Understanding the Fear of Flying—And How ART Can Help You Overcome It
For many people, the thought of boarding an airplane evokes excitement and a sense of adventure. But for others, the mere idea of stepping onto a plane is enough to trigger overwhelming anxiety, panic, or even sheer terror. If you’ve experienced this fear yourself, you know it’s not just about feeling a little nervous—it’s a deeply unsettling experience that can leave you feeling out of control.
As a licensed therapist, I’ve worked with many clients who struggle with the fear of flying, and I understand just how debilitating it can be. It’s not simply about avoiding vacations or business trips; a fear of flying can prevent you from seeing loved ones, exploring new career opportunities, or even taking a spontaneous trip to celebrate a milestone. The impact on one’s life can be significant and far-reaching, making the world feel much smaller and less accessible.
But here’s the good news: you don’t have to live with this fear forever. There are effective treatment options available, and one that has shown great promise in helping people overcome their fear of flying is Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART). In this blog post, I’ll share what makes the fear of flying so challenging, how it can affect your life, and how ART can help you get back in the sky with confidence.
What Is the Fear of Flying?
The fear of flying, also known as aviophobia or aerophobia, is one of the most common phobias. It affects a broad spectrum of people, from those who experience mild anxiety when boarding a plane to those who are completely unable to fly due to intense panic attacks.
If you have a fear of flying, you might notice symptoms such as:
Racing heartbeat
Shortness of breath
Dizziness or lightheadedness
Sweating or shaking
Feeling a sense of impending doom
Nausea or gastrointestinal distress
Feeling out of control or a desire to escape
These symptoms can occur before, during, or even just thinking about a flight. For some people, it’s the idea of being in a confined space that triggers anxiety. For others, it’s the fear of heights, turbulence, or loss of control. And for some, the fear is linked to catastrophic thoughts about the plane crashing or something going wrong mid-flight.
The Impact of a Fear of Flying on Your Life
A fear of flying can impact your life in surprising ways. Most obviously, it can make it difficult or impossible to travel for pleasure. This might mean missing out on vacations, family reunions, weddings, or other special events that require flying. For some people, the fear becomes so intense that they stop planning trips altogether, opting to avoid the distress by staying within driving distance of home.
But the effects can extend beyond your personal life. In a professional context, a fear of flying can limit your career options, especially if your job involves frequent travel. You might turn down promotions, avoid attending important conferences, or miss opportunities to expand your professional network.
The fear can also create a sense of isolation and frustration. You might feel embarrassed about your fear, ashamed of how it limits you, or even guilty if it affects family plans. Over time, these emotions can erode your self-esteem and contribute to a sense of helplessness.
Why Traditional Methods Might Not Be Enough
If you’ve tried to address your fear of flying before, you might have been recommended strategies like deep breathing, medication, or exposure therapy. While these methods can be helpful for some, they don’t always address the root cause of the fear—especially if it’s linked to past trauma, deeply ingrained beliefs, or specific memories.
Traditional therapies like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) often focus on challenging negative thoughts and gradually exposing you to your fear (e.g., watching videos of planes, visiting an airport, etc.). While these methods have merit, they can feel overwhelming and slow-paced. For many people, confronting their fear repeatedly can be re-traumatizing, leaving them feeling exhausted and discouraged.
That’s where Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) comes in.
How Accelerated Resolution Therapy Can Help
Accelerated Resolution Therapy is a short-term, evidence-based treatment that can often resolve phobias and trauma-related symptoms in just a few sessions. It combines elements of traditional talk therapy with guided visual imagery and specific eye movements to help you reprocess and reframe distressing memories and thoughts.
Unlike traditional therapies, ART is designed to work quickly, allowing you to experience relief in a matter of 1 to 5 sessions. But what makes ART truly unique is that it doesn’t require you to repeatedly rehash or relive your fear. Instead, ART focuses on transforming the way your brain stores and reacts to the thoughts and images associated with flying.
What Happens During an ART Session?
During an ART session, I’ll guide you through a series of relaxing eye movements while you focus on the thoughts, images, or physical sensations related to your fear of flying. These eye movements help activate specific areas of the brain, allowing you to access the memories and emotions associated with your fear without feeling overwhelmed.
One of the key components of ART is a technique called Voluntary Image Replacement. Using this method, I’ll help you replace the distressing images or sensations linked to flying with new, calming images that feel safe and empowering. For example, if you have a strong fear response when imagining turbulence, we might work to replace that image with one of you sitting calmly, feeling secure, and trusting the pilot’s expertise.
This process doesn’t erase your memory of the experience, but it does change how your brain interprets and responds to it. By reprocessing the memory and replacing it with a new, positive image, ART can significantly reduce the emotional intensity of your fear, allowing you to think about flying without the same level of anxiety or panic.
Why ART Is Particularly Effective for the Fear of Flying
ART is particularly well-suited for treating the fear of flying for several reasons:
It’s Fast and Effective: Many clients experience noticeable relief in as few as 1 to 3 sessions. This is ideal for people who want to address their fear quickly—especially if they have an upcoming trip or work obligation.
It’s Non-Traumatic: Unlike exposure therapy, ART doesn’t require you to repeatedly confront your fear or talk about it in detail. This makes it a more comfortable and less anxiety-provoking experience for people who feel overwhelmed by traditional approaches.
It’s Personalized: Every person’s fear of flying is different. ART allows me to tailor the session to your specific needs, whether your fear is rooted in a traumatic experience, a fear of heights, or anxiety about losing control.
It Provides Lasting Results: Because ART works by changing the way your brain stores and processes the fear memory, the results are often long-lasting. Once the memory is reprocessed, the fear response doesn’t come back in the same way.
Getting Back in the Sky—With Confidence
If a fear of flying has been holding you back, Accelerated Resolution Therapy can be a game-changer. Imagine being able to book a flight without that familiar sense of dread, board a plane without feeling panicked, and even enjoy looking out the window at the clouds below. With ART, this kind of freedom is possible.
You don’t have to live with the limitations of your fear forever. With the right support and a willingness to try something new, you can take back control and start pursuing the life and experiences you’ve been missing out on.
If you’re ready to overcome your fear of flying, consider exploring ART as an option. You deserve to feel confident, safe, and free to go wherever life takes you—whether it’s a family vacation, a work opportunity, or a spontaneous adventure to a new destination.
