Customer Reviews: Read 5 more reviews...
 Highly rated December 12, 2006
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I am normally a very logical, rational person. Fear of flying is defintely an irrational fear. I relaxed with this book, would bring it on flights with me. In fact the last flight I took was so relaxing that I left the book on the plane! If you happen to see it on an Air Canada plane, hope you can use it!
This book brought me relief! January 23, 2004
25 out of 25 found this review helpful
I had never had a fear of flying until about five years ago. A bunch of occurrances...forgetting my husband't suit for a wedding (and having to run back home, and back to the airport with three minutes to spare), 9/11, a few very turbulent flights, being tired and dehydrated (which made me ill) before getting on a plane all added up to a paralyzing fear. Not only did I have a more than subconscious fear of a plane going down, I had a fear of forgetting something important, and of getting sick. The getting sick (yes, throwing up...a lot) was a vicious cycle, because I'd be nervous about getting sick on a flight, and I'd get so nervous that the nerves made me sick! I was a mess and my life was controlled by a fear of flying. If I had a flight planned, I'd wake up terrified (and ill) in the middle of the night with uncontrollable anxiety weeks before the flight. Just the thought of getting on a plane sent me into an emotional and physical tailspin (pardon the pun). I too, knew that it was irrational, but the fear was so viceral and so out of my control, I finally sought help. A therapist suggested that the anxiety and subsequent vomitting was due to an overdose of adrenaline, and that is about all the help she could offer. I bought this book after reading the other reviews on line. I read it in a day, and over the next three flights I took after reading it, each flight became easier and easier. The last flight I took I genuinely enjoyed and I didn't need to take any anti-anxiety medicine. The book teaches you that the noises you hear a plane make are the noises it *should* be making. I always used to fear that the planes engines were failing upon ascent because you could hear them "loose power." I had no idea the pilots had that much control over the engines and that sometimes, for example, they just need to slow down the planes to comply with neighborhood noise ordinances! The book teaches you about weather conditions, and turbulance, and how planes and pilots have astounding abilities to handle them both. Sure, I still might sometimes (only sometimes) get a little jittery before a flight, but I feel that, like anything else, fear stems from the unknown, and when I educated myself on how planes work and how flying works, my fear went away. This book really, really made a huge difference in my life.
 Knuckles No Longer White October 4, 2001
86 out of 87 found this review helpful
Having experienced an aborted take off, a collision whilst taxiing and a drop in altitude which left a stewardess in tears, I feel I'm well equipped to comment on this book.I'm a 34 year old balanced/sensible male who for some bizarre reason conjures up terrible nightmares before each flight, dwells on them and then allows fear to breed fear - almost to the point of not travelling. I've tried all sorts - pills, alcohol,more alcohol, but to no avail. Until buying this book I couldn't talk, eat or begin to relax on a plane - even whilst cruising. I used to spend the entire flight waiting for the engines to fail or imagining the pilots were dealing with some sort of emergency (whilst we sat in our seats, oblivious to our imminent demise). I also knew my fear was irrational, but that made it worse - I felt totally isolated in my own private hell and as there was nothing to do on the plane (or nothing I could do) I let my imagination run riot. Anyway, to get to the point, something had to be done. I bought this book and it gave me exactly what I wanted - reasons why things go 'bump in the flight', reassurance on the safety/maintainance aspects (I'm no longer waiting for the plane to drop out of the sky. I mean, do people worry about a car just stopping on the motorway - and that's only got one engine!) I no longer watch the stewardesses and assume that if they're not smiling the planes about to crash. I'm amazed I thought that way now. Unlike other phobics (and a couple of the reviewers that critisized this book) I've always known there isn't a magic cure
and I'm the one whose got to change the way I think about flying. I've had to go from knowing it's irrational, but feeling petrified, to knowing it's irrational and actually believing it's the safest form of transport. I'm not there yet, but I'm slowly winning. In fact on three of my last four flights I've been able to eat and talk !! Many thanks Debbie - your book was money well spent.
 Not a Whole Lotta Help April 3, 2001
11 out of 23 found this review helpful
Although not an uninteresting exploration of many of the aspects of flying, this book does not seem likely to truly alleviate many of the fears of the uncertain flier. It is one thing to understand the mechanics of flying, but quite another to get detailed descriptions of emergency procedures when something goes wrong. Those of us who suffer or have suffered bouts of unnecessary white-knuckled flying want to know how the plane stays in the air, why it is unlikely that something will go wrong and what all those noises and sensations are that may set us off. We also want to know what is going on in the cockpit during a normal flight, since most of us realize that once we've landed, we've once again experienced a normal flight...There are much better books than this one if you want to conquer any fear of flying....END
 Very Poor Reasurances October 30, 2000
18 out of 45 found this review helpful
The reviews about this book were so great that I decided to get it and I was very disappointed.Debbie Seaman explains all the mechanics of the plain which is helpfull but when it comes to explaining the take-off or emergency landings she becomes very vague. She talk about take-off as one of the crucial parts of flying. She says that even if there is something wrong found with the plain during take-off it still must reach the altitude before asking for emergency landing, now, that does not give me any assuarance of safety. Also, flight attendants are not suppose to contact the pilot during take of if they see something wrong with the plain. Another part of the book that kept me hanging with the questions in the air was the emergency landing. The author just says not to worry, the plane will land even without any power in the engins.Well that does not explain to me how it will land. Just because it supposed to glide in the air? To my knowledge the plane glides but to its death. This book created more fears for me than I had before.
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