I'm taking my first ever business trip this weekend. Well, I guess it's more of a working trip than a business trip because really, I don't do business. I do tech support! Anyway, yes, I'm heading out to San Fransisco to finally meet everyone at the office and all of my brilliant co-workers.
I'm sure I'll find time to blog or at least post some pictures from my phone, so you could maybe bookmark my moblog now, eh?
I'm really, super excited and I'm really looking forward to this trip. However, there is one little problem...
As we all know, I have the fear of flying issue. But, being the intellectual I am, I've been reading everything about air travel that I can get my hands on and, as it turns out, I have no legitimate reason to be afraid of flying. This is a real kick in the pants because it's something that I've feared for a long time. The more I read the statistics and facts, the more foolish I feel for being afraid. That doesn't mean I'm not still nervous, or that you'd be able to pry the bottle of Xanax out of my hands, but I'm not really fearful.
Of course, I haven't actually boarded a plane yet so it's hard to say how I'll react to that. My real fear is having a panic attack at 35,000 feet. My issue is with being up there, in a plane, without a way out. I'm a little worried that I'll flip. That's not even something to really be afraid of because I do have Xanax and because I've had panic attacks in the past, I know how to handle them.
Breathe in, breathe out, think of puppies. Water, water, water. Breathe, breathe, breathe. Puppies, puppies, puppies. Candy, I should bring candy.
Anyway, back to how I've been dealing with this. I have three books that address fear of flying directly. Amazon has a big selection of these types of books, so I went with the ones with the highest ratings.
Flying Without Fear, by Duane Brown
This one got sucked into the blackhole under my bed but I read it twice before it disappeared. Just to give you an idea of how much of a freak I am, the lovely photo of the jet on the cover makes me anxious. Anyway, this is a great book if you're fearful or even just slightly nervous about air travel. It explains how airplanes work, why they're so safe, and ways to cope with anxiety and fear. This is my favorite of the three books I've purchased. I should try to find it before I leave, it really did make me feel a lot better.
The Fearless Flier's Handbook, by Debbie Seaman
This is very similar to Flying Without Fear. What I really like is that the author tells real life stories about people who were terrified of flying and got over it. I figure if they can, I can.
The Fearless Flyer, by Cherry Hartman
This is less about fear of flying in particular and more for people who are unfamiliar with the whole air travel process. One reviewer called it "Flying for Dummies," which I think is okay. I've never flown so some of the information is very helpful. And the illustrations are cute.
Another book I really like is Ask the Pilot by Patrick Smith. I'd recommend it even if you love to fly and are just interested in commercial aviation. It's the most recently published of all the books which is good because the previous three books are all pre-9/11. Flying is still safe, if not even safer, of course.
This might seem silly but I've been looking at pictures of the type of jets I'll be riding. I have the same physical reaction to a picture of an airplane that some people do to seeing a snake or a spider, so I'm trying to desensitize myself. I don't just have a fear of flying, I have a fear of airplanes. Isn't that silly?
I am absolutely determined to be excited about the trip and not let my fear ruin the whole experience. I just know I'm going to land in California and feel so dumb for not flying sooner. But then I'll get over it and fly everywhere! Happy trails to me.
I think that anticipation is often the worst part of it. Hopefully, once you've done it for the first time, you'll feel much more confident about it. Flying can often be stressful, even at the best of times, but it can be fun too :)
Posted by: Laura | January 24, 2006 at 02:30 AM