recent airplane crashes in the news.
Even so, one man with aerophobia, or a fear of flying, believes there's nothing to be afraid of — and he's on a mission to help others address their concerns.
Brian Morris of Salt Lake City, Utah, created "Flight Deck: Fear Of Flying Flash Cards" to help anxious flyers calm themselves about takeoff procedures and the travel experience.
"In light of the recent flight incidents and accidents, I know firsthand how these events can evoke fear and uncertainty in many individuals," Morris told Fox News Digital.
Aerophobia affects more than 25 million Americans, according to Cleveland Clinic.
Morris said it's important to know that anxiety related to flying produces valid feelings, "especially when we're bombarded with videos and reports about aviation mishaps."
Aerophobia can be triggered by news stories about plane crashes, takeoff and landing, and turbulence, Cleveland Clinic also noted.
It's no wonder that searches on Google by Americans for the phrase "Is it safe to fly?" have been surging in February, as has been widely reported.
Michaela Renee Johnson, a commercial pilot and licensed psychotherapist, told Fox News Digital that fear is a natural reaction. (See the video at the top of this article.)
"A lot of people don't realize [fear is] actually incredibly natural, and it means that your body and brain [are] working exactly as intended," said Johnson, who is based in California, Alaska and elsewhere.
"It's not necessarily a bad thing to have these thoughts," she said. "But what happens is our reptilian existence kind of takes over, and we start to doubt everything we've known to be a relatively safe way to travel."
She said any sort of fear that people may experience is a "very rational place for the human mind to go."
"The way that we tackle fears in general is by assessing the risk, assessing the safety — and then deciding to do it anyway. [That's] really how we move through fear."
Morris, for his part, said he reminds himself "of the incredible safety record of commercial aviation. Statistically speaking, flying remains one of the safest modes of transportation" — a belief that helps him maintain "a sense of calm and rationality," he said.
"Educate yourself about the aviation industry … Knowledge is a powerful tool in combating fear."
"For nervous flyers, my advice is to educate yourself about the aviation industry and how airplanes operate. Knowledge is a powerful tool in combating fear," said Morris.
He said he encourages other nervous flyers to adopt practical techniques for managing their anxiety.
"Breathing exercises, mindfulness and visualization can be incredibly effective in calming the mind before and during a flight," he said.
He suggested imagining yourself arriving at your destination — and feeling accomplished and proud of conquering your fears.
"Surround yourself with supportive friends or family members who understand your journey; their encouragement can make a world of difference," Morris also said.
"Remember, fear is natural, but it shouldn't hold you back from experiencing the world. Stay informed, stay calm, and keep flying."
He added that "sharing your experiences and hearing others' journeys can be incredibly comforting and reassuring."
While her own experiences in the air don't directly compare to the recent disasters, Johnson said she's found herself in the midst of two in-flight emergencies over the years.
So she understands the hesitancy people may have after seeing certain aviation emergencies unfold — yet said there's hope and a way to get through fear.
"I've been in two in-flight, uncomfortable situations myself, and it was really hard to get back in the cockpit and push through all of those kinds of rational thoughts [about] protecting yourself from further harm," she said.
"I would say it's going to take some time … [Healing] is a process and it's not necessarily linear."
Johnson said she finds the aviation community to be a place of positivity and support — one filled with people who lift one another up physically and literally "with their wings."
"You should have a lot of faith in the people that are operating these aircraft," said Johnson, "because they really are backed by an incredible support team and they want to make it home, too … Their mission is to get every single one of you home safe."
Regarding the latest unfortunate incidents, Johnson said she doesn't think it's one specific thing that's responsible — but a combination of things that require the attention of the FAA.
In the end, she's hoping people are able to work through and assess their fears about flying — and move those fears into the "co-pilot seat" so that such feelings aren't navigating any decisions.
"I really believe this is going to shake up the aviation industry in a very fascinating way," Johnson added.
