Airports address fear of flying
— -- "Sit back, relax and enjoy the flight."
No matter what your pilot tells you, taking a plane trip these days is likely to be irritating, uncomfortable and, at times, downright maddening.
For millions of people it's all that and absolutely frightening.
Despite statistics that tell us flying is one of the safest modes of travel, many people will only fly if they have to. Others are so afraid of flying that they will never travel by air at all. And when someone is too afraid to fly they can end up grounding not only themselves, but their families, their vacations and their careers.
According to the Valk Foundation, a joint project of the University of Leiden, KLM and Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, up to 40% of people experience some level of anxiety about flying. Then there are those who have a phobia or fear of flying. That can be caused by anything, "from a bad experience with turbulence to vertigo, a compulsion to remain in control, or claustrophobia."
For years, Maria Smyth was one of those truly fearful fliers. The 42-year-old Smyth runs an office-services business out of her home in Phoenix, and for years did whatever she could to avoid flying. "I know planes are safe. I know the statistics. But what I worry about is if something does go wrong, I can't say 'Let me help you out.' I don't have any control over what's happening."
Smyth's fear of flying made her turn down offers to teach classes in other cities. And for years, she put off making plane reservations to visit her grandfather back east. Then her grandfather died and "I couldn't even go to his funeral," Smyth says. "It took me three weeks to get there." After that, Smyth decided to make a change. "This fear had kept me from making those reservations. And I had this overwhelming guilt. So I decided to take control of my life and not be paralyzed like this anymore."
Fortunately for Smyth there were free monthly classes for fearful fliers nearby, at the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. Taught by Ron Nielsen, a veteran airline pilot with a master's degree in counseling, the Cleared 4 Takeoff seminar is like similar programs around the country that are held in therapist's offices, classrooms and in airports. First, participants are encouraged to identify and talk about what it is about flying that scares them. Then, says Nielsen, "We educate people about flying and airplanes. We identify the noises and point out that most of them are routine. We banish myths and we replace the scary things that people have made up with facts." Finally, class members learn coping techniques, many of which involve breathing exercises and distraction, such as listening to unfamiliar music or a book on tape.
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