Latest news with #fearofflying
News.com.au
a day ago
- Health
- News.com.au
Jetstar pilot's unexpected second job
Sean Wallace has been a Jetstar pilot since the airline launched 22 years ago – so if there's anyone in a position to help people overcome their fear of flying, it's him. The 53-year-old from Sydney has spent the last 15 years doing something not many would expect. When he's not in the air, he's helping nervous flyers conquer their fears including his long-time friend Sue Partland who took her first flight to Vietnam last week with Sean surprising her as captain. 'I was just so proud to see her travelling and enjoying the world with her family,' Mr Wallace told 'It took a long time to get her to this point. She started to fly 12 years ago but it's been very spasmodic. She flew to Bali just after Covid but still needed a lot of help with that flight.' However, for her most recent flight from Sydney to Ho Chi Minh, Sue was able to rely on the techniques she learned through Mr Wallace, who helps run the 'Flight Without Fear' course at the Royal Newcastle Aero Club. 'She had a good run. She told me she didn't get extra coaching before the flight and did it solo using the techniques we've been working on over the years such as breathing and visualisation.' He said the 'water-bottle' visualisation technique is one many nervous flyers often use that helps. 'You buy a bottle of water at the airport, take a few sips out of it and if anything makes you stressed or anxious during your time at the airport or on the plane – you just focus all of the bad energies or bad experiences into the water,' he explained. 'The water holds all the bad stuff and once you get to your destination you pour all the water out and say 'that's done'. 'Pouring it out is symbolic of the end of flight and getting rid of the bad energies.' Mr Wallace surprised Sue at her hotel in Ho Chin Min city after coordinating with the chief operating officer to captain her flight from Vietnam back home to Sydney. Video of their encounter shows just how thrilled Sue was to see him. Mr Wallace said he's helped over a 150 nervous flyers get in the air, something he takes great pride in. 'I used to have a part-time office job as a pilot manager in Newcastle and every other week there would be an approach from Newcastle Airport about someone who has issues with flying and just wants to talk to a pilot,' Mr Wallace told 'The Royal Newcastle Aero Club then approached me about being part of the 'Flight Without Fear' course.' The eight-week course is specifically designed to help nervous flyers conquer their fears. It combines psychological strategies with aviation education and practical experience such as dummy boarding. Expert pilots like Mr Wallace are involved along with cabin crew, aircraft engineers and psychologists. 'Over the course participants would get a presentation on all aspects of the operation. They have one-on-one time with a mentor, and also got time with a psychologist. We all donated our time and at the end of the eight weeks, they'd catch a flight out of Newcastle to Brisbane and catch a flight back and graduate.' He said the first day is an introduction to meet a pilot then they move on to learn how planes fly, the basics of flight theory, aircraft types including their reliability and safety of flights. Participants also learn the role of cabin crew such as in-flight safety, before learning certain techniques with the help of psychologists. Mr Wallace said a lot of the time it comes down to gaining an understanding of aviation and the systems. 'Once they have an understanding, although the anxiety is still there, we've empowered them with the mechanisms that allow them to fly and then hopefully experience the world – and that's the main thing.'
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Anxious Wife Won't Join Husband and Daughter on Family Vacation. He Plans to Take Their Daughter Without Her
When a rare, all-expenses-paid trip to Hawaii comes up, a father decides to take his daughter with or without his wife NEED TO KNOW A man plans to take his daughter to Hawaii without his wife due to her intense fear of flying His wife says being separated from their daughter for that long worsens her anxiety The father believes it's a once-in-a-lifetime chance and is prioritizing his daughter's experience A man turns to the Reddit community for advice following a tense disagreement with his wife about an upcoming family trip to Hawaii. The post, titled 'AITAH for telling my wife my daughter and I are going on vacation with or without her,' reveals a deeply emotional conflict that has left the poster torn between his wife's mental health struggles and his daughter's chance to make lasting memories. 'I (45m) and my wife (40f) (married 15 years) have not had a great relationship with my family,' he shares, explaining the backdrop to a rare opportunity that recently came their way. A family trip to Hawaii, with airfare and lodging completely covered, is on the table — leaving them only responsible for food, activities and transportation. The couple's 6-year-old daughter, who will be 7 by the time of the trip, is particularly excited. 'She loves everybody, and especially one of the cousins that would be going on the trip,' he writes. But despite initially agreeing to join, his wife's fear of flying has become overwhelming. 