"I'm very hopeful that people continue to enjoy the gift of aviation because it really is amazing, spectacular and wonderful," she said.
"And I just hope that it doesn't discourage too many people from taking to the skies."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
11 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Healthcare companies chase cures and capital in South Florida
Leaders of hundreds of public healthcare companies are in South Florida this week, talking up their innovations and financial performances to attract and impress investors at the Goldman Sachs Global Healthcare Conference. Consumers will find that nearly every disease or ailment they suffer from has a treatment in development, as big and small companies see opportunities in Americans' desire to live longer and pain-free. From new devices for sleep apnea to drugs for cancer, to creams for chronic itching and drops for improved eyesight, advances are underway that hold promise. Presenters like LENZ Therapeutics wowed the audience on Monday with product updates, such as an eyedrop that lasts all day and allows for close-up vision, which most people use reader glasses to achieve. The eye drops target a market of over 128 million people in the U.S. who need help with near vision. This year, new factors are affecting how quickly consumers can obtain a drug or device to improve or save their lives, according to company executives. The uncertainty in Washington, D.C., looms large. Policy turbulence, regulatory uncertainty, shakeups at health agencies and President Donald Trump's aggressive stance on drug pricing and tariffs factor into the future for the devices and treatments working their way toward the marketplace. Anti-Trump protests will unfold across South Florida this weekend. Here's what to expect Top RFK Jr. aide attacks US health system while running company that promotes wellness alternatives Hidden charges? Patients often face massive bills when Florida hospitals don't provide costs upfront Native Americans hurt by federal health cuts, despite RFK Jr.'s promises of protection Georgia's experience raises red flags for Medicaid work requirement moving through Congress 'This year, the biggest questions we are opening with for all of our companies is the policy calculus in Washington, D.C., and how that could play out across the healthcare sector,' said Asad Haider, Goldman Sachs' head of the healthcare business unit within Global Investment Research and the lead analyst for the U.S. pharmaceuticals sector. 'The starting point in all these presentations is give us the landscape on where things could go with respect to what's going on in Washington, D.C.' Over 200 top managerial teams attended the conference, representing every corner of the healthcare field, from major pharmaceutical companies to small biotech firms. The goal of the three-day conference was to provide institutional investors with insights into companies' business plans, data, and progress, particularly at a strategic mid-year point. Innovation hotspots this year include treatments for weight loss, with a focus on oral drugs replacing injectables and medications to help maintain a healthy weight. Another is oncology, immunology, and neuroscience with breakthroughs to detect diseases earlier and find new drug delivery methods. Several companies at the conference have formed partnerships with companies across the globe to access new markets, technologies, and expertise. China is emerging as a global leader in biotechnology, with numerous U.S. and European companies collaborating with or licensing technologies from Chinese companies. Summit Therapeutics, a Miami-based company, drew interest at the conference with its innovative cancer-fighting, bispecific antibody, ivonescimab, and its partnership with a Chinese laboratory. Ivonescimab has shown promise in previous trials in China and additional trials are underway combining the drug with chemotherapy to target non-small-cell lung cancer. 'We have over 22 or 23 different trials going on or completed or going to start,' said Maky Zangaheh, co-CEO of Summit Therapeutics. 'One element of that is a phase 3 trial that China and us are combining with over 3,000 patients enrolled, so we will have a good safety profile and efficacy profile in many different therapeutic areas. From a commercialization point of view, we are already in China and have two Chinese approvals, which is significant progress.' Doron Junger, of Sanvia Capital, a South Florida biotech investment firm, said he attended the conference looking to invest in companies developing innovations that could address large or niche markets in a more meaningful way. A few have caught his attention; however, he is cautious about those who tout therapies in their pipelines. 