Although flying is the safest way to travel (Why everyone is saying that flying is the safest way to travel? ) there are so many people that have a fear of flying- aviophobia.
In the same way, some people enjoy the liberating feeling that flying gives, for some people just thought of height, airplane and flying produce a feeling of fear and anxiety. Seeing a situation as a dangerous is subjective and aviophobia manifests in different ways, from slight discomfort to panic anxiety. There are several aspects of this kind of fear.
Biological aspects
The hormone of stress is released the most during taxiing of the aircraft before taking off. Turbulence also increases the level of stress and reduces our cognitive abilities. Aviophobia manifests in several ways; trembling, sweating, nausea, vomiting, suppression, dry mouth, muscle tension, cramps and loss of control. The symptoms of an aviophobia attack can affect flight safety. In the stage where a person becomes uncontrolled, there is a possibility for dangerous actions, such as an attempt to open the plane door, or even to break the window. In that case, the cabin crew has permission to use the force on the passenger.
Psychological aspects
Psychologically, fear of flying relies on fears of the unknown, uncontrolled (agoraphobia), closed space (claustrophobia), height (acrophobia), and in past few decades also on widely spread fear of terrorism. When flying, the passenger does not have any control over the plane; his life is in the hands of the other person. Once you board on the plane, and it is in the air you cannot go out if you want, this often makes people anxious. It is important to say that fears of any kind have a huge impact on a person’s personality and decrease life quality.
Sociological aspects
Airplane crash news attracts huge media attention. When a plane crashes that becomes breaking news of TV shows and front pages of newspapers for a few days or in some cases for weeks all you read about is that plane crash. That approach makes the impression that there are more of them than there actually are. On the other side, think about how many car accidents occur in the world per day; imagine TV stations report every single of them. Maybe we would need another channel. However, media and society for sure have a huge impact in developing a fear of flying.
Therapy
Psychologists think that aviophobia is one of the fears that can be completely cured. To defeat your fear, it is recommended to tame it step by step. First, is education, reading books connected with defeating fear can help you understand your physical processes that appear during the flight, and help you in controlling your reactions. Watching videos of takeoff and landing, and observing other people at the airport, especially relaxed ones can be very helpful. There are many programs you can attend if you are determined to defeat your fear. A great role in overcoming the fear has modern technology; nowadays there are virtual planes, which can provide you virtual flights. That will help you to visualize how flying can be safe and even comfortable.
Remember, if you do not overcome the fear of flying, you will always wonder about the greatness of the world. Fly with an airline that is safe, which invests in SMS programs and trains their employees to know how to react in risky situations.
