Fear Of Flying website © Copyright SOAR 1995 - | Established 1982 | Conquer fear of flying | Contact us | Site Map | Library | Policies
Make up for all those years of lost time
Client Background Summary:
Client Review Summary:
Client Review:
When I was in my twenties, I had no fear of flying, even though I had only flown twice. As I became a little older, the fear began to set in for no apparent reason. I had never had an unpleasant flight but the longer I didn't fly, the more the fear took over. For my honeymoon trip to St. Maarten, I decided to try a prescription of Valium. The valium didn't work and I "white-knuckled" the entire flight there and back.
A few years later, my husband won a trip to Florida as part of a sales contest. This time someone told me about a nun who did hypnosis as a hobby. Yes, you read this correctly!!! I went to her convent and was a great candidate for hypnosis. She gave me a tape to listen to, which was primarily relaxation exercises, and I was able to get on the plane. The problem with this was that I was in a frenzy when I boarded the plane and held on to my Sony Walkman (yes, that long ago!) with all my might for fear something would happen to it. The hypnosis didn't carry over for the future and didn't cure my fear of flying or eliminate my anxiety.
For the next fifteen years, I avoided flying and only went on vacations to places that were in driving distance. During that time, we planned a flight to Disney World, but when the date of the trip had arrived, I made my husband cancel the flight. We drove to Disney instead, and for fifteen hours, I had to listen to my husband and five year old daughter complain about how we would have been there in less than three hours, had we flown.
For the next several years, there were no attempted flights because my fear of flying was worse than ever. It was so bad, that looking at a plane overhead produced anxiety for me. The thought of being in an airport was really overwhelming. Then my husband won another work related trip. This time it was a trip to Europe. I really wanted to go but the anxiety was so great that I couldn't go and my husband went with my brother-in-law instead. I will always regret not taking advantage of this wonderful trip, but at the time my fear of flying overpowered my desire to travel.
Another year passed and my daughter was now eleven and was probably the only child in her school that had never flown in an airplane. Now I was really feeling horrible. Then my husband won another trip, this time to Hawaii. My brother-in-law told me about this news broadcast he had see about a fear of flying program and suggested that I give it a try even though he, sarcastically, told me he was looking forward to going to Hawaii in my place. I contacted Captain Tom and spoke with him about his program and decided to give it a try.
After completing the SOAR program, I was able to take a 3 hour flight to Puerto Rico and I did make that 12 hour flight to Hawaii. The SOAR program opened up a whole new world for me. I have since taken a flight back to Saint Maarten (this time with no white knuckles), Florida, to California and the Bahamas. I feel like I have to make up for all those years of "lost" time! None of this would have been possible without the SOAR program. I no longer have that anxiety that prevents me from travelling.
Thanks again Tom! 
A SOAR Graduate