'More drug trials fail than succeed, and while there is a lot of innovation in this industry in areas of need like oncology and chronic diseases, even at a late stage, there is potential for a clinical trial to fail to show an advantage over a placebo group,' he said. 'Even if it does, that trial has to pass muster with the rigorous standards the FDA sets for approval.' On Monday, Arcturus Therapeutics of San Diego presented an update on a daily inhaled treatment for Cystic Fibrosis, which could be a breakthrough for the disease. Additionally, BioAge Labs CEO Kristen Fortney explained how her California company uses samples from a repository to study the biology of human aging and develop new therapies for obesity. Even after scrapping its lead obesity candidate due to liver toxicity, BioAge Labs is not shying away from the weight loss space and believes it can improve upon oral therapies now on the market, she said. 'More and more people are aging, and by definition, they are using more healthcare,' said Haider of Goldman Sachs. 'The aging population is going to need new drugs, better drugs, faster drugs for diabetes and cardiometabolics and oncology and all of these diseases that potentially could kill you. There will be innovation, but what are we willing to pay for that innovation?' Will regulations make it more difficult and/or costly for people to access the devices and drugs that can save their lives? Haider said drug pricing will be a key concern for both consumers and investors. 'Everyone is chasing big caps, big targets, but there will be winners and losers.' South Florida Sun Sentinel health reporter Cindy Goodman can be reached at cgoodman@
Yahoo
13 minutes ago
- Yahoo
One year without RECA: Justice delayed for radiation victims in Idaho and beyond
Craters across the Frenchman Flats in Nevada dot the landscape where the U.S. government tested hundreds of nuclear weapons. Under a proposed expansion of the Radiation Compensation Exposure Act, anyone in states like Utah or Idaho diagnosed with certain cancers caused by nuclear testing would have been eligible for compensation. But the expansion was cut from Congress' defense spending bill, and the protections in the act were allowed to expire. () June 10 marks one year since the U.S. Congress allowed the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, or RECA, to expire — abandoning thousands of Americans who sacrificed their health in the name of national security. RECA provided critical compensation for medical expenses to uranium miners, mill workers, and 'downwinders' exposed to radiation during Cold War-era nuclear testing and weapons development. But even when it was active, RECA was incomplete, excluding entire communities — including Idahoans — who suffered the same devastating consequences. From 1945 to 1992, the U.S. government detonated over a thousand nuclear weapons, scattering radioactive fallout across the West. America's nuclear 'downwinders' deserve justice While RECA compensated some downwinders in Nevada, Utah, and Arizona, Idahoans — who endured the same invisible poison — were left out. Uranium miners employed after 1971 and St. Louis communities used as dumping grounds for Manhattan Project Waste were also excluded from RECA compensation. The consequences have been deadly. Research shows that radiation exposure leads to cancers, heart disease, genetic mutations, and immune disorders —with women and children at greatest risk. Yet for decades, the government dismissed these victims as collateral damage, treating rural Westerners and Indigenous communities as expendable. Atomic Energy Commission documents revealed the attitude of the officials making decisions, that we were just a bunch of cowboys, Indians, and Mormons, and a 'low-use segment' of the population. Western states were deemed 'low-population,' as if rural lives mattered less. The Marshall Islands, subjected to 67 nuclear tests, were treated as a sacrifice zone, and officials justified this; they are 'more like us than the mice' is the quote from an Atomic Energy Commission official in 1956. Dismissing Nevada Test Site downwinders and other nuclear weapons test victims as insignificant reflects a brutal truth: the U.S. government calculated whose life had worth and whose did not. But cancer doesn't discriminate. Families in Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, New Mexico, and beyond have watched generations suffer from rare leukemias, thyroid diseases, brain cancers, and clusters of tumors. Many never knew their illnesses were tied to nuclear testing — until it was too late. RECA should be reinstated and expanded to cover all radiation victims, including people like: Idaho downwinders Post-1971 uranium workers Other communities excluded from fallout zones Congress has a choice: pass RECA in the next must-pass Big, Beautiful, Bill, or continue to let victims die waiting. This isn't just about compensation — it's about admitting the full cost of America's nuclear legacy and justice for victims. Our representatives in Congress will make better decisions if they hear from residents about how expansion of RECA would affect them. Research your family history — were there unexplained cancers, thyroid conditions, or stillbirths? Radiation's effects linger for generations. Speak up — this isn't ancient history. Every day RECA lapses, more people suffer. We can't allow our government to wait for people to die. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
