sudden fear of flying

curly1976 · Post by **curly1976** » Sat Jan 10, 2009 3:58 pm

all of a sudden after traveling for many years from Europe to the U.S. with no fear of flying, while visiting my family in NY this past Christmas I developed a strong fear of flying and it has almost been a constant obsessive thought throughout my vacation. On Monday I am leaving for Europe again and I get these crazy strong thoughts of something happening on my trip back that scare me to death and I cant seem to get rid of! Has anybody else gone through something similar? It seems the more I try to analyze it and tell myself that it is not logical, the more scared i get. Thanks..

James K · Post by **James K** » Sat Jan 10, 2009 4:11 pm

Dear Curly1976, I'm familiar with symptoms appearing that haven't been there before. I've exhibited in the past some comparatively fearless behavior, that seems like a different person to me now. Keep plugging with this stuff, you're gonna be fine.

hunnie33 · Post by **hunnie33** » Sat Jan 10, 2009 4:48 pm

Oh wow! This one hits very close to home! I have flown since I was 8 months old with no problem but in 2004, I developed a severe fear of flying after a bad flight. I still don't fly. The last time I flew was to Las Vegas for work and that was in 2007 and I ended up taking Greyhound bus back from Vegas all the way to West Palm Beach, FL. It took me 4 days! I just ordered some books on phobias. I have to get over this. I just don't know how. I'm only on week one of the program so hopefully the program will help too! I flew to Jamaica BY MYSELF so why I am afraid now is totally baffling me. I don't have much advice but I can totally relate.

curly1976 · Post by **curly1976** » Sat Jan 10, 2009 5:01 pm

isnt it the worst especially when things that didnt affect you before all of a sudden seem so scary? i noticed that it isnt only the fear of flying, but other things as well. a thought gets into my mind and i analyze it and over analyze it and it becomes almost unbearable. i keep reading different posts about how people have gotten over this kind of thing and i wonder if i will ever get over it sometimes..

AnxinTex · Post by **AnxinTex** » Thu Jan 15, 2009 3:59 am

This is the biggie for me! I used to fly, not often, maybe 2-3 times a year with no problem. It's been over 20 years since my first panic attack and I haven't flown since. It's not the fear of crashing that scares me. It's the fear of being trapped in a situation where I can not escape. I fear I will be one of the passengers who freaks out and tries to open the door in mid flight, etc... Irrational I know, yet still real in my mind. At this moment in time I can not imagine myself in an airplane, however, others tell me that eventually I will be able to handle flying again. I have already seen progress and done some things that I didn't think I could so, so I am trying to stay positive.