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Comment by boredemployee | Hacker News Reader

I know that traveling by plane is safe (statistically speaking) but even with news like that on millions of flights where nothing happens, they make scared.

My biggest problem is on takeoff, when the plane turns on its maximum power to take off. My mind takes me into a crazy spiral where I am bombarded with adrenaline as if my death were imminent. I went to a therapy that helped just a little bit and I take a very light medicine, but it's still not enough.

I have a short flight in 7 days and if anyone has some effective tips to overcome my fear of flying, I would be very grateful.

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“You have helped calm my fear of flying” is a somewhat frequent comment on many of the videos of aviation related videos like Mentour Pilot on YouTube (no relation), I think particularly in the accident analysis ones.

It seems that knowing what is going on and being aware of the safety systems helps demystify some of the fearful aspects. Perhaps that may help you.

I'd recommend taking a discovery flight at your local flight school. They're fairly affordable (they're a loss-leader to get boots through the door), and they're a lot of fun. Most of all though, they familiarize you with the sensation of flight and the myriad safety features of modern aviation. May not be able to book a discovery flight before your short commercial flight, but it's something to think about for the long term.

I thought about that idea a few times, maybe I'll look for it! Because my fear has something to do with the unusual sensations on my body that I'm not used to (full speed, shaking, noise, and taking off) that triggers the adrenaline, I guess. And probably a few accidents in the past that watching images and seeing photos were a bit traumatic as a kid. I know people that avoid flying at all costs. At least I go but with the feeling that I'm really going to die lol. It's crazy.

Not sure if the light medicine you mention is a beta blocker but if it's not, call your doctor up and ask for propranolol. It will prevent the adrenaline dump and racing heart beat. You might still be a little mentally nervous but anxiety without the physical symptoms is so incredibly different and manageable. I once had a consulting job where I had to fly around all the time and having a propranolol script allowed me to keep my job.

I really thought about that. Did you take the medicine daily or just before the flight? The one I take is called Paroxetine or Paxil.

You just need it for the flight, you take one half an hour before the flight. You can research the basic biological mechanism online but the practical effect is that your body just doesn't react to fear, which allows you to deal with the mental anxiety much more easily.

I really hope you'll ask your doctor about it. As a fellow nervous flier I know how miserable it can be to be trapped in the pain tube at 40k feet for hours and have every little noise and bump set you off. It seriously changed my life - after a few really bad flights, I started getting stressed out when I saw a plane in the sky while I was standing on terra firma! But not anymore. And these days, after way too many flights, I barely even need it anymore!

That's interesting. To me the sensation of the plane going to maximum power is comforting. There's so much force pushing you up the idea of it falling down seems less likely.

I on the other hand really dislike landings. It's the only part of the flight where the ground is getting closer!

The number of people that died last year on commercial domestic airlines, in the USA, was zero last year. The number that died from elevator or escalators 30. This always calms me.

What's the relative exposure to each?

How many people fly daily? How many use an elevator or escallator?

The throughput of the TSA is around 2 million people per day.

https://www.tsa.gov/travel/passenger-volumes

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