Overcoming Fear
Panic and fear once ruled me; travel has helped me change that.
Facing the Flights Again
Two transatlantic flights, two trans continental and two short flights completed in the past 4 weeks. For most people that is a lot, for someone with a fear of flying that is even more. I have gone from no flying at all for nearly 10 years to all of that in a month. Facing fears, baby. Note: just because I faced the fear and did the flights it doesn’t mean I now like flying.
Concentrate On The Present To Beat Fear
Fear is a future based emotion. It is a reaction based on what might happen, what would happen if, what could happen when, not what is currently happening. If you can concentrate on what is actually at this exact minute occurring, the fear can’t have a hold. I use this in a lot of my personal fear reduction techniques. I have a fear of flying. Up until last September I had not flown for 10 years. Then however I got onto a flight to Greece. Thinking about the present was how I did it.
Flying to Meet Phobos
So as many know, I spent the past two weeks in Greece on vacation. As also mentioned many times, this trip was a big milestone as it was my first airplane flight in nearly 10 years.
I faced some big fears and some small fears and learned a fair amount on this trip. Certainly the biggest fear was the fear of actually getting there. I made it though with help from a lot of different people and sources.
Freak yourself out
The posting schedule will be a bit erratic over the next few weeks. I am headed to Greece. I will as mentioned, get on a plane for the first time in 10 years to do this trip. I am still fairly calm considering this is one of my deeper fears. In preparation, I am going to intentionally freak myself out about flying.
No no, I’ve not more crazy nor am I trying to convince myself not to go. It is another technique I learned while going through panic attacks. Most fear is in the mind, so that is battleground. If you are frightened of something, running that situation through your head in a controlled freakout can help.
Hungry Angry Lonely Tired
Stress is a part of travel. It is a part of the growing process, but sometimes it overwhelms us. I spent nearly a year at a time twice in my life dealing with panic attacks. Each time traveling to Europe seemed to bring me out of them. They are totally not fun and disruptive, but [...]
Breaking down Fear
I bought my plane ticket for Greece. I was shaking at the travel agent looking at flight times, but I did it. The connection is way more ambitious that I had expected. It will involve two flights with an 8 hour delay in Athens. Does anyone know how nice it is to be overnight in [...]
Facing Phobos in Greece
I have decided to face one of my biggest fears: flight. I have not been on a plane in nearly 10 years. Despite the fear and the lengths to which I have gone to avoid flying (see post on cruising the Atlantic), I have decided to fly down to Greece for my vacation. I will take the train back, but psyching myself up for the flight down.
Phobos is the Greek god of fear. Phobia comes from the same Greek root-word. So it seems somehow appropriate that I go to Greece as an act of facing my fear. What is also nicely congruent is that the flights will be about the same length as those that I bailed on 8 years ago due to fear. That trip as well was to go on a cruise. That time in the Caribbean, this time to the Aegean. I am being given a second chance to make the choice to stare down fear and do it anyway.
Dealing with Fear through Travel
Grand admission. I have fears. Lots of them in fact. Enough to have dealt with panic attacks twice for months at a time in my life. The one thing I am not afraid of is Travel. Really. I had less issues moving half-way around the world to a country where I had no job or [...]
