Airplane anxiety is the absolute worst. All it does is distract you from the blissful excitement you’re supposed to be having on your way to a new destination.

Fortunately, anxiety can be managed. Consider these tips next time you’re feeling riddled with anxiety before hopping on a flight.

End your airplane anxiety with this advice

• Figure out the triggers that set you off. Determine what scares you and how your anxiety response is triggered. The idea is to determine your specific triggers so that you can control your fear while your anxiety levels are low.

• Board the plane with information. Anxiety feeds on ignorance and “what if?” catastrophic notions. However, as you get information, your “what if?” thoughts are constrained by the facts. Acquaint yourself with the facts. 

• Prepare for your anxiety. Anticipatory anxiety is what we feel when we are anticipating a fear. It is frequently the most extreme anxiety you will feel during your travel, but it is not a reliable prediction of how you will feel during the flight. 

• Distinguish between dread and danger. It is frequently difficult to distinguish between worry and danger since your body reacts in the same manner to both. Make careful to name your anxiousness as such. Tell yourself that worry increases the likelihood of your terrifying ideas occurring and that feeling nervous does not indicate you are in danger. Even if you are experiencing tremendous anxiety, you are secure.

• Recognize that common sense does not apply. How anxiety deceives common sense. Anxiety will make you believe you are in danger while you are completely secure. In these situations, your gut instinct will constantly urge you to avoid, yet following these instincts will just reinforce your worry.

• If you mentally equip yourself, anxiety may be defeated. Do the opposite of what your worried feelings are prompting you to do. Fight what your anxiety is asking you to do, but accept the agony it causes.

• Smooth out any mental rough spots. Learn about airplanes and how they are intended to withstand turbulence to reduce worry when it occurs. Instead of worrying about when the turbulence will cease or how severe it will get, concentrate on managing your anxiety. Remind yourself that you are not in danger.

• Educate anyone you’re traveling with on how to assist you. Your fellow travelers need to know what scares you, as well as what helps you manage anxiety throughout a trip. Your duty is to be detailed about your triggers and ask for what you find most effective.

• Remember that each flight should be valued. The active factor in conquering your phobia is exposure. Every flight gives you the chance to make the following one simpler. Your objective is to retrain your brain so that it is less sensitive to the triggers that cause you to react.