'A week after saying she would go [she] started having panic attacks and crying fits because she 'cannot do this long of a flight,' ' he reveals. Understanding her struggle, he tells her it's okay not to go — but he and their daughter still plan to. 'I tell her that is fine, however, our daughter and I are going because this is my last opportunity to go and may be our daughter's only chance,' he explains. His wife is not okay with that decision, expressing distress over being separated from their daughter. 'Wife says she cannot go that long without our daughter which causes her more anxiety,' he adds. Trying to find a solution, he suggests she speak to a doctor about temporary medication to manage the anxiety. 'I suggested going to the doctor to ask for medication to help with the flight when it happens (March),' he shares. 'But she is suffering now,' and when he mentions asking for medication in the short term, she pushes back. 'She says that she would then have anxiety about the withdrawal symptoms of coming off those medications after the trip,' he writes, highlighting the layers of fear she's experiencing. Caught in the middle, the husband makes what he calls the only firm decision he's made like this in their relationship. 'This is really the only time I have made a decision like this and was unwilling to move off of it,' he says. His heart breaks for his wife, but his mind is focused on what he believes is best for their child. 'I feel horrible for my wife but I also believe it's best for my daughter,' he shares, clearly struggling with guilt. The Reddit community quickly responds with sympathy and support for his dilemma, with one commenter writing, 'NTA. Her anxiety is a real issue, but it's not fair for her to hold your daughter back from a once-in-a-lifetime experience.' Another user adds a more measured take, validating the wife's emotional state but pushing for solutions. 'Your wife's anxiety is valid but she's had plenty of time to address it before the trip in March,' the commenter notes. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Offering a practical suggestion, the same user says, 'Maybe suggest your wife talk to a therapist who specializes in flight anxiety rather than just medication?' They point out that therapy can often offer targeted techniques that may help. Above all, both commenters agree that the daughter shouldn't miss out because her mother refuses help. 'Don't let your daughter miss out on memories she could cherish forever just because your wife refuses to get help for her anxiety,' one writes. The husband ends his post on a note of concern, still hoping his wife may decide to join them. 'Should I keep the tickets hoping she will go with us and if she doesn't go keep in contact with her via FaceTime and pictures?' he asks. Read the original article on People Solve the daily Crossword
The National
28-07-2025
- Health
- The National
Overcoming fear of flying: How hypnosis, CBT, talk therapy and breathing techniques work
Living in the UAE is synonymous with taking a lot of flights. Whether travelling to visit friends and family or jetting off to foreign climes for a holiday, figures from a 2021 World Bank study placed the UAE 16th out of 177 countries for the number of passengers transported by airlines registered in the respective country. While planning trips and travelling abroad has many benefits, for those who suffer from a fear of flying, the idea of jetting off is not joyful, but filled with anxiety and stress and can even trigger panic attacks. 'The fear of flying is known as aviophobia or aerophobia,' says Christi Gadd, psychologist at Thrive Wellbeing Centre. 'In clinical terms, aviophobia falls under the diagnosis of a 'specific phobia'. For some, fear of flying is a discrete, situational phobia without broader psychological complications. This may involve fear of turbulence, crashing, or losing control during a flight, and may be triggered by a past traumatic experience while flying, vicarious learning such as hearing about an aviation disaster, or classical conditioning related to safety and danger.' For those suffering from aviophobia, there are various options available that can help alleviate stress around flying – from medical intervention to hypnotherapy and breathwork. Cognitive behavioural therapy and medication Depending on the severity of the symptoms, doctors may prescribe medication to tackle anxiety. Experts suggest looking at the underlying causes of the fear with a cognitive approach first. 'I've encountered numerous patients with a heightened fear of flying,' says Dr Munaz Ahamed, general practitioner at Aster Clinic, Tecom. 'From a medical perspective, addressing a fear of flying can be approached through a combination of psychological and behavioural strategies. Cognitive behavioural therapy is often highly effective in helping individuals to understand and change the thought patterns contributing to fear. Exposure therapy, a component of CBT, can gradually desensitise individuals to flying by gently exposing the individuals to flight-related situations.' Managing short-term stress around flying may necessitate anti-anxiety medicine. Melatonin is another popular option as it is a natural hormone that regulates sleep and may work to lessen stressful feelings. 