Statistics reveal that in this year, a considerable number of the world’s population, between 33% and 40% have experienced some form of fear and anxiety related to flying
While calling myself claustrophobic, I recollect the time during which I forced myself to walk up and down the stairs of a ten-story building in the city, despite the availability of an exquisite elevator.
With this terrifying dilemma, I may simultaneously invite myself to get stranded with a sense of aviophobia as well. Aviophobia, albeit sounds slightly obscure and perplexing with the vocabulary of an ordinary individual, “Fear of Flying” – its simplest term becomes plain and intelligible.Just a sheer thought of going on a holiday may give you an abundance of inspiring spirits, following prolonged, tireless, and monotonous working schedules.
However, such a relaxing thought may eventually contradict with a huge sense of intense fear of flying that would shatter your intended joy.
Battle with phobias
Many are the factors contributing towards the birth of fear of flying that has a close relationship with psychological, situational as well as that of the physiological traits of the individual concerned. Rather, traumatic life experiences may also aggravate varying degrees of anxiety; this paves the way for the affected parties to stage a challenging battle with phobias.
The fear of flying in that light becomes one of the most distressing factors that jeopardises the rare opportunity of flying. Hearing and, above all, witnessing poignant and perturbing aviation disasters may add fuel to the existing fear of flying. As per the statistics of the Washington-based The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), each year during the past ten years, over 1,100 aviation accidents and related incidents have taken place around the world where the recent fatal crash of Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, belonging to Air India had profound consequences on the aviation industry at large.
Research shows that the fear of flying is recurrently noticed in certain age groups. Being exposed to news bulletins or pictures that directly disseminate information on air accidents may create panic and anxiety on some individuals who would repeatedly shun the opportunities for flying. However, your inner need to enjoy travelling to so many different and distant destinations across the globe is nipped in the bud due to your fear of flying.
Statistics reveal that in this year, a considerable number of the world’s population, between 33% and 40% have experienced some form of fear and anxiety related to flying; this may translate to the fact that hundreds of millions of people globally may have got a sense of anxiety, dwelling with fear when it comes to air travel.
This year has seen a large number of people expressing fear about air travel and safety and anxiety about flying. Compared with the bygone era, the possibility of air accidents happening is relatively less, and that may ease the tension prevailing among the people who have the fear of flying.
Sense of control
The fact that in the United States, commercial passenger airlines have been able to perform a highly professional job for over 15 years where no major deadly crash has happened until the latter part of January this year may also be another bit of information that would discourage the sense of fear of flying.
As per some travellers who have fought with the fear of flying and eventually overcome it, nobody in a general sense experiences the fear of flying as long as a sense of control prevails with them while having a general comprehension about air travel and managing their anxiety.
They say that they benefit from some techniques in which deep breathing of exposure therapy can be an initial solution to somebody’s thoughts on the fear of flying.
It is also rather engrossing to highlight the fact that this specific sense of the fear of flying has even infiltrated into the mindset of the novelists and poets as well where they create narrations on the protagonists who have been arrested by their fear of flying that steals their tremendously significant opportunities that could give them immense boons in their personal and professional lives.
“Fear of Flying” by Erica Jong is a classic example that justifies the fact that even novelists are impressed by a plot that directly runs through a sense of the fear of flying. Jong explores different aspects, involved with the fear of flying through her protagonist Isodora; her troubled journey along with her ability of discovering herself is fundamental to the central concern on the aspect of fear of flying which is also featured as a seminal work in feminist literature.
The Guardian remarks that there are some travellers who point out that the turbulence experienced by them provokes their fear of flying; turbulence is exacerbating, and this particular utterance itself at the very outset speculates a general consideration among the people who demonstrate the characteristics of aerophobia.
An American filmmaker, Billy Bob Thornton once told that he is not disturbed by the fear of flying but the fear of crashing. Whatever the facts may be, in any encounter, fear paralyses you. There is a popular saying that has almost become an adage, which declares that if you don’t risk anything, you risk everything.
