Using Music to Cope with Anxiety when Flying
“As with most phobias, the fear of flying does make some sense, but if ever there was a fear worth quashing then this is it. After all, life is short, and there’s a great big world to explore out there.”
– Beth Ditto
For many flying in a plane is an anxiety indicting experience. However, music can help quell the fear for many people. Music can offer a pleasant distraction when your nerves start to get the best of you. If you are trying to reduce your anxiety try controlling your breathing. If appropriate, you can use the music to assist in breath control by breathing in beat to the music. Controlling your breathing will not only help supply oxygen to your brain but will also help control your emotions, effectively calming you.
When selecting music choose something that calms you down, but also something that you like. It may also be a benefit to invest in noise cancelation headphones, particularly if noises are a contributing factor to your anxiety. Preoccupy your mind, so that you are unable to designate your mental faculties to any nervous thoughts that may enter your mind.
If you are prone to being nervous, there are a few mental training exercises you can do to brace yourself. Firstly, challenge your thoughts. Next, accept that you may be nervous, try to imagine the nerves you expect to feel and confront them. The more exposure you have to ideas or thoughts that make you uncomfortable the less scary it will seem over time.
We all have fears and things that make us uncomfortable that are not always entirely unavoidable. Fears are not inherently bad, because they primarily exist as a way to protect you. Do your best to face your fears, if they are not dangerous, and try not to allow your fears to rule over your life.