'Anti-anxiety medications like controlled medicines are highly effective for flight anxiety and advised for situational use before flying,' says Dr Salman Kareem, specialist psychiatrist, Aster Royal Clinic, Downtown & Aster Clinic, JLT. 'The medication, however, depends on individual factors including medical history, severity of symptoms and frequency of travel and can be prescribed by a physician after consulting them.' Hypnotherapy and emotional freedom technique Hypnotherapy works by identifying the root causes of the fear before subconsciously rewiring the brain to promote calmer thinking around flying. 'The hypnotic space is a deep meditative state that a therapist guides you into using their voice and your breathing,' says Pavan Nihalani, hypnotherapist at Illuminations Wellbeing Centre. 'You are conscious and fully in control while gaining access to the subconscious mind.' Explaining how the technique can be used to tackle phobias, he explains: 'Fear is based in something that happened in the past. With hypnotherapy, we can go back to the memory and desensitise the reaction to it by removing the emotional charge, allowing you to view the experience more dispassionately.' Hypnotherapy sessions begin with discussions around the fear, including what the patient thinks may be causing it. 'Many times, people don't remember the specific incident or perhaps there isn't one,' says Nihalani. 'This is why we go into the subconscious mind, because it remembers everything.' Fear of flying can result from a past traumatic event or even having watched a TV show or film, listened to a podcast or read a book or article about an airplane disaster, which the patient internalises, turning it into a memory. 'Combining hypnotherapy with emotional freedom technique and breathwork is one of the most effective ways to tackle fear of flying,' says Nihalani. 'EFT is the process of rubbing or tapping meridian points on the body while focusing on the fear to release it from the body. Each time you do it, the intensity is reduced.' Talk and exposure therapy Speaking to a therapis t about your fears is a beneficial way to discover if aviophobia is masking something deeper, as well as providing emotional tools to practice mindfulness by yourself. 'The first step is to explore whether we are working with a specific phobia or a fear that is linked to more generalised emotional processes,' says Gadd. 'Once this is clarified, the therapeutic process typically includes talk therapy to explore the client's subjective experience and meaning-making around the fear." This is then combined with exposure therapy, "which involves using gradual exposure to the feared situation, such as imagery, virtual simulations, or eventual flights, tailored to the individual's readiness and tolerance. This exploration of underlying processes identifies broader fears or relational dynamics, particularly if the fear is symbolic or trauma-linked.' Fear of flying may be linked to other issues, such as being afraid of losing control, claustrophobia and fear of death or panic. As with hypnotherapy, patients are taught coping mechanisms to use outside of therapy sessions to manage their fears around flying. 'Several practical and evidence-based strategies can help clients manage their fear,' says Gadd. 'Mindfulness-based interventions, such as grounding techniques and breath control, focus on building distress tolerance and are particularly effective for managing anticipatory anxiety and panic during the flight. Some airlines also offer flight anxiety programmes, which combine psychological support with educational content and gradual exposure, often including accompanied flights.' Breathwork Focusing on and controlling breathing has become a popular and effective way to manage fears. 'Breathing is a subconscious action that the nervous system manages without you realising,' says Elisabeth Bohler, a breathwork educator and coach. 'When you move to consciously become in charge of the way you breathe, you can alter your state of breath to achieve a specific outcome such as to relax, calm down, self-soothe and meditate.' As the nervous system cannot differentiate between an actual threat and a self-created threat, stress and anxiety around flying creates negative emotions and trauma in the brain that the nervous systems reacts to by triggering fight or flight mode. This leads to increased heart rate and difficulty breathing and can result in panic attacks. 'Breath is an excellent indicator of our nervous system and is the only tool that can reach between the nervous system and body, acting as a reset button within minutes,' says Bohler. Patients are taught functional breathing techniques, which can help slow the heart rate and reduce stress. As an effective exercise, Bohler suggests inhaling, then pinching your nose and holding your breath for five seconds before exhaling, repeating this for three to five minutes if you feel panicked on or before a flight. 'It has the same effect as breathing into a paper bag, which is to re-elevate your carbon dioxide levels,' she says. 'Focusing on breathing pulls you back from overthinking and forces you into the present.'
Forbes
14-07-2025
- Health
- Forbes
Fear Of Flying On Rise. Here's How Pilots And Doctors Ease Anxiety.
