Personal Narrative Essay: Fear Of Flying

Comedian Louis CK once said, “Everybody on every plane should just constantly be going, OH MY GOD WOW! You’re sitting in a chair in the sky.” People all around the world fly on planes. It’s a way of travel that some people can handle and some people can not. If one has a fear of flying, the thought of sitting in a chair in the sky probably freaks some people out doesn’t it? A statistic from ABC News said, “According to some estimates, as many as 25 percent of all Americans suffer some nervousness about flying but the National Institute of Mental Health says this fear, usually called aviophobia, affects just 6.5 percent of the population.” That’s a lot of people. Riding on a plane can make one feel many emotions such as excitement, anticipation, and fear when taking off into the sky.

Flying on a plane is very exciting, especially when taking off on the runway and a person feels his or her body floating. It’s a feeling a person will never forget. There is nothing more exciting than seeing the world from thousands of feet in the air. It also helps to know that when a person does get on a plane, they are traveling somewhere fun and exciting. It’s an amazing feeling to look outside of your window and see the beautiful world below. The clouds look so close, they seem to be just a touch away. Flying is truly a magical experience. There was a quote I read a while back that said, “Happiness is looking down on your next destination from your plane window.” 

Anticipation is a feeling most people get when riding on a plane. Marie Casey Olseth, a psychiatrist based in Minneapolis, said “Pre-trip anxiety is a form of anticipatory anxiety. It’s not a specific phobia, such as a fear of flying or fear of driving, although these phobias can contribute to the anxiety felt by someone with pre-trip anxiety.” My mom has terrible anxiety when it comes to flying. She can’t get on a plane without freaking out. I remember when I flew for the first time. There was so much anxiety running through my body, but after we landed, I wanted to get right back on the plane. The Washington Post said, “Symptoms of pre-trip anxiety include a sleepless night before a trip, an upset stomach, or feelings of dread.” These are symptoms I’ve experienced before, so I understand how the anxiety and anticipation before flying can make a person feel.

Fear of flying is the most common of emotions felt when flying on a plane. Smartertravel said, “Fear of flying can be caused by a number of factors, including claustrophobia or a fear of heights. 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 hijackers or panic at the idea that they’re not in control of the aircraft that’s carrying them.” There are many ways to help alleviate your fears of flying. Always think positive thoughts when flying on a plane. If one thinks the worst, then it’s going to make it way worse when stepping onto the plane. Take a deep breath, relax, and trust that the plane will make it safely to its destination. Beth Ditto once said, “As with most phobias, the fear of flying does make some sense, but if ever there was a fear worth quashing then this is it. After all, life is short, and there’s a great big world to explore out there.” 

According to statistics provided by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), there are 40,000+ flights with 2.6 million passengers within the US alone, every day. That is a ton of people coming and going that use a plane as their way of transportation. Different people show different emotions when flying. Some show excitement, some show anticipation, and some show fear. Like I said above, my mom has major anxiety when flying, but I love to fly. That shows the difference in the emotions that people have towards plane travel. Leonardo DaVinci once said, “When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return.”