13 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Your favorite alcoholic beverage could be linked to deadly form of cancer, study finds
Following the surgeon general's January advisory linking alcohol consumption to seven types of cancer, a new study from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has revealed another possible risk. The research, recently published in the journal PLOS Medicine, classified alcohol as a carcinogen, highlighting a particular increased risk of pancreatic cancer. The surgeon general's previous advisory named cancers of the breast (in women), colorectum, esophagus, voice box, liver, mouth and throat. Psychedelics As Potential Mental Health Treatment Are Explored By Trump Administration The researchers associated the pancreatic cancer risk with beer and spirits/liquor, but not with the intake of wine. "Alcohol consumption is a known carcinogen, but until now, the evidence linking it specifically to pancreatic cancer has been considered inconclusive," said senior study author Dr. Pietro Ferrari, head of the IARC Nutrition and Metabolism Branch, in a press release. Read On The Fox News App "Our findings provide new evidence that pancreatic cancer may be another cancer type associated with alcohol consumption, a connection that has been underestimated until now." For the study, researchers recruited 2.5 million participants with a median age of 57, following them for about 16 years. Fda Approves First Ai Tool To Predict Breast Cancer Risk Out of the group, 10,067 cases of pancreatic cancer were recorded. Each increase of 10 grams of ethanol per day in alcohol consumption was associated with a 3% increase in the risk of pancreatic cancer, the study found. Women who consumed 15 to 30 grams of alcohol (about one to two standard drinks) per day had a 12% increase in pancreatic cancer risk. Men who consumed 30 to 60 grams (two to six standard drinks) per day had a 15% increased risk of pancreatic cancer, and intake of over 60 grams per day was associated with a 36% greater risk. The research did have some limitations. "This observational study examined alcohol intake evaluated at a single time point during mid-to-late adulthood and included a limited number of Asian cohorts," the researchers wrote. "Further research is needed to better understand the role of lifetime alcohol consumption — for example, during early adulthood — and the influence of specific consumption patterns, such as binge-drinking." Dr. Adam Scioli, an addiction psychiatrist at Caron Treatment Centers in Pennsylvania, previously commented to Fox News Digital that "alcohol is a toxin." "There have been reports for years that it could be beneficial for one's health — but we know now that alcohol ingestion is one of the modifiable risk factors for cancer," Scioli, who is not affiliated with IARC, told Fox News Digital. Click Here To Sign Up For Our Health Newsletter Dr. Marc Siegel, senior medical analyst for Fox News, was not involved in the study but spoke with Fox News Digital about the findings. "This is in keeping with alcohol as a toxin that directly inflames and damages pancreatic cells," he said. Around 75,000 Americans each year are diagnosed with a cancer that is in some way linked to alcohol use, according to Scioli. Dr. Neha Pathak, WebMD's chief physician editor of health and lifestyle medicine, noted that the study highlights a new, independent risk factor for pancreatic cancer. "What's important to know is that there really isn't a safe level of drinking when it comes to cancer risk," Atlanta-based Pathak, who also did not participate in the research, told Fox News Digital. For more Health articles, visit "This study reinforces that message — but it also shows how complex these links are, and how we need to keep digging deeper into the role of alcohol and different drinking habits in cancer development," she added. Fox News Digital reached out to several beverage industry associations requesting comment. Melissa Rudy of Fox News Digital contributed to this article source: Your favorite alcoholic beverage could be linked to deadly form of cancer, study finds