Sacred young man looking out the window of an Airplane. Appearing uneasy while on flight. Fear of flying is on the rise—despite a 2025 Associated Press and NORC Center for Public Affairs poll showing that most Americans still view air travel as safe. Aviophobia, or an intense fear of flying, is a clinically recognized anxiety disorder that may affect up to 40% of people in industrialized countries. Pilots and doctors are more equipped to ease fear of flying. I know this condition from personal experience. A few years ago, a New England storm canceled scores of flights—yet my small plane from Boston to New York was cleared for takeoff. The turbulence was immediate and intense. Attendants remained buckled into their seats, passengers exchanged anxious glances, and I heard three people nearby vomiting. We were warned of a rough landing—and it was. When the plane touched down, it bounced twice, then suddenly pulled back into the air to circle for better weather before landing again. I was startled. I wondered, Am we going to die? That experience stuck with me. I began searching for tools to better understand and manage the fear that took hold that day. How Education from Pilots Helps Reduce Fear of Flying I discovered Dial A Pilot, a service founded by pilot Kyle Koukol that focuses on passenger anxiety. 'Aviation misinformation is everywhere. Accurate, human-centered explanations are hard to find. If people could simply talk to a real airline pilot without judgment, pressure, or jargon, it could shift how they relate to flying entirely' says Koukol. Pilot Kyle Koukol on a plane Their business model is simple: passengers can book a call with a U.S.-based commercial pilot, active or retired, to discuss a recent flight, safety concerns, or even aviation news. Koukol notes a spike in calls whenever incidents make headlines. While they never speculate on specific events, he says the goal is to 'make sense of what people are hearing, understand how investigations work, and regain trust in the system.' Often, that's enough to shift someone from panic to perspective. Dial A Pilot also has a social media presence that covers the mechanics of flight education. What is turbulence? What does it mean when the flight attendants are seated during turbulence? What does a maintenance delay mean? Koukol affirms that aviation is a 'well-oiled machine,' but says passengers often lack insight into what they're seeing, hearing, or feeling. I thought back to my own flight scare, which led to a fear of flying that took months to resolve. I believe that if I had spoken with a pilot in the hours after landing, it might have changed the psychological impact entirely. Lisa Calineau, a pilot who answers Dial A Pilot calls, says many customers trace their fear of flying back to 'having children, a specific bad flight, or repeated exposure to news that makes flying seem dangerous.' 'I like to focus on the rigorous training pilots undergo—from their very first lesson to the continuous evaluations throughout their careers,' says Calineau. 'Most people know flying is safer than driving, but hearing about a pilot's personal training often puts them at ease.' By the end of a call, customers understand both the high standards pilots meet and the many safety layers built into every flight—from maintenance to crew protocols. How Clinical Tools Are Used to Treat Fear of Flying A 2024 study in the Journal of Clinical Medicine found that individuals with high flight anxiety also scored significantly higher on assessments of trauma and limbic system irritability—a neurological marker tied to symptoms like dissociation, sensory issues, and even seizure-like episodes. These findings support the need to treat flight anxiety as a legitimate mental health concern—not just a passing fear. Dr. Christy Gibson, a physician, trauma therapist, and author of The Modern Trauma Toolkit, offers evidence-based strategies to help manage fear of flying. 'Ahead of a flight is a great time to work on best-case scenario thinking,' she says. 'Our brains are wired to focus on the negative—that's adaptive. But in the case of flight anxiety, it's counterproductive. Because it's pretty unlikely that anything will happen. And if it does, thinking about it ahead of time won't change a thing.' Photo of Dr. Christy Gibson She encourages patients to create a multisensory visualization of a positive flight: 'Imagine a quiet compartment, a comfortable seat, the lemony smell of your soda water. Imagine arriving refreshed with your bag coming out just as you do.' Before a flight, Gibson recommends engaging the parasympathetic nervous system, the body's calming system. 'Lengthen your exhale,' she advises. 'Humming or singing works well, because it also distracts your mind. Sip small amounts of water. Eat healthy snacks.' Once you're in the air, distraction becomes key. Our amygdalas, the two almond-shaped structures in the brain, help process emotions like fear and anxiety. 'If they've decided you're in danger, thinking clearly becomes very difficult,' says Gibson. Engaging your brain with cognitive tasks, like puzzles or audiobooks, can help quiet the amygdala's alarm, reducing feelings of fear or anxiety. She also uses techniques from Havening Techniques, where calming physical touch can combine with a thinking brain to cause distraction. 'You might try to name all the foods or animals that begin with the letter A, then move on to B, and so forth. You might imagine a garden where each row has a different color flower.' While thinking, you can gently brush a finger across the palms of your hands, upper shoulders or face. No matter where you are going, Calineau reminds us: 'It's okay to be scared. But you're not in a dangerous situation.' She often tells callers that turbulence is 'just bumps in the road. It's temporary. And you are in safe hands.'
