I have been done with the program for a long time and have been doing pretty well. Now, that I have a trip coming up in 9 days and I have to go on an airplane I am a wreck. It's funnyish ... cuz during the day I'm relatively OK ... anxiety comes and goes .... or moreso I make it go. But now, I am waking up in the middle of the night with PA and thoughts racing so damn fast it is hard to control them because of being half asleep. I am so looking forward to this vacation, but this damn plane ride The last time I was on a plane I had a horrid experience and I swore I would never get on one again. Ahhhhhhhh dang emotions Thanks for listening

A story I like to tell my coaching clients is about my husband who decided to sing in the choir at church. They did a song that ended with him singing alone. He had not sang in quite a while and his throat closed up for a second as he ended the song. I was immediately embarrassed FOR HIM! (you know how we are!) anyhoo, he came back to sit by me in the pew and I patted his leg and said "you did good!" HA! he said, and we both kind chuckled. But the next thing he said was "I hope they do that song again because I think I can do it better next time"..... WHAT??!!!! Next time??? You mean you actually WANT another crack at it???!! Are you kidding? I would have been looking for another church to attend. I would have been so mortified I would have quit the choir. But, no, he wanted another chance. It was then I realized that he had the better attitude and if I ever wanted to get over anxiety and recover, I was going to have to develop this "2nd chance" attitude.

So don't sell yourself short, teeds. Get back on the plane and go have a good time!

Tammy

You can do this, Teeds! I had a horrible fear of flying and found that the best way to get over it was to continue flying. (Luckily my job made sure I was flying pretty frequently!) Make the flight special. Pick up a special snack that you will only eat when the plane is in the air. Look on a map to see what the possible flight path will be and pick out landmarks that you can look for from the air. Purchase a new CD that you will listen to for the first time while flying. Treat this flight as something special to be enjoyed. I know you're probably thinking "easier said than done" but you CAN enjoy the flight. I didn't fly for 14 years. Now I will be flying on three trips within the month. You can do it. You can have fun. Anticipate the excitement -- not the anxiety. Good luck and have a great trip.

Teeds,

Let me tell you about a flight I took to Maui, Hawaii from Kentucky. I was getting married in Maui and had finished the program just a few months earlier. I WAS INCREDIBLY ANXIOUS--not only was I taking a very long flight but I was getting married at the end of that flight. I took a walkman and the entire Attacking Anxiety Program in my carry-on. I had some anxiety and even panicked a bit, but I made it. I listened to the program and Lucinda, with the help of the others in the group sessions, got me through it!

I got very tense flying over the Pacific at night and was sure we were going to crash. I was desperate so I decided to order a small bottle of Chardonnay, not enough to do much to me, but it helped me sleep all the way back to the mainland.
I know we are not supposed to medicate with alcohol, but the amount I drank was not even equal one glass of wine.

Don't focus so much on the trip, but focus on growth that you feel after the trip. You will feel like you can conquer the world!!!

Thank You Guys for the encouragement. When all the terrorism came about in London yesterday I started thinking about driving instead of flying. I figured it was a 21 hour drive, I could do it in 3 days blah blah blah.... well then i started thinking how stupid it was to even attempt the drive. So I became totally resigned to this flight. Now, I'm totally scared but kinda looking forward to it too... only cuz i wanna get to Disney and Discovery Cove and go swim with some dolphins !!!

I have my tape player on my list of things I wanna take along iwth some crossword puzzles, a dvd player and a coloring book and crayons.

Thanks Again !!