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I fly once a year for an extended vacation, and really don't like it... from minute one I am just plain nervous. As long as the plane is total smooth, i'm not too bad, but even ONE jolt, bump or air pocket and I'm heart racing dry mouthed terrified. But, bus or train is not an option, so I endure flying. Won't go so far as to kiss the ground upon landing, but deep inside I feel like doing that LOL
Wow, well if you do not mind it than power to you. Guess no weekend vacations anywhere far for you.. 2 days on the road straight that is crazy.
Maybe, but how does it differ that much from waking up at 3:00 AM to catch your ride to the international airport (an hour away), arriving at 5:00 to be the requisite two hours early so that you can find your gate, make it through security, and be ready to board for your 7:00 departure....... arrive at the next airport at 9:00 then have a 3-hour layover to catch your connecting flight... then you arrive at the last airport at 2:00 PM at which point you have to find your way out, maybe rent a car or at least hitch a ride... man, by the time you get where you need to be, you're exhausted anyway. There's no "weekend vacation" when you do that either. Besides, I can't relax much on the last day or so before the scheduled departure anyway... that's "get in everything we wanted to do which we haven't already been able to do" day.
Quote:
Originally Posted by malamute
But where you're wrong is that you're never just driving, you're seeing the country, you see the moutains, deserts, hills. You can get out and stretch and see some wonderful scenery or stop along the road at a diner.
On a plane you see nothing of the miles of roads you're passing over. You don't see the trees, the hills, the cities.
And like someone else said there aren't all the hidded costs like there are in airplane travel. Food is cheaper, you have many more options. The scenery is certainly more appealing, you aren't treated like a sheep, no standing in lines, no being patted down or shot up with x-rays.
Amen, brother. (Or sister?)
Quote:
Originally Posted by burgler09
Driving might not have hidden fees, but car troubles, flat tires, added food along the way, hotels, time. All of that stuff adds up, also , if you are even somewhat educated on airline travel, there's really no such thing as a hidden fee while flying
I have driven hundreds of thousands of miles on road trips and while I have had my share of vehicle trouble due to the fact that I have always driven old and/or high-mileage vehicles, the nifty thing is that those little issues can create some pretty cool diversions. You get mad about it at first but then when you're stuck somewhere for a day or two while your car gets fixed, you can explore the area and who knows what you'll find. I got stuck in Valley City, North Dakota once for three days due to car trouble and I have yet to visit a friendlier place in the entire U. S. of A. I never knew I'd get stuck there, but I could live there if not for the fact that it isn't especially close to my family and my wife's family, and it's really friggin' cold in the winter (and not all that comfortable in the summer either).
Maybe, but how does it differ that much from waking up at 3:00 AM to catch your ride to the international airport (an hour away), arriving at 5:00 to be the requisite two hours early so that you can find your gate, make it through security, and be ready to board for your 7:00 departure....... arrive at the next airport at 9:00 then have a 3-hour layover to catch your connecting flight... then you arrive at the last airport at 2:00 PM at which point you have to find your way out, maybe rent a car or at least hitch a ride... man, by the time you get where you need to be, you're exhausted anyway. There's no "weekend vacation" when you do that either. Besides, I can't relax much on the last day or so before the scheduled departure anyway... that's "get in everything we wanted to do which we haven't already been able to do" day.
Only pilots and flight attendants go places for 1-2 days at a time for fun...everyone else, going international, you're definitely spending more than 2 days there unless its just business. Your story really doesn't make any sense.
I've driven a lot in the past and much prefer to get on a plane. So much quicker and relaxing.
Very difficult to overcome, especially when turbulence kicks in. Might be easier to ask your doc for some valium or ativan to take 30 minutes before you fly. A low MG scrip should be enough to relax you without making you drowsy.
Honestly, for as simple as it sounds, the best way to really not be afraid when you're in the air is simply tell yourself you're not afraid. Something as simple as that does wonders and long as you keep it up! Helped me when I was younger and used to get nervous mid-flight.
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If your fear is based on the fear of the plane crashing, just tell yourself that it's irrational. We risk our lives everyday - you've often heard that you're much more likely to die in a car crash. Well you're also more likely to be killed in many other ways than flying. One thing that might work is just taking anti-anxiety meds while flying, so you don't associate fearful feelings with being in the air so much. Once you've flown enough you tend to not really think about the risks so much. Sure the thought crosses my mind most times I fly, but it's not enough to send me into a state of panic. I'm not invalidating your phobia, which is totally understandable, just trying to help you overcome it.
I've dealt with two phobias. I developed a mild earthquake phobia when we had a pretty good one while I was just barely awake, on the lower level of a two-story house. It wasn't enough of a phobia to be a problem, but it was definitely there. What got me over that was doing inspections, for an insurance company, after the Northridge quake. Though there was some tragic damage from that, seeing how many other houses survived intact was what got me over it.
I have medical phobia. For many years I used the "just ignore it" or "talk yourself through it" method. It never got easier, and eventually that just stopped working. What I use for it now is valium. That's not stuff to play around with, but it's much healthier to use valium on occasion than to ignore health maintenance.
You'll have to find your own way to deal with your phobia. Whatever works for you, go with that.
Some airports will hold classes that address your fear of flying, talk you thro the concerns and explain how stuff on a plane works and why you'll hear or experience certain things during a flight and what they mean. They aren't cheap but I know some people who've taken them and found them very reassuring.
Imagine the irony of someone paying to take one of those classes, then winding up being one of the unfortunate souls on a Boeing with a bad servo valve and a pilot who didn't get the memo on the rudder "correction" when they jam.
I don't fly, nor will I ever. Sure, it's the second-safest form of travel next to taking a train, but I don't care. If something goes wrong, chances are you're f*cked, and you're gonna die a horrible and gory death. No thanks. I'd rather plunk down the extra dough for my long-haul trips via rail, than wind up running the risk of looking like a plate of lasagna flung into the branches of the tree on the side of a ****ing mountain somewhere.
I used to enjoy flying, but that was when the airlines did maintenance on their planes.
When it now costs a fraction of what it did in the 80's and 90's for a ticket....it kinda makes you wonder, doesn't it?
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