Is airport anxiety common?

Getting anxiety on an airplane is pretty common. After all, many people have a fear of flying. But what about the anxiety that comes on even before you step foot on a plane? According to therapist and life coach Daniel Rinaldi, this is not unusual or abnormal considering the airport experience these days.



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“In combination with the time constraints and travel pressure (from both everyone around you, and your travel companions), someone in an airport may have a lot of anxiety simply about navigating the space, getting to where they need to go, being in a crowded environment, and the journey of actually getting to your ...

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How common is travel anxiety? Travel anxiety is common, especially for those who already experience other forms of anxiety. Those who have a family history of anxiety, take certain medications, or who have certain physical health conditions may also have a higher chance of having travel anxiety.

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Aerophobia is a fear of flying. It's very common, affecting more than 25 million adults in the U.S. Psychotherapy can usually help people overcome their fear and fly without extreme anxiety or panic attacks.

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8 Steps to Overcoming Your Fear of Flying
  1. Latch on to triggers that set you off. ...
  2. Step onto the airplane with knowledge. ...
  3. Anticipate your anxiety. ...
  4. Separate fear from danger. ...
  5. Recognize that common sense makes no sense. ...
  6. Smooth over things that go bump in the flight. ...
  7. Educate fellow fliers how to help you. ...
  8. Value each flight.


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Understanding Triggers And someone who fears heights might become terrified thinking about flying many miles above the ground. The list of triggers is long: turbulence, take-off, landings, terrorism, crashes, social anxieties, or being too far from home.

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4 Aerophobia is treatable, so don't hesitate to reach out to a mental health professional who can help. Many professionals specialize in specific phobias or other anxiety-related issues, and because aerophobia is so common, many therapists have likely worked with people on this issue before.

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People often come to us requesting the doctor or nurse to prescribe diazepam for fear of flying or assist with sleep during flights. Diazepam is a sedative, which means it makes you sleepy and more relaxed.

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Flying phobia is a highly prevalent anxiety disorder, which causes sufferers significant distress and life interference.

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The key symptoms of travel phobia are excessive fear and avoidance of travel situations. These symptoms overlap with those of PTSD. In particular, persistent avoidance of stimuli associated with the trauma and fear and other negative emotions in response to trauma reminders are common PTSD symptoms.

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Diazepam is a sedative, which means it makes you sleepy and more relaxed. There are a number of very good reasons why prescribing this drug is not recommended. According to the prescribing guidelines doctors follow (British National Formulary) diazepam is contraindicated (not allowed) for treating phobias (fears).

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Medications for flight anxiety, like SSRIs and SNRIs, can help manage symptoms in addition to other treatments, like exposure therapy and CBT. Some medications can also help you with upsetting and sudden symptoms, including episodes of panic.

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People often come to us requesting the doctor or nurse to prescribe diazepam for fear of flying or assist with sleep during flights. Diazepam is a sedative, which means it makes you sleepy and more relaxed.

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Many nervous flyers feel irrational anxiety that their plane will malfunction and crash, no matter how many times they hear the statistics about how safe flying is compared to driving. Other travelers worry about terrorist hijackings or panic at the idea that they're not in control of the aircraft that's carrying them.

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A poll taken on A Fly Guy's Cabin Crew Lounge, the largest network of airline staff on social media, revealed that most airline crew not only like turbulence, but they also enjoy it! That's a comforting thought to think about the next time you're worried when your plane starts shaking. '

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What Are the Best—And Safest—Sleeping Pills for Flights?
  • Ambien. Ambien—the most powerful option on this list and the only one that requires a prescription—works as a sedative-hypnotic medication that slows your brain activity to make you feel very sleepy. ...
  • Tylenol PM. ...
  • Melatonin.


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Acknowledge that flying can be a scary thing, without invalidating how they feel, says Nippoda, adding that this is especially important if you (or they) are not a frequent flyer. They need to know they are not alone. Mention that other people on the same flight might have similar flying anxieties.

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What causes aerophobia?
  • News stories about terrorism, crashes or violence on airplanes.
  • Take-off and landing.
  • Thoughts about fire or illness spreading through the plane.
  • Turbulence (bumps during the flight).


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It is completely normal to be scared of flying, but it's not as bad as you would think. It should be stated initially and clearly that accidents involving aircraft are extremely rare.

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Fear of flying afflicts as much as 40 percent of the U.S. population. The nation's armrest-grippers may be heartened to know that “aviophobia” is perfectly normal, and easily treated. Only about 5 percent of Americans have aviophobia so severe that they cannot fly.

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Aerophobia, a fear of flying, is a relatively common specific phobia in the UK. Although many phobias go undiagnosed, it is estimated that between 2.5% and 5% of people in the UK experience aerophobia. This equates to between 168,000 and 336,000 